Page 68 of Sunrise over Strawberry Hill Farm

‘It doesn’t matter,’ said Grams, handing over the cup to her granddaughter. ‘It’s so good to see you painting again.’

Flora nodded. ‘I’ve really enjoyed it,’ she admitted.

‘Are the paints new?’ asked Grams.

‘Nico bought them for me,’ Flora told her.

Grams looked surprised but pleased. ‘How kind,’ she said. ‘What a breath of fresh air he’s been around here.’

‘He has,’ agreed Flora.

‘I’m glad to hear you say so,’ said Grams. ‘There was a time back there when I thought you might push him down the hill.’

Flora laughed. ‘I admit I didn’t give him the warmest of welcomes. But he’s grown on me. He’s a friend now.’

‘A friend?’ Grams nodded thoughtfully before patting her granddaughter on the knee. ‘Well, that’s always a good foundation for anything else.’

‘What else is there?’ asked Flora.

‘Love,’ said Grams softly. ‘You know, when we exchanged letters all those years, Lorenzo and I often chatted about how wonderful it would be for our families to be joined. You were sort of intended for each other.’

‘Despite having never met!’ Flora reminded her, laughing.

‘I know,’ said Grams, standing up. ‘It was an old dream, that was all. But I’m just happy to see you two getting along.’

‘Me too,’ Flora told her.

Left alone once more, Flora looked out across the landscape to where she could see Nico in the bottom field, showing some of the campers where the swimming pond was.

Fancy her and Nico being intended for one another, she thought dreamily. They were from different countries, different lifestyles, different pasts. And yet there was a connection there, if she was being honest with herself.

Her dream for her sensible future was looking more muddled. In the early days, her dreams had been about keeping the farm and nothing else. But she was starting to think that perhaps sharing her life with someone might not be a bad thing after all.

40

Flora was thankful to see the sunshine on bank holiday Monday.

Now that the weather had brightened, there was the opportunity to pick some strawberries from the fields which had begun to ripen but thankfully weren’t soggy yet.

‘The mushy ones can be made into jam,’ said Grams, giving a nearby group a cheerful smile. ‘We can have some on my home-made scones later.’

‘How do you make jam?’ asked one child, peering at the strawberry she was holding.

‘I can show you if you like,’ replied Grams, and thus another activity could be added to the information blackboard in the barn.

The warm sunshine was the perfect finish to a successful weekend, thought Flora. And, of course, it made everyone smile and feel better.

Suddenly the lush, green grass became dry and people were able to sit out on their decks and admire the view, which had cleared so that the hills across the valley were finally visible.

Some children were rolling down the hill and making daisy chains. Others were playing games or dozing in the warm sunshine.

There was nature to be enjoyed and so Nico had also shown them the wild swimming pond which quite a few people ventured into, oohing and aahing at the chilly temperature of the water.

‘Is it natural?’ asked one woman.

‘Absolutely,’ Flora told her. ‘It’s just river water that’s been cleaned by the stones as it filters in, as well as all the plants. See how healthy it is?’ She pointed at the waterlilies from which the dragonflies were flitting from pad to pad.

‘Hopefully it should have warmed up by the time we come back at the end of August,’ replied the lady.