Holiday reflections

Time away, the promise of sun, no to-do lists, time spent with family, and space to read and rest. One of the lovely things about going away is the opportunity to see somewhere new, of having that excitement of wandering and not knowing what is round the next corner. On Sunday Ellie and I took ourselves off and wandered the town.

We were the tourists ambling, going down the cobbled streets the evening sunlight caught our eye.

At the bottom of the hill we turned from looking at the boats, the other way the sky was still blue,  we watched the bustle go by and somehow my camera caught us in the shadow.

The next evening we went back for more, and the sunset rewarded us. You cannot do anything but relax and enjoy when the sky is so beautiful.

In between sunsets we spent lots of time doing nothing. But it's in those times honesty can speak. My son told me over tea one evening that the school do better mashed potato than me (imagine my reaction to that one), I found that not having a facebook newsfeed to flick on every 30 seconds was releasing, and that my husband can still be disciplined to go running in 30 degree heat as he trains for a marathon (not that I really doubted that one).

Coming back we stopped off to spend a couple of days with friends in Bournemouth. It was a special weekend as it was the air festival. What's amazing about this is you literally sit on a beach, paddle in the sea, and meanwhile an air show goes on around you, the noise catching you by surprise as the jets weave over your heads. Saturday the sky was pure blue.

What made it even more special was this one of the last weekends we will spend with our close friends before they move away. It was another weekend of making time to do the important, friendship and making memories, as well as acknowledging the changes that are about to happen, of talking and sharing hopes and concerns.

So as September starts and the holidays end what are my final reflections? Life without so much crammed in gives that all important space. Sometimes I've used it well, sometimes not. But is that OK? Yes it is, as I've learnt through Brene Brown that my enough is enough. I feel rested, but I haven't written a new to- do list of good intentions. Instead I'm starting September knowing the importance of family, friends, and recognising the most important conversations come at unplanned times. I have also seen again how God is with me, and I'm looking for his echoes, of wanting to listen to what God is saying, and knowing that it is about relationship.

The sky on Saturday was a love gift.

Jane