London Mums Blog

Things I have missed about London

We are back from three blissful weeks in West Ireland. When I thought about returning to London, it was with dread. I wasn’t looking forward to the pollution, the dirt and the noise. However it was time. I’d got fat and lazy in Ireland, just lounging around, reading, eating, and jumping into the freezing Atlantic sea for a few freezing seconds.

Things I’m pleased to be back for:

My Cat: She’s fatter too, but paradoxically refused to eat while we were away, even though I’d arranged for someone to feed her. She’s an old slapper and was probably being fed somewhere else.

Mummy, what was I born for?

Yesterday, Ella and I were settled on the sofa sharing a fleece blanket.

She had just finished playing with her virtual Pony on her Dad's Nintendo DS (which she has negotiated part shares in). I was slipping into the salty sea air of Coastliners (you haven't read Joanne Harris? Do).

A soft silence snuggled around us.

After a few minutes, Ella mused "I wonder what I was born for, Mummy".

The Last Lecture: Achieving your childhood dreams

I'm known for being a bit behind in current events. I come by this honestly (my parents still don't have cable TV) but I'm sure it is made worse by the fact that my brain can only handle so many bits and bytes and mine is on overload with kid stuff.

So when my friend Charlene asked if I had heard about "The Last Lecture" I gave my usual blank look.

If you haven't heard about this, let me explain. Randy Pausch was a professor at Carnegie Mellon in the US. Diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2007, he gave a moving "last lecture" on achieving your childhood dreams that was videotaped and widely distributed on You Tube. To date, the lecture has been viewed by more than 6 million people.

YOU HAVE TO MAKE THE TIME TO SEE THIS. It is worth all 76 minutes. It is a good reminder of what is important in life.

Note: Randy Pausch died this summer.

Post courtesy of Thames Valley Mums Blog. This post was written by Susanna, a Thames Valley Mums founder. You can also find her at her blog, A Modern Mother.