A purple flowered tea tray. 

A floral coffee cup for Mr W.

Coffee for four. Two couples who know each other but have never really spoken.

Today we went to pick up an exercise bike from family friends. They’ve known me since I was maybe 10 years old. David gave me a 3 week stint in his Chartered Surveyors business as part of my final school year work experience. It seems so long ago and just like yesterday all at the same time. I was 15 years old, with nothing but a small amount of filing under my belt and was quite young minded to boot. I learned to make tea very quickly for a busy office, having to remember each person’s likes and milk/sugar requirements. Making friends quickly with the office girls, I found my confidence and enjoyed talking with people on the phone. When I sit and think about it now, I see the merits of the school’s work experience programme.

Fast forward 18 years and Tina and David are still in my life. They’ve been to family parties and weddings and yet we’ve never sat down and just talked. When Tina and I organised a time and date for us to collect the bike; she happened to mention having a cup of tea and I automatically started worrying about what to talk about. I often think I have nothing real to offer someone in a conversation, especially if we’ve not chatted much before. 

I’ve also always really liked Tina and David. Even in passing at parties they always, always stop to say hello, they are sunshine personified in people form and I challenge anyone to walk away from a 5 minute conversation with them without the biggest grin on their face. So what if I made a complete fool of myself, with my rambling that often takes over and leaves me flustered and stumbling over my words?

As we sat talking with Tina, we spoke about their plans to head away for a few weeks to Norfolk and the mutual places we had visited in the Uk. We spoke of our plans to do the NC500 later this year and were regaled with stories on their trips to Scotland in the past. The company was so relaxed that I found myself sipping my coffee more and more slowly to prolong our time with her.  After some time, David joined us and jumped right into the conversation of travel and I felt a genuine smile lift my cheeks. Stories of motorbiking through Portugal, camping in Wild Scotland and driving through Spain. 

David spent some time biking through Portugal and there came a day that he and his companion could not find their hotel. Being such a small village, neither the residents nor local Police spoke a word of English. Bringing out his hotel confirmation, the police radioed for help and the next thing David knew, a squad car had turned up to lead them to their destination. The language barrier did not stop a human helping a human. I love stories of genuinely lovely people, and stories abroad remind me of why travel is so important to me. It always has been.

We spent only a short time together, considering how long we’ve popped in and out of each other’s lives, and it has made me realise how often we let opportunities pass just by letting anxieties control our fears. If I had shied away from the invite, I wouldn’t have learned so much about two very special people. Just by saying yes, I enjoyed talking about a mutual interest and coaxing myself out of a shell that is slowly suffocating me. 

The natural rhythm of talking about travel is why I believe it is so important to embrace it. We may not have been to the same places, but the beautiful affliction of wanting to know what’s down the road, round the corner or over the hill, brings out  the best in everyone. It’s what saw two couples, different in so many ways, spend a fascinating 2 hours together this morning. As we left, we sat in the car for the briefest minute and just smiled and acknowledged the fact that we did not want to leave. It was fascinating to sit with two people I have known for such a large part of my life and realise I genuinely did not know them at all.

Photo for this blog taken by Dave Watson.

Please check out his work on https://www.instagram.com/davewatson_uk/ or at https://davewatson1980.picfair.com/