A London park - squirrels, strangers and stories

Humans are outnumbered by the squirrels in the park today. There must be a dozen - chasing each other, hanging upside down from a branch, tarzan leaping to another tree, sizing me up if I might possess nuts and furrowing among the daffodils.



My squirrel musings are interrupted. Someone has asked if she can sit next to me on my bench. She talks about all sorts of things. I wonder if she wants to mug me. I put away my phone. She talks about her husband. In London, people don't do this, come up to you and want to have a conversation. Perhaps she is lonely. Maybe she is crazy or depressed. Ah, so she's not from London. Her face lights up when she speaks about how she met her husband. He makes her really happy with his thoughtfulness and the way he spends time trying to make her laugh. She loves him and it sounds like he loves her. Actually, she is just trying to be friendly.

We hug goodbye. How nice to see a happy friendly person and to hear about the love in her life. It's not a boastful way of telling it, rather she is shy and it is as if she is sharing a secret with me. Be kind and thoughtful to those you love. Be friendly and have a conversation with a stranger. Life can be simple and pleasant. Those days you don't feel like going for a walk, go anyway because you never know what you might see or who you might meet.