To go forward sometimes we have to go back. Just a little, I promise. I don’t mean to take you on a meandering journey down my memory lane (boring) but I think it’s important to introduce a few characters from the start that will make regular (I hope) appearances throughout this journey.
Firstly, my younger brother, Ned, who drove all through the night to pick me and my 2 suitcases up when I landed back ‘home’ in the UK after leaving my life in South Africa.
He has since emigrated to Australia and even though you would think that would be a pretty good excuse to not get roped into household chores in Italy, somehow he’s still macheted his way through the 2m long weeds in my garden and bravely de-spidered the dark old cottage.
Secondly, my sister Meg.
It’s hard to put into words just how important one person can be in life, and, without getting all misty eyed about it, I know that I would not be where I am today without her. If she hadn’t talked me out of it, I would be living as a hermit in a cabin in the woods fast becoming a dark fairy tale told to local children to scare them into doing their homework.
She flew to Italy to check that the house I liked was giving the opposite of Miss Havisham vibes and I have since realised that unconditional love looks like this: ‘No! I will not let you become a cat lady.’ Not that there’s anything wrong with cats, I love them, and there’s a visiting one right now keeping the mice at bay (thank you for your service). I suppose there is such a thing as too many cats and that’s where you need someone who loves you to step in and draw the line.
Thirdly – I say thirdly and not finally as there are also many more family and friends who are supporting me through this journey but I don’t want to lose you before we get started so I’m trying to keep it concise (ha)!
Thirdly, my older brother, Jack.
Despite having his own busy life running a business and looking after his daughter, accompanied me on the maiden voyage of driving my things from the UK to Italy 2 months after getting the keys. I say accompanied but in all honesty he was very much the Captain doing all the lifting, loading & driving and I was…not even the First Mate… definitely just the Chief Stewardess: providing instruction & moral support…!
We all like to think that we are the main character in our world but I like to think of my siblings as more than sidekicks; they are their own protagonists who chose to spend their valuable and finite time in my story, and for that, I am ever grateful to them.
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