Coming Back

After nearly two months away from Europe, I have to come back. It's been a welcome break which has done a lot to heal some very immediate scars. When I left I was jaded, tired and despairing. My time in Australia and New Zealand has given me new sights and sounds, fresh experiences and lots of time to reflect. I have thought about the past and the future. I still don't know what I'm going to do in the long term, but I know that the immediate future is about filler, paint and ladders, as I decorate Sainte Foy.

There is a bit more thinking time on the plane, of course, and tonight in Hong Kong, where I am having a lay over for 18 hours. But by the end of Tuesday I will be back in London and perhaps I'll wonder where it all went. There are loads of photos and images in my mind, not to mention some sand in the big red suitcase. I did leave some of my hair in New Zealand - I had a Hokitika haircut - but apart from that all I left was my tiredness and despair. Rosie is a massive gap in my life but I now know that she is part of my past.

You are all very welcome to visit me this year in Sainte Foy because I have plenty of paint brushes and several ladders. It's going to take the remainder of the year to finish the job but I have to get it done, whether I continue to live in the house or decide to sell it. So please come and help me paint and continue to heal. I do need my friends more than ever.