Sunday 19th July 2015

Sunday.

And this really is it: the last day. We sleep long into the morning, the bed covered with three cats, all trying to be the nearest to us. Great how quickly things return to normal.

The plan today, was to see some orchids. Again. If we see the Broad Leafed Hellebroines, it would leave me with just two more species to see, and we should get one more next week. How quickly the season seems to be over down here.

We have breakfast and decide to see Nan on the way out: she has recovered somewhat since her suspected stroke a couple of weeks back, and it would be our first visit since then.

She is awake and recognises us, although not all is well. She is hallucinating again, and it is so bad she daren’t close her eyes, and the lack of sleep which we believe is the cause of these, is made worse. She is seeing horrible things, doesn’t know if she slept in the home that night, as she thinks her bed was moved. She has seen people cutting their arms off, threatening her too.

There is nothing we can do, which makes us feel nearly as bad as it can be.

After 45 minutes we leave, with Nan distraught. It is hard. Very hard.

We drive to Folkestone and then onto Ashford until it is time to turn off the motorway. We passed where, until late yesterday, hundreds of trucks had been parked; portable toilets still stood every hundred metres or so. But now it was back to being a motorway again.

On the side of the down, we park and walk along the overgrown path until we come to the clearing. Although we could not see them yet, we knew there were orchids over there. They were not quite as advanced as I thought, but several spikes were at least partly open, so I got the shots I wanted. Here were butterflies around too, so I snapped what I could before we turned to leave.

It would take 45 minutes to get home, so, I decided against looking for the Violet Helleborines, as it was at least a week too early, so drove home down the motorway, then through the town to doge what queues there might have been at the port.

Shall we stop at the Rack of Ale to pick up a carry out?

I think we shall.

We stay for a swifter, and a chinwag. But time is getting away, so after putting the world and our local CAMRA branch to rights; Jools and I go home for dinner, some more booze and a snooze.

Back home I cook breaded chicken, but do not cook the salad. I say salad, we forgot the radishes, spring onions, lettuce and beets: so salad was in fact cucumber, sweet peppers and half a chopped onion. Still worked though.

And the day and our holiday faded. The first time Jools and I have had 14 days off together since the wedding, or our wedding. One to remember and treasure.