Encounters

We've had so many wonderful interactions with people during our first week here i n Isfryn. We're constantly reminded about how small a world this is, and how connected we all really are - so many coincidences and commonalities!

On arriving in England, we were astounded to encounter someone we know at the supermarket we stopped at! How is that possible? It was the lovely old guy who once lived next door to my brother in Ludlow, and who had accompanied us to the pub in June last year! Amazing, indeed.

When the "zhuzh" guys came over to drop off the not-free couch at our house one evening, we got talking, and discovered that one of them had studied in East London, South Africa. Not only that, but he had worked with a dear friend and mentor of Dale's. They both personally knew Carl Vernon. That just blew out minds. What??? How could that be - a dog-groomer in Wales personally knew the very same naturalist as Dale. Wow, wow, wow! These incredible connections gave us goosebumps.

We answered an ad to buy a computer desk, and found the people were not only neighbors just at the end of our street (she and her husband actually carried part of the desk up to our house in the rain instead of putting it in their truck, and then stopped in to have tea with us), but they were currently clearing out her deceased Mom's apartment, and offered to give us first "dibs" on items we needed! Gosh! We came home with a kettle, toaster, immersion blender, hairdryer, plates, can opener, corkscrew, bowls, casseroles, glasses, baking dishes, computer chair, spices and bedside tables for a very, very reasonable price. We'll be picking up a lot more from her when she's sorted through things better - we were literally free-range raiding her cabinets. She said we'd be helping her as much as she was helping us, so win, win!

One of our new neighbors worked as an immigration lawyer and judge, so he kindly printed out some documents that might help us in getting settled with visas and the immigration process. He said his enquiring mind couldn't let go of some of the nuances we'd told him about. Over a cup of coffee, he also told us that he was pleased to find out we weren't just another fuddy-duddy British couple who read The Daily Mail! He asked if he may park one of his vintage cars in our garage until we return, which of course we were happy to agree to.

Our neighbors in the property  above ours welcomed us inside and offered refreshments, but we were short on time. They suggested we ask the mail delivery person to just drop all our mail at their house until we return in a few months! They were sure it would be an okay thing to ask, and that it would be accommodated, but we didn't get a chance to broach it with the mail carrier before we left. So they will fetch mail from our vestibule (the mail arrives through a slot in the front door) and keep an eye on our place to we get back.

The electrical contractor who came to give us an assessment for installing solar panels and heat pumps, was a delight too. He had tea with us, and called the style of tea we were drinking 'builder's tea - a mug with a teabag still steeped in it! He also offered to stop by regularly and check up on our house until our return.

Dale and I got to the point where we'd switch off who was drinking tea with the neighbor each time someone new stopped in, as we were getting tea-ed out! And each 'cuppa' would take and hour or more, which cut into our tasks, but was also, oh so lovely and welcoming. 

One person we spoke to described the fall her mother had by saying, 'the stupid woman fell and broke her shoulder'! We were quite surprised by her description, to tell you quite honestly.

One person we met was called Ceri - we were told it's pronounced Kerry.