When Reuters came to the village to talk Brexit

Reuters microphone

A few weeks ago, a local friend contacted me to see if I would be happy to talk to a Reuters journalist from Paris, who was interested in meeting with people who are integrated into their local community in France, about the impact Brexit is likely to have on their lives. 

Filming in the village library

I’ve done a few magazine interviews about our life in France, and usually look on things like this as a good experience and doing something a bit different for fun. Brexit is not fun and we, the forgotten in France, need a voice so this was an opportunity not to be wasted, despite not being totally comfortable being filmed. My fear for our future was greater than my fear of sitting and chatting with a camera, a microphone and a light pointing at me. Thankfully I was told to ignore it all, which I gratefully did.

The interview

The (very reliable) village grapevine has reported that my interview, filmed in the village library, was shown on French TV (in English) about a week ago. All I’ve been able to find online is a written article quoting me talking about our situation (see here), and a video clip following some of our friends in the area (see here). It was an experience, but I can’t say I’m too disappointed at not being able to watch myself on TV.

From the Reuters article

Maybe one day we will have answers to our questions about continuing our business, that relies on EU rulings and freedom of movement, and assurances not only on our status to remain in France, but for Ed to finish his university education here too.

On camera

Maybe one day Mrs May will think about the lives of the EU citizens who exercised their right to move freely within the member states and appreciate the benefits they have made to their new areas. 

Maybe one day my stomach will stop tying itself in knots on a way too regular basis and Adrian’s blood pressure will return to a healthier level.

https://www.remaininfrance.org

Celebrating Friendships

Being together - corridor decoration at the retirement home

My life since finishing my four-month contract at the library, has taken a hectic dive into the unknown, the unexpected and often the downright bizarre.

Some days have been full of laughter and cake, others have been emotionally tough, but the good and the bad have one thing in common; friendship. 

Wine soaked sponge sticks

I am doing what I can, as a friend, to support one of the first people I met here in our village, as the bastard that is cancer tightens its grip upon her life. Morphine pumps, drips, drains and wine sucked through sponges on sticks, have become our apero norm, alongside laughter and good company. From translating for the doctors and nurses, to finding a local English-speaking vicar, to saying prayers with her (maybe that Catholic upbringing wasn’t wasted after all), I know I am doing all I can in a totally rubbish situation. 

In turn I have friends who are there for me too. From caring texts that make me smile, to cake-eating outings; the distractions are welcome and very much appreciated. 

Mr Accordion and the birthday celebrations

Last week, another good friend had a favour to ask. Would I pop into the retirement home and visit her Mum, while she took a well-earned break for a few days. Having seen the devastation Alzheimer’s has had on her Mum, I was unsure if she would even recognise me, but visit her I would, and what a visit it was. She not only remembered me, she asked after Ed too and the god of cake appreciation was smiling down on me as my visit coincided with a communal birthday celebration. A room full of pensioners, an accordion player, foot-tapping music and even a spot of dancing, all helped to perk my mood up no end, and left us both laughing as well as oohing and aahing over the light and creamy, raspberry topped gateau. I would have been happy to stay forever - in fact maybe I should ask if they need a librarian.

Cancer, Alzheimer’s and the constant worry and fear over Brexit, plus the time and effort required to cope with the Brexit bureaucracy mean my stress levels are high and life has felt pretty crap at times. 

Thank god for good friends, friendship, wine and cake. 

https://www.remaininfrance.orghttps

Lazy Sunday in France, Ed's 18th birthday

The birthday boy

The last time I posted a Lazy Sunday in France post, it was September and my birthday. I can’t believe how quickly the last five weeks have gone, now it’s October and we’ve celebrated Ed’s birthday too. In fact, I can’t believe where the last 18 years have gone, but here are a few pictures from Ed’s 18^thbirthday bash on Friday night. Happy Birthday Ed. 

Birthday beer

Things to include for a French village style 18^thbirthday celebration:

Food and drink – it was in the bar, so there was no risk of us running out of drink and they put together a tasty selection of apero nibbles too.

The speech

Embarrassing photos and speech – well, it wouldn’t be a Brown event without a slide show presentation and what better way to mark 18 years than lots of cute baby photos, funny dressing-up photos, the annual back to school pictures and plenty of cool guitar pictures too. Also important were a few words from Mum and Dad about how proud we are, valiantly read out in French by Adrian, to the awe (and amusement of our French friends).

Music

Music – I’m guessing not everyone is the entertainment for their own birthday party, but with a bit of help from Adrian, and a lively karaoke session too, we certainly had good music.

The cake

Cake with candles – expertly made by me and decorated by Adrian. This shot really does show it in its best light.

Karaoke

Friends – oh yes! The translation of the name of our village bar is ‘between mates’ and we were lucky to gather together some good friends from the village to help us celebrate, many of whom have watched Ed grow up over the last fourteen years.

As we said on Friday, whatever you do in the future Ed, and wherever life takes you, we hope that you won’t be afraid of taking risks, that you’ll be happy and that you will never forget growing up in our quirky little French village.

Photos thanks to village photographer Martin O’Neill, always out and about with his camera slung over his shoulder, but equally happy to do family photo shoots in his studio and host photography workshops from his gîte. For more information see his website here.

Book review of The Poppy Field by Deborah Carr

The Poppy Field by Deborah Carr

My review today is for The Poppy Field, the second historical novel by Deborah Carr. 

Synopsis:

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War.

Young nurse, Gemma, is struggling with the traumas she has witnessed through her job in the NHS. Needing to escape from it all, Gemma agrees to help renovate a rundown farmhouse in Doullens, France, a town near the Somme. There, in a boarded-up cupboard, wrapped in old newspapers, is a tin that reveals the secret letters and heartache of Alice Le Breton, a young volunteer nurse who worked in a casualty clearing station near the front line.

