I am back in the garden, turning the soil, getting close to the silty, stony, heavy, wet scent of the water-logged soil after months of rain. And the sky clears and the warmth of the sun tries to ease my straining back as I try to turn ground which really would be better left alone.

I have been deprived of this elementally satisfying task for too long, an activity which soothes, distracts, unravels and calms my peripatetic mind. Like meeting the eyes of a loved one when in need, or being offered a drink when parched of thirst, my whole body and soul is hungry and thirsty to feel this good again. Feeling the best I can be, in my garden.

A rebel at heart and no lover of the long dark winter months or the traditional Christmas ‘Turkey and Tinsel’ festivities, I celebrated Christmas 2013 in Scandinavian style.

Breaking…