Reflection

Mute swan, Sandside, Cumbria

A beautiful morning with not a cloud in the sky, followed by a warm spring-like day. All but one of the swans have deserted the estuary now, probably returning to the rivers, lakes and tarns of the Lake District where they will breed.

An anxious day in the office, everyone waiting for the tap on the shoulder that will mean they have not been selected nor assigned to a post in the new structure of the slimmed-down organisation. If the tap doesn't come by 1230 tomorrow, it will mean we have survived this round of cuts, and will be assigned to a role. For me it didn't come today.

The beauty of the swan reminds me that whatever happens, I have something that can't be taken away from me - a deep connection to the natural world, a love of living things that burns unquenchably.