Weigela - November

Another late night/early morning so I didn't wake till after 8. I swithered about going for a swim but I did and my glad that I did. It was a bit busier than I'm used to but still enjoyable.

Then to Homebase for a replacement picture frame, some more 'reduced' pansies and a couple of large pots, oh and an Amaryllis. I've decided to put the 2 Olivia roses in pots to start off with and I may leave them there. My 2 minutes silence was spent among the plants in St Leonard's.

Back home I had my Sunday, post swimming treat - bacon rolls. Then to the garden. It was glorious: the sun was shining, no wind and blue sky. It didn't feel at all like early November. I planted up the 2 roses, planted some more pansies, digging out weeds as I went, and shifted a couple of tall plants to the back of the border. The radio was on and Molly was dotting to and fro. It was lovely, so re-energising, re-balancing. There is nothing like getting your hands dirty in a garden. And the garden is looking really good. In fact when I came back from the pool I thought someone had been in and planted some plants for me because the begonias are still in full flower, in fact as good as they have been since summer. They are very susceptible to frost so ......

And in the late afternoon sun, which now is about 3 p.m. I noticed the weigela with its second flush of blooms. The black dots are not dust or dirt, they are the host of small flies that were swarming around.

After a bit more general tidying and clearing up and putting photos of Olivia in frames I am now relaxing, although I do have work to do.

'Countryfile' tonight is about the area around Arras, where my relatives live. They, my relys that is, are there because my great great uncle worked for the CWGC, caring for the Duisans cemetery.

What if - what if we hadn't fought WW1? What if we'd withdrawn 'early doors'? I suspect not a lot would be different from where we are now, except maybe WW2 wouldn't have happened and maybe the Middle East wouldn't have been carved up in a way that is contributing to the current conflicts.

What if ....

And now i'm watching Sue Perkins on the Mekong, in Phnom Penh in S21 and the Killing Fields. I've been there it. And for me that is much worse than anything that happened in WW1. Remember.