“That will be forty-four dollars each”, answered the smartly-dressed gentleman at the clothing alterations store, in response to my inquiry.

“Ah excuse me, what?!” I responded in horror.  “Forty-four dollars just to hem a pair of trousers?  Don’t be ridiculous!  They barely cost that much in the first place and I’m sure it wouldn’t take you more than five minutes to lop off a few centimetres, turn up the fabric a couple of times and sew a straight line around the bottom of each leg.  Forty-four dollars?  I don’t think so, thank you.  I’ll hem them myself”.

That was all in my head, of course.  What I actually said was “Oh, um……”

“I can give you a ten percent discount”, he continued, seeing the uncertainty in my face.

“No, thank you.  I think I’ll leave it.”

“Buy Two Pairs of Lightweight Trousers” had triumphantly been ticked off my pre-travel “To Do” list.  But unfortunately “Hem New Trousers” had then been added straight away.  My list was long and time was rushing by.

My decision to travel back to France had been made in March this year, but since then Clive and I have had a few extra things going on.  A very big one of those things was the wedding of Heir Number One to his Beloved in April.  Although I’d heard stories from friends about the busy lead-up to their children’s weddings, I’d never understood just quite what was involved.  No wonder they’d all looked so frazzled!  It was a pretty full-on time, despite the fact that the loving couple had already organised a huge amount themselves.

However, the wedding was a fantastic occasion, full of joy, love and laughter.  To see our son so happy and to hear an amazing woman say just how much she loves him – well, it was an amazing experience.  We are so very grateful.

The months before the wedding had also included house purchases by not only the betrothed, but also Heir Number Two.  Go him!  Many properties were viewed and serious discussions were had, both in-house and in-bank.  Sale and Purchase Agreements were signed and all of a sudden our sons were both house-owners.  Hurrah!  And then of course cleaning, moving and all that jazz followed.

The arrival of our lovely long-term tenant, visits from precious overseas family members and me handing in my notice at the cafe were also part of this busy time.  They were all very good and exciting things, but by the time I got down to “Hem New Trousers” on my list, I was feeling a bit bewildered.  And to be honest, after a few mishaps with the whole DIY hemming thing, I’d decided that paying the forty-four dollars a pair might just have been worth it after all!  But I got there and another item was ticked off the list.  In two days’ time, I was due to catch a plane and travel, first to the UK with Clive and then on to France, by myself – eeek!  It would be almost three months before I would return.  How does one pack for three months abroad?  Would my house plants survive?  Would Clive remember to eat vegetables?  Would our bed’s throw pillows spend the entire time on the floor?  And quietly, was I still brave enough to do this?

Oh well, here we go. C’est parti!