The walled garden, Prinknash Abbey

GG and I set off at midday today for a walk around the Prinknash Abbey estate. There are still monks at the monastery, down from 14 in 2005, when I worked at the gift shop, to 8 now. We saw the stark wooden crosses of the recently deceased monks in the monks' graveyard, up on the hillside.

Mostly what we saw, though, was spring growth: buzzing beehives, budding tulips, flowering redcurrants. Two established pergolas in an older garden under reconstruction. The monks are too old to maintain it any more, so volunteers do the work, when they can under the current restrictions. I do urge a visit if you're in the area, it's not far from Gloucester, Cheltenham or Stroud. (There is normally a monastic shop/tea room open, but what is normal now?) Outside the monastery a monk in his Benedictine robes posed beside GG for a photo, but stipulated that it mustn't be published. It's on GG's phone anway. The chapel was closed, unfortunately, because the monks fear it may get mobbed by visitors on Sundays.

After a couple of hours, we whizzed back to Stroud and beyond to GG's house, where we whipped up a picnic, lit the fire and switched on the TV. Rebecca was on Taking Pictures: the classic black and white film version. I think I know every line off by heart. Superb! Food was good too, even if GG did dip one of my hand made chocolate blondies into my home made tapenade! I begged her to stop. Maybe she has no taste, literally.

After the film, when I'd identified the problem with her printer (colour cartridge run out, both cartridges incorrectly inserted) and we'd ordered a replacement cartridge, I went home and watched the BAFTAS. After that, time for Line of Duty (Mother of God, the tension!) Now I think I'll go to bed and set up the TV, so I can watch My Cousin Rachel, on Channel 4, later. Two Daphne de Maurier films on in one day. Both superb in different ways.

Oh, and as well as sunshine on our walk, we had a chill wind, an exhilarating stinging hailstorm, and a distant view of the snow-capped peaks of the Malverns. Life is rarely as surprising as it is right now.