In the past few months we have enjoyed and spent much time with friends and family, all of which has already generated many happy memories. Rune celebrated his 7th birthday with his school friends in Utrecht’s National Railway Museum. Other family and friends joined us to celebrate his birthday at different times on two consecutive weekends.
Quite a long time ago we planned a holiday to Guernsey since we still live relatively close to the islands. Being there with all the family and friends seemed so familiar. It really is a home away from home. We had a great week and were fortunate with the weather. Like us, they have experienced a wet and cold winter but for us the sun shone virtually the whole time.
From Guernsey we made a day trip to Herm, the smallest of the Channel Islands that is open to the general public. Measuring 2.5 km by 800 m it is a quiet, relaxed place with magnificent natural habitats!
As ever, we all found it difficult to say farewell at the end of our stay. By now that is a familiar feeling and one that we know will recur in the future. It was not until we returned home that we realized what a welcome break the holiday had formed from the endless to-do lists of recent times.
On Sunday May 12th Susanna received a farewell dinner from the local environmental committee she has chaired for two years. Some of the committee members had only known her for a short time, others for much longer and in the case of one individual the acquaintance went back 22 years. It was a congenial group of people all motivated by the same desire to make Wijk a more pleasant and sustainable place in which to live. For Susanna it has been an honour to have been so closely associated with this group.
That same afternoon Mathijs’s parents threw a big party for their 50th wedding anniversary in the Orangery of Huis Doorn where we met many familiar friends and relatives. It was good to see how happy his parents were on that occasion and we enjoyed making many contacts. We often had to tell people all about our migration plans. At the same time it was good to shake hands, embrace various ones and receive their good wishes for the future. The final round of goodbyes is definitely under way and with only 8 weeks to go until we move out we notice that time is flying. The boxes have meanwhile arrived so we’ll soon start packing.
