Optimist

It's still very definitely winter here, but in trees all round the village this afternoon there were robins singing lustily, claiming their territories and trying to attract partners. It's a definite sign that spring isn't far away, and as I slid and squelched around the muddy fields it raised my spirits considerably.

This evening R and I have been to the cinema to see The Post which I enjoyed very much. Tom Hanks barely seemed to get above third gear as Ben Bradlee, but Meryl Streep was excellent as Katherine Graham, publisher of The Washington Post, who made the crucially brave decision to publish the Pentagon papers in the face of legal and financial jeopardy. By the last few minutes of the film I was brushing away the odd tear - though as R said, that's almost obligatory with a Spielberg film. Since arriving home I've read a couple of articles about Kay Graham, including her 2001 obituary in The Guardian, and they've made me want to read the autobiography Personal History, for which she won the Pulitzer Prize in 1998. A remarkable woman, and a compelling story.