It is like falling off a bicycle, they say. Or a horse. I suppose it depends which century you were born in. You are supposed to just get right up and get back on the bicycle (or horse) and carry on.

Claude Pepper said: Life is like riding a bicycle. You don’t fall off unless you stop peddling. I have no idea who Claude Pepper was. But Lance Armstrong? We all know him, and he said: If you worried about falling off the bike, you’d never get on. Einstein added his own tuppence: To keep your balance, you must keep moving.

So, what is all this about bicycles, I hear you ask. Has Sjarlene finally lost all sense and dignity and acquired a bicycle, some of you wonder. Well, you see, at the end of March we made a conscious decision to take a builders’ break. This break extended into April, which was not voluntarily, it was just the way things worked out. Come the first of June, and we were rearing to go…nowhere. Rain stopped play. In fact, plenty of rain stop play for everyone. We are only now trying to get back to building, gradually. And it is like getting back on a bike (or horse). In short, easier said than done.

Colin was on site a few days ago, meeting with those very important people we have in our lives: the plumber, the electrician, the stone mason, the candle stick maker. This past month, I had so many messages from friends asking for photos of the building. You have not posted any updates in a while. Ha! Now you see. This is how I know who of my friends read this blog. The ones who do read, did not ask for photos. Anyway, not to hold it against my nearest and dearest, I promised them some photos. Soon, I said. As Colin set off to meet with these very important people, I asked him for photos to send on to my friends who do not read my Blog. Colin came home. With photos. All of them of Liefie. Sorry friends who do not read my blog, you will have to wait a little longer for photos of the building. But until then, here is a photo of Liefie. The monarch of all she surveys.

As much as we needed a break from the building, getting started again was really difficult. Not from a labour point of view. That part is easy. Buy the cement, order the bricks, load the wheelbarrow and off you go. No. It was the mental obstacle we had to get past. It is amazing how quickly one can set yourself limiting beliefs we have about ourselves. These thoughts can prevent you from taking action or moving forward. It makes you waver just that bit too long. But as always, all it takes is just one small push to force you from the nest, and into the abyss. In our case, the push we needed was caused by rain. Far too much rain.

Colin and I love entertaining. Hello? We are building a guest house, you may remember. We like nothing more than having friends over for a meal and a bottle of wine. Our space to entertain in Botrivier village was limited, but on this beautiful farm, we have so much space – outside. It is an absolute joy to sit in the lovely big garden with friends. My Blond Friend, the one who very recently moved here, had a severe case of home sickness. Oh, I said, come over for lunch. You will feel better after a good chin wag. But on the day, it rained and rained and there we were, a sad little party, eating lunch off our laps, whilst awkwardly balancing wine glasses. You need space, my friend’s husband said, cautiously balancing his plate on his knees. Yes, he is right. As much as we completely enjoy our little farmhouse, we need to get back on our bicycle, and get back to building. We need to be like Einstein and keep moving. This is not a time to get fearful or doubt ourselves.

Now, for the final push. I hope all those important people we now have in our life, are back on their bicycles, and ready to roar.

I was chatting to a new acquaintance today. She is retired now, but she too had a guest house in her younger years. We had a bit of a natter about all the challenges of setting up. She warned me against some lessons she had to learn. In the end, she said what she most regrets, is that she never wrote about all her experiences. Oh, but I do, I said. I write about it in some way or another every week. Some of my friends follow my mutterings, others don’t and ask for photos. I guess there are always those that prefer the movie to the book.

Rain will be keeping us off the mountain for the next few days. We will have to wait a little longer for a photo update. However, if any of you would like a Liefie update, Colin has a complete photo shoot of her.