Today — New Year's Day — has been happy. In the morning I walked up the hill to our Rosie's place for what has become a tradition for the women in our family. Together we watch the BBC broadcast of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra's traditional New Year's Day concert at the Musikverein's Golden Hall. This year Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducted — joyously and well — and as always, it was brilliant.
This is accompanied by Rosie's wonderful hospitality; she makes us a delicious brunch, and we finish with a New Year toast from champagne glasses (but with what you might call children's champagne because our tases have been shaped by Methodism).
We had such a lovely time together, and it's always a little sad to go our separate ways at the end of the morning.
This afternoon I was writing letters, and then I had poached eggs for tea, and while I was eating them I watched this video from the St Elisabeth Convent in Minsk.
Oh, I love and admire these women, so much! Their output on YouTube is an inspiration and a refuge.
I think my favourite of all their videos is this one, about Sr Iohanna.
The St Elisabeth of their convent is the Grand Duchess Romanov, one of the new martyrs of the Orthodox Church, and as it happens our priest here in St Leonards has a particular devotion to her. So one way and another she hovers near, I think.
And now the video has finished and my plate and mug need washing up, and then I must take the letter I've written along to road to the post box. It's dusk but not yet dark, and our road runs west to the letter box, so sunset is a good time to go.
I hope your first day of 2026 was also a happy one, and that you saw people you loved and found things online to lift up your spirit.
Waving to you from England's south coast. May you be well, may you be blessed, may you be happy, may you be free.
