An Unexpected Gift

Yesterday, I had one of those days. You know the type. The kind of days that just feel so demanding. Colleagues being demanding. Heck, even strangers being demanding. Heavy rain that started just as I stepped out of the office to meet my friend for lunch.

After being talked over on the phone (one of my biggest pet peeves!) and groaning at an irritating email that pinged into my inbox just as I hung up, a curious envelope landed on my desk. It felt thick and heavy.

Inside, I found a beautiful card from India. And when I opened it, these stunning vintage postcards tumbled out. I was disorientated at first; the buildings looked familiar, but I couldn't quite place why. Then I looked closer: Bordeaux. Postcards made from photographs by Marcel Delboy (what a name!) that Karen Harvey (the talented writer and photographer behind I Don't Like Peas) happened upon in an antiques shop here in the UK.

So she sent them to me, knowing how much I'd loved our recent trip to the city and how much I adored the antiques we brought back as souvenirs.

Isn't that the nicest thing? The loveliest, kindest thing?

I read her card and her lovely words to me and my eyes pricked with tears.

Snail mail seems to reach me with unfathomably precise psychic timing these days. Days when I just need that little extra boost. I had no idea that the contents of that small, unexpected envelope would turn my day around so quickly. But they had, and I studied the monuments in each card closely, remembering where I'd stood just a few weeks ago to get the exact same views; where we sat sipping wine as little dogs that were let off their leashes came to patiently beg for food.

So, thank you, Karen. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

xo