Changing thoughts

My thoughts about what to write today have changed as the morning has gone on.

When I first got up, I thought I'd write about the deaths of soldiers of in Afghanistan. What gets to me is the surprise when men get killed. The sooner that politicians & others realise that war means the loss of lives that are precious, unique & irreplaceable the better. The numbers being lost are considerably fewer than in, say, the trenches of the First World War where more men were lost in one day than in the 8 years of the Afghan war. I accept sometimes war is unavoidable but I really do think our leaders should think of the consequences & do their best to avoid it if possible, resorting to arms only as a last resort. I'm sorry for those who have lost their life & for their families who grieve for them. I respect those who continue to fight knowing they may be killed or severely injured. But I cannot say I'm surprised to hear that there are casualties. That's what war means & that's why we should think carefully before getting involved in war.

That thought haunted me most of yesterday. There seemed to be particular horror that some of the casualties were still teenagers, only 18. But if you're in the army, & there's a war on, it happens.

However, these dark thoughts have been lightened by a series of phone calls this morning. First my Aunt Ivy. Still going strong well into her 80s. She's had a bit of a health set back this last fortnight but is now on the mend. Still interested in life & keen for her next holiday. Always eager to catch up on the latest family news.

Then I spoke to MK. It was Helen's birthday last week & I'm pleased to say it sounds as though she had a good day, with plenty of children & grandchildren around to see her. MK sounds a bit better than he was on Tuesday when we visited this week so hopefully it will last until we get to see him in the coming week.

Finally I spoke to my cousin Trudy. She & her family are coming up next weekend for a break. They're staying at the Centreparc near Penrith. We've arranged to meet up on the Monday. They're going to stop at the Pub on their way home & meet some of the faces we regularly talk about on our blogs. I'm really quite excited about the prospect of seeing them again. I'll have to get on with sending them directions as to how to find it as they've never been around here before.

Now I find my smile is beaming once more in anticipation. The sun is shining outside. The world looks good.