I have not been able to write for a while now. Christmas and New Year have come and gone. It was the first Christmas that I have spent alone and I found it very difficult. My daughter was working in France, my son visiting his girlfriend. I have known for a while that eventually, one year, I would have to spend Christmas alone but didn’t realise how much it would affect me. I felt so alone, so out of connection with the rest of the world who (in my mind) were out there having a happy time. It has taken me a while to recover. Today, in fact this evening, I am now feeling better and feel I can face the New Year with some enthusiasm.