If you missed Part I you can read it here and Part II here
France 2001
The little house still stood in the lane, and in the hot August sunshine the roof almost glistened with heat in the places where the moss had not yet got a hold. The gate in the overgrown, unkempt hedge, hung heavy with chain and a large rusty padlock; the path beyond to a door that had lost most of its paint was barely visible for the tufts of shaggy grass and clusters of pink valerian that sprung out of its cobbled cracks. The afternoon silence shimmered with heat and all that could be heard was a soft buzz of insects and the rattle of scurrying lizards in the grass. Continue reading “Audrey – A Short Summer Story – Part III”
As I sit here writing this post gazing down our long garden, it’s a scene that probably hasn’t changed much in a hundred years. Yet so much could alter today, the day Britain votes to either remain or leave the EU. In London it’s pouring with rain, there are lightning strikes, and storms and flooding have caused travel chaos. Here in the Charente Maritime the hot sun continues to shine, the skies remain resolutely blue, and life continues as normal. 
It was with some triumph that Roddy returned home from our local market a while ago with a bag of milk. I looked at it in some surprise but a closer inspection revealed the words “lait cru.” Roddy stood there grinning at me, and I realised he was as excited as I was becoming – this was raw milk, unpasteurised and fresh from the cow as nature intended it to be. 
Our French Oasis 