All good things must come to an end...

(for Marta, instead of google translation)

We’re in our hideaway place in Belgium.

We have had a wonderful three weeks, in spite of lack of sunshine and too much rain.

But now our bags are packed and ready to be loaded into the van.

It’s time to go home.

Klaas and I have recorded five songs, made two movies and have written two new songs.  We have cycled and walked with the kids, we went to a playground and even had a sort of a swim in a horrible cold lake nearby.

We went to a restaurant and we’ve visited Antwerpen. Sat in the garden, lingered in the bathtub and reposed in front of the fireplace.

Once in a while there was a sobering stomach ache or sadness. For no reason, out of the blue.

We went to a wedding and a filmcrew that’s making a documentary about us came over.

We’ve celebrated Swip’s birthday, have had visits a couple of times, cooked our own meals, and baked a lot of cakes. I have taught Valentijn and Lulu how to bake a chocolatecake: I made them repeat the ingredients (butter, dark chocolat, sugar and eggs, pinch of salt), the amounts (everything in equal portions 1:1:1:1) and the preparation (melt butter and chocolate, whisk sugar and egg yolks, mix everything, then carefully spoon in the whipped egg whites) so I was sure they had memorized it.

I made them repeat everything while the cake was baking for half an hour in the preheated oven at 175 degrees. Everybody should know a good chocolate cake recipe. It may come in handy to have a recipe ready, if not to celebrate something or to conquer someone’s heart then at least to soften the ache of your own broken heart or to temporarily forget other misery and catastrophes in your life. Or just for no reason: nothing wrong with having chocolate cake on a ordinary weekday with no apparent reason whatsoever. Just for the sake it.

I would really love to stay here forever, in our shelter, away from everything. Away from hospitals, doctors, people, chemo and the cold reality.

One more cup of tea and we’ll have to go. Tomorrow it’s back to school again for everyone.

One more cup of tea and we’re heading back to our everyday life, which isn’t so familiar and everday anymore, and will never ever be so again.

I would really love to stay a little bit longer.