Sunday 10th June

And so we return to England, for a while.  But we did succeed in signing the papers for our new house in France.  We should complete by August, so we will return then, hopefully to fit out our new home.  We have met quite a few English people out here, and they are all so welcoming and helpful.  It does seem a delightful life; though I am not sure I could abandon all ties with England and come here to live permanently.  Having a foot in each camp seems the best of both worlds.  So, we cannot wait for August, first of course the Olympics, which Julia is running away from, and then at least a week or so back here in Eymet.

So, in the space of just a few years my life has turned around.  I finally sold the big house in East London, which had it been in West London would have been worth three times as much, still never mind.  Now I have a small house in Walton on the Naze, and an even smaller one in France.

One of the secrets of life is not to be envious of anyone else; you have no idea what their lives are really like anyway – for all you know they may be envying you.  Remember that for every one who has a bigger house or car, better job, or prettier partner, there is always someone else who is renting, or unemployed, or just plain miserable.  Make the most of what you have, and remember that whatever filling you find when you open up your lunchbox, you make your own sandwiches.