A beautiful day.

There was quite a frost this morning, as there has been a bit of a breeze which cleared after breakfast. 
I had all the towels in the wash and hanging on the line later. 
A long chat mid morning with my old childhood friend using WhatApp video. 
Good to see her. We went to the same Primary school, and played out together, and during the winter months we would visit each other to play board games on a Saturday evening in each others' houses. I had my first ever taste of coffee at their house. Maxwell House made with milk! I badgered my mum for some.  
   We also had several friends in the same streets who would hang out together. Going to the local park when we were just a bit older. It was only 5 minutes away. 
A very close community of 5 streets bounded by a factory on one side and the park on the other. Across the main road was a river. At the top of the streets were open fields with a stream we used to paddle in and catch minnows in jars then let them go. We built a dam across it in the summer and made the water deep enough to enjoy splashing about in our swimming costumes.  
     Eventually she and I went to the Grammar School, which involved two bus journeys. 
      It was only after we were both married and I moved away as Stephen's first job was in Portsmouth that we didn't keep in touch regularly.
But a Reunion of the five streets was organised in 2001 which was a wonderful day.
Out of those 5 streets over 100 people came along, and many old friendships were renewed. 
    There have been 3 since then in Rawtenstall, where we all  used to live and grew up, amongst the cotton mills and the lovely hills of the Rossendale Valley. 
    Now we are both in our 70's, and it is still as though we had just picked up where we left off. 
     The afternoon was spent in the summerhouse and garden, which I have had to water before tea!
   The only photo I took then for Blip was one of my pots of pansies looking very colourful in the sunshine.  
 I am gradually catching up with blips. Such lovely photos and slices of life to see and read each day. 
     Time for tea