Lessons in the hills

So my grand dreams of life in the hills and the plans I laid out went for a toss. How was one to know that it can turn dark and gloomy and rain all the time and turn bitterly cold. When one can't step out of the house all one can do is read a book which I have done and gone cross eyed with the effort. Then one can eat sleep,read again or like my veteran friend in the hills suggested go for a walk in the rain in a rain coat. I tried that and looked like a dressed chicken on the run. My sister provided me with a yellow raincoat with a hood and while it served the purpose,it turned out I could just see straight ahead so there I was walking up the hill huffing and puffing like a steam engine and numbing into the husband  at the same time thanks to not being able to see.

I am still finding my feet so I get myself a sweater and then find that I need a cap to protect my ears and a scarf to protect my neck and after all that has been arranged there I am bowed down with the weight of so much clothing and feeling rather uncomfortable. To have lived in a city were the better part of the time one is in shorts and t shirts thanks to blistering heat ,one is learning that the weather is unpredictable and must be respected. New lessons everyday and so my rainy day lesson is over. Wonder what tomorrow brings.

Smart technology

I belong to a generation that grew up playing in the sun,visiting friends homes at holidays,writing letters to each other because we didn't have access to telephones let alone smart phones. Our childhoods were spent eating mothers home cooked meals,we had friends we shared our lives with,had petty quarrels with ,we stopped talking to each other ,we we're mean to each other and despite all that we learnt with each new low,how to appreciate each high. We remained friends even when our loves changed.

College years were spent on public transport and all research was done in libraries . We didn't know google search. We shared,we liked and poked and commented but all of them were different from what they stand for now. Apple for us was a fruit and still is.

We grew up and had to adapt to changes,and we did. Today I watched a video of a man lamenting his lost life thanks to social media,aps and devices and I felt sorry for him . Today my generation is active on Facebook,whatsap and we use smart phones and tablets,but our friends are all people we know,they are all people we like and have a relationship with,our smartphones are used to stay in touch with families, or in the rare instance when we are lost,we may use maps,only and only if there is no human being around. We make eye contact and today I still email my friends on holidays and emotions not like are shared. We support each other. Some of us have been away for years and have made contact again and it's the real friendships which are reflected on our Facebook pages. I am the first one to appreciate smart technology but I know my generation will never become a slave to it. I watch people today meeting for coffee and no conversations take place because all of them are on their phones and then I look at my group,we may have just had a conversation on the phone but we meet again because we have so much more to share,so much more to talk about. My generation is very lucky we have had the best of both worlds and to us relationships are what matter.

My dream life in the hills

It's four in the evening and there is a silence that for me is unusual. The trees sway in a gentle breeze,fluffy white clouds dot the sky and the silence is broken by an occasional birdsong. Up on a road winding it's way through the hills a car or truck will chug along or a bus carrying people home will come into sight. All around me are green vistas broken only by small plantations. Coming from the city I am forced to lower my voice,everything carries in the wind and even a whisper is amplified. Unfortunately for me I have lived ll my life in the city and am not sure what to do with hours that hang heavy on my hands so I imagine what it will be like to 

I've in this place where I have no friends,don't know the terrains and how I would deal with the silence. Let me see ,I would start the day making breakfast ,then I would tidy the house,make lunch and then work in the garden for atleaat threw hours in the afternoon. Tea time would roll around and then dinner and finally I would curl up in bed with a good book. I think I may vary it a bit so one day will be marketing day,where the weeks shopping would get done and we would have lunch out. Maybe a day for writing letters,I would actually write not email. Find myself a membership in the local library. How would I make friends it's difficult at the best of times but worse when one is as old as I am and in a strange place but I think the husband will take care of that. I have explored how to go up the valley and down the glen so that would take up a bit of time. Most of all I promise to make myself self reliant and grow as many vegetables as I can. I toy with the idea of keeping a few chicken for eggs and a dog to take with me on walks....hmm looks like a plan doesn't it? . The question is how do I make it happen.