Roast Chicken after Mass: October 26

 Sunday—the one morning we’d set our alarms for early rising (6:30). We wanted to accompany Teresa to her church, a small Catholic congregation that met in a lovely building built by nuns, and the service began at 8:30 a.m. 

The liturgy was familiar, as I’d been to many such services through the years. And afterward we enjoyed a big slice of cream cake and steaming cups of tea and coffee, chatting with some of the older women while Teresa went to choir practice. 

We stopped to pick up Chico and then drove to our cottage for a roast chicken dinner, accompanied by Ruth’s mashed potatoes and tender Brussels sprouts. There is something sublime about chicken that is tender and almost falling off the bone. And perfectly mashed potatoes. 

After dinner we headed out for a walk, choosing to drive to a portion of the Herefordshire Trail about a mile down the road, one that Ruth and I had walked the day before. We dressed warmly and set out, hoping that the dry weather would hold. It did, and we traversed some lovely country:

Then we drove Teresa back to Presteigne and returned to our cottage. It’s nice that we know the route of twisty lanes, steep hills, curves, and potholes well enough to navigate without GPS now. It was comforting to settle in to our cozy living room, stoke the fire, make a pot of chicken soup, and crunch into crisp apples we found growing on a tree by the sheep pasture. Such a time of peace and rest. It is good to find beauty again in the world.