husband, our home, my health, our freedom—but sometimes I can’t help
wondering how things might have turned out if I had made different choices
when I was younger. Life is filled with sliding doors and dead ends, and I’m
sure everyone wonders what if from time to time. I run a little faster, as
though I can escape the thoughts if I put enough distance between me and
them. I’m good at running away from the world when real life gets too
loud.
The picturesque fishing village that recently became our home is small
and quaint and quiet. Hope Falls is bordered by the Cornish coast on one
side and wild moors on the other. Stepping into the village feels like
stepping back in time, and I like living somewhere with so much history.
Modern places rarely have a good story to tell, a bit like modern people. A
network of narrow lanes and cobbled streets tightly packed with tiny,
terraced houses and quirky independent shops lead downhill to the seafront.
Almost all the shops are closed, as are the cafés and restaurants at this time
of year when the tourists retreat to the cities they came from. Former
fishermen’s cottages painted in pretty pastel shades line the harbor, but most
of them are now holiday homes so sit empty in winter. The ghost-town vibe
might bother some people, but I like the peace and quiet. I find it calming.
I keep running, only slowing down when I reach the art gallery, but I
still don’t stop.
Not even when I see my name on a poster in the window.
EDEN FOX
Local artist exhibition
8 PM tonight
My first exhibition still feels like a dream come true.
A dream that I’ve had for so long. Too long.
That’s what happens when you live someone else’s dreams instead of
your own.
I got married young. For years, being a wife and a mother seemed to
take up all my time, but I finally have some spare to do something for me
again now that our daughter no longer lives with us. Once I got over the
initial guilt of putting myself first for a change, it felt good to rehabilitate