Set in the present day and during the horrifying years of the war, both women discover deep down the strength and courage to carry on in even the most difficult of times. Through Alice’s words and her unfailing love for her sweetheart at the front, Gemma learns to truly live again.

This is a beautifully written epic historical novel that will take your breath away.

 

The Poppy Field blog tour

My Review:

I enjoyed getting to know Gemma, discovering why she is alone in a run-down farmhouse in the Somme area of France and what had happened to make her run away from her old life. It is soon apparent that her sadness and vulnerability are only partly masked by her independence. Fate, or maybe the farmhouse itself, leads her to local builder Tom, who soon begins to help her with her task of restoring the house, so her father can sell it. Tom and Gemma both have secrets from their past, but it’s the discovery of a box of letters, hidden in an outbuilding on the farm, that help them decide what they want for the future.

The letters take us back to 1918 where volunteer nurse Alice Le Breton is working in a casualty clearing station not far from the frontline trenches. Just like Gemma, I too became absorbed in Alice’s life; the exhaustion, the relentless convoys bringing in more wounded men, the strict rules imposed on the girls by Matron and the nursing sisters. Deborah’s writing brought to life the horrors of trench warfare from the point of view of the nurses, most of whom had little training or experience before the war. The dirt, the lice, the infected wounds and then the gas attacks, meant there wasn’t much for them to look forward to, especially as fraternising with the patients was forbidden.

Alice was dedicated to her job, independent and determined to live her life to the full, despite the risks involved, and I didn’t want to stop reading until I discovered what became of her after the war ended.

This book switches from one era to another, which worked well for me, and I also enjoyed seeing the similarities between Gemma and Alice, as well as discovering places with Gemma in 2018, that Alice had visited in 1918. This is a well-researched book that I think is a beautiful tribute to mark the 100^thanniversary of the end of the First World War.

Author Bio:

Deborah Carr

Deborah Carr lives on the island of Jersey in the Channel Islands with her husband, two children and three rescue dogs. She became interested in books set in WW1 when researching her great-grandfather's time as a cavalryman in the 17th 21st Lancers.

She is part of ‘The Blonde Plotters’ writing group and was Deputy Editor on the online review site, Novelicious.com for seven years. Her debut historical romance, Broken Faces, is set in WW1 and was runner-up in the 2012 Good Housekeeping Novel Writing Competition and given a 'special commendation' in the Harry Bowling Prize that year. The Poppy Field is her second historical novel.

You can find and follow Deborah on her Website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.

 

The Poppy Field by Deborah Carr publication date 12th October 2018

The Poppy Field is out now in ebook and paperback format and is a must read for those who enjoy well-researched fiction set during the First World War. Links to Amazon can be found below.

You might also like Deborah’s first historical novel Broken Faces, also set during the First World War. If you are interested in historical reads, where romance and history are nicely combined, I’m sure you will enjoy it. You can read my full review here.

100km in a day

Village art along the way

For the fourth consecutive year, I, Jacqui Brown, now aged 47 years old, have cycled my 100km in a day birthday challenge.

The clock tower in St Jean d'Angeley

Despite knowing I am less cycle-fit this year than last year, I was still determined to give it my best shot and think it’s worth celebrating my achievement, even if a lack of time to plan a new route meant we re-ran last year’s route to St Jean d’Angeley.

Homeward bound on tree-lined roads

You know life is busy and hectic when an event like this gets squeezed in around other commitments, seems like the easiest thing you’ve achieved in the last few weeks and then quickly becomes forgotten in the craziness of life.

Following (in the wrong direction) the Chemin de St Jacques

The weather was perfect; calm, sunny and not too hot, and taking the back roads through small villages meant there was always something to catch my eye and give me a good excuse to hop off the bike and take a photo or two.

Beer and pain aux raisin halfway there treat

As usual, our halfway point was marked with a beer and a patisserie, sat in a shady square in St Jean d’Angeley. Here we met another couple of cyclists out for one of their first rides on a pair of matching Brompton bikes. Adrian was rather excited to spot the Brompton’s as his beloved Brompton (Delila) lives in the UK and I think he misses her when he’s back with us in France. If I had a crystal ball, I’m sure I’d see a vision of the two of us cycling on Bromptons here in France in the not too distant future.

Look at these beauties!

I certainly hope to celebrate many more birthdays in this way with Adrian, my route planner, by my side, and have to credit our neighbour Pierrette who is a real inspiration to me. She will be having a hip replacement next month, but despite this, and being 78 years young, she is still out on her bike every weekend. She claims that although uncomfortable to walk, cycling doesn’t hurt her hip at all - until she gets off the bike. I may not be doing 100km in a day when I’m 78, but I do still hope to be cycling, just like Pierrette.

Home for a dip in the pool!

Cycling is more than good exercise, it is also a great way to clear your mind, focus on something different and escape the stresses of daily life. The past month or so has seen me drowning in dossiers of French paperwork, helping friends in situations that have tested my translation skills to the max, as well as learning a lot about friendship, compassion and what the important things in life really are. I’ve even had the excitement of a film crew in the village, interested in our worries and concerns as the Brexit nightmare looms ever closer.

Ed in Poitiers

I am slowly accepting that Ed is doing OK living on his own in Poitiers, hasn’t starved to death, and is occasionally cooking real food as well as opening tins and reheating the contents. In fact, Poitiers is becoming reassuringly familiar and from what I have seen, I am not at all surprised it is ranked in 2^nd place in terms of quality of student life, for towns in France with up to 40,000 students. I still feel rather cheated that he had signed his first rental contract at only 17 years old, but this has probably helped me come to terms with the fact that by the time this week comes to an end my baby will be a child no more, but an 18-year-old adult who is already well on his way to an independent future.