The summer of 2023 has been a mixed bag – with some of the hottest weather on record during July, followed by some of the wettest weather we have experienced all year during August.
It’s been a tough time for vegetable growers – be they farmers, allotmenteers or back garden veg plotters – because whatever the plants needed from the weather at a each stage of growing, the exact opposite happening. However, from what I can see from pleased Facebook posts, and looking over the fences of our local allotments, it’s just about worked out alright in the end and crops have been harvested.
Earlier in the summer I was very pleased to be able to visit the Friday coffee morning in Doddinghurst, which is a cheery group of men and women who meet for coffee, cake and a chat each Friday. They had a whole schedule of summer activities planned, so I hope the weather did not get in the way.
I was very pleased to catch up with Eileen and Irene, who I first met at the coffee morning four years ago and had a lovely picture taken with them, which I was able to recreate!
By the time this month’s Vision magazine is distributed, the children will be back at school, the public exam results will be in and digested to allow older teenagers to move onto sixth form, college, apprenticeships or higher education. As always, I wish them well in all they do at this transitional stage in their lives, and hope they make the most of their youthful enthusiasm and the opportunities available to them.
