Along the valley

It was a beautiful Thursday morning. Before lunch, I enjoyed a walk along the valley in the opposite direction to usual, heading roughly south towards Lyminge which is the next substantial village. The path is part of the Elham Valley Way, and this stretch runs alongside the Nailbourne, which is currently flowing quite fast and full after the winter rains. It's a winterbourne, a dry bed for much of the year which fills only when ground water levels are relatively high. Further along the valley it has flooded across the low lying meadows but it's not currently high enough to block roads or damage property. This part of the route is almost directly below our house, which is up the side of valley to the right, though it's not visible from the path. There is no direct route home though - the only option is to turn back and retrace my steps through the village. It's a long time since I'd walked this way, so I enjoyed the different perspective on the familiar landscape, and looked forward to the time when the tangled, lichen encrusted hawthorn hedges will be pink and white with blossom.

After lunch there was a positive and useful appointment with the consultant surgeon who operated on J in the summer. I was particularly pleased that his secretary had responded positively to my email requesting that the telephone appointment booked for J (who can neither hear nor speak on the telephone) should  instead be a video appointment. When I telephoned the outpatient appointments team with the same  request, it was met with a flat refusal - the consultant "would not do that". In fact he was perfectly willing; it's just not the norm for that institution. We have experienced many video appointments with various NHS hospitals and services, and they both allow J to participate, as of course she should, and give professionals who have not previously met her in person a better grasp of who she is and the support she needs. 

And finally, there were waffles with Ben and Jerry's chocolate caramel icecream for dessert!