Winging it overseas

This wasn’t the blog I was going to write. I had every intention of mocking my half Cornish husband; his love of pasties and his delight in telling every Argentinian/Chilean that the empanada originated in Cornwall. His insistence in repeating the history of mines and explaining how everything began in Cornwall. However, it seems more apt to focus on his other half. The half born and bred in Manchester.

I have been to Manchester a number of times, with and without Jamie. It is a vibrant, exciting and engaging city. The people have always been friendly, even to me the Southerner and I’ve had many a great night out there, some remembered and some not…

Meeting Jamie’s Manchester family has always been a delight, you couldn’t meet a  more warm and welcoming person than his Mum. His Cousins, Aunt and Uncle are not only a great laugh but also the kind of people that you know that if you were stranded they would come and rescue you whatever the time.

I know I have been super lucky with the people I have met but this thread inherently runs through Mancunians and will be what gets them through the dark days that they are experiencing. No one could have guessed the horrors that were to occur at the Manchester Arena and no one, no one other than the bomber himself is to blame. The stories already emerging of the individuals who have supported the injured and dying have made me shed more than one tear today. There really are no words that will make those families feel better and there are no words that will undo the hurt that has been done. I don’t pretend to be a writer, I’m just documenting our travels hoping that they amuse/ interest friends and family. There are people who can far more eloquently write about the feelings and happenings of yesterday. Equally I don’t want to make this into something political but I do want to say that our thoughts are with our Mancunian family who did indeed did sadly lose someone close to them at the Manchester Arena.

Also we think of the other families dealing with the bereavement this has caused and the other people of the UK as we deal yet again with the atrocity that is terrorism. We can only hope that one day things will get better, that the dark cloud of this horror will pass and that we continue to focus on being the right kind of person. One that is kind, supportive and aware that this nightmare is not brought upon by religion but by confusion, intolerance, ignorance and hatred. We can be better than this but we need to try and understand more about how this comes to be and how certain individuals can be led down a path where the end has such a horrific impact.