Well, Readers, after an intense, challenging and fascinating day on my Living Well, Dying Well Foundation course this week, it felt important to get outside, walk and generally get back to whatever passes for normal these days. My morning pilates session made all the tensions and knots of the past few days very apparent – I don’t think I’d realised how hard, and yet how important, it was to re-visit those months, and weeks, and days, when Mum and Dad were dying. With the benefit of a bit of time, quite a few things have fallen into place, and it was the most extraordinary experience to be with a group of other people who were so open about their own time with those who were at the end of life, and to start contemplating my own demise. For one exercise, we started to think about what we would want for our own end of days, and what a gift it was to sit with one other person and to have the time and space, and structure, to think and talk about what was crucially important to us, what would matter finally.

One of the trainers referred to this Foundation course as a ‘citizenship course’ and she’s right – nobody teaches us about what happens at death, what our choices are, how to help to support someone and how many of the experiences that may perturb us are both common and important. Death is so medicalised and hidden away in Western culture, no wonder we’re so terrified of it. But having sat at a number of deathbeds, I can honestly say that an ‘ordinary’ expected death is nothing to be afraid of.

I’m sure I’ll have more to talk about as I process the last few days, but in the meantime I took a walk in Regent’s Park, and was delighted to see that the flowerbeds are an interesting combination of plants that are pollinator-friendly, and plants that are more typical bedding. The Royal Parks have a responsibility to look splendid for the many, many people who visit them, but they also seem to be trying to do their ‘bit’ for sustainability.

In the photo above, we have cosmos and verbena alongside what looks like a magenta petunia.

Sadly the cardoons have gone over, but these splendidly architectural plants are an absolute bee-magnet.

Here, we have what I think is Knautia, a great pollinator plant, with New Guinea Bizzy-Lizzies. Again, something for the bees, something that lasts and flowers for ages.

And some lovely Rudbeckia with a bright orange plant that looks as if it could be in the bindweed family.

But what is this?

It looks as if the poor old lion fountain has become unsafe, and nature is reclaiming it at a rate of knots, largely in the form of Canadian fleabane (Conyza canadensis). I imagine this will all be sorted out soon, but it was a bit of a shock to see something so unruly in the middle of the carefully manicured gardens. Nature will have its way, and sometimes it will do so in a surprisingly short time.

And just in case we wanted more evidence of nature taking advantage of every opportunity, what do we have here?

A thirsty crow is taking advantage of some running water, and on a hot day like today, who can blame them?

Furthermore, the crow seems to have food, which it’s dunking in the water to make it more palatable. What clever birds they are!

And then it was home, to put my feet up after 10,000 steps, and to get ready for a relatively peaceful weekend. Wishing the same for all of you.