Peace On Earth/Little Drummer Boy . . .

. . . Bing Crosby, David Bowie

Today we braved the shopping mall and worse it's carpark.  It is raining today which is a Christmas present for the garden.  The forester dropped me at the entrance and then went to park the truck.  (This was just a precaution in case I slipped and hurt my back further) Once inside I found my two items without any trouble and got a nice surprise of 30% off in one shop.  The mall was packed with people looking for last minute gifts.  Santa was putting on a jolly smile for the children having their photo taken with him.  There was a cue to have the teenage girls wrap gifts.  Raspberries and cherries were for sale.  I then waited at the entrance to be collected by my driver.  In that five minutes I observed the passing parade and made a vow to be aware of the people around me, give way, take time, smile, breath . . .
Next we got out of through the long lanes of traffic and  out to the relative peace of the sister in laws property.  The cherries are all gone but the apricots are ripening nicely.  A bucket load has come home to be bottled in jars or eaten fresh. There was a line of cars beside a paddock of apple trees and the drivers were in the trees thinning apples.  I thought good on them working in the rain.  One summer while he was at university our son spent sometime staying in Nelson with mates and each day they drove out to an orchard and did this job. 
Last task was to drive back through the traffic and pick up the boat battery.  It had had to be ordered in.  All set for father daughter fishing.