Hints of autumn

I'm never very keen on the end of August... the sense of losing summer dominates, whereas once we get into autumn itself, in September, I always enjoy the crispness, the colours, the changing light.  Today's rain, however, has been very welcome. The rather gloomy light, not so much.

I knew Ruth had a lot on her plate today, with both boys at home and Josh at work. She's struggling with fatigue at the moment; probably just the result of many broken nights with a restless nearly-three-year-old, although I do wonder if she might be slightly anaemic.  As we were eating lunch, Ruth was talking about her sense of feeling overwhelmed sometimes, of not keeping up with everything. Eben, Luca and I listened and ate quietly, meanwhile. After a bit, Eben looked up and said 'Mum, I know you're very stressed', in a calm, warm voice that seemed so much older than his six years.  She smiled, said 'thank you Eben!' and the mood around the table lifted.

Anyway, with all that in mind, I'd booked a swimming session for us at the local leisure pool. We had a good time: Ruth and Eben enjoying the big, bumpy slides, while Luca and I mostly took the easy option in the little jacuzzi pool with its toddler-sized slide. Up until now, Luca has often found this big, busy swimming complex a bit overwhelming, particularly as it's very noisy. Today was totally different. He was keen to wander around independently, exploring bubbling fountains and water sprays. He struck up conversations with other kids and their mothers, and was generally in his element. It was a pleasure to see.
Tonight Richard has a band practice downstairs with two friends, while I edit and upload sculpture photos to the public art database.  Hence this particular emergency blip - the desk, with its clutter of lists, specs and laptop.