Strangers on a Bench - EPISODE 86: Talking To Gina

Episode Date: May 4, 2026

Tom Rosenthal approaches a stranger on a park bench and asks if he can sit down next to them and record their conversation.This is what happened! Produced by Tom RosenthalEdited by Rose De LarrabeitiMixed by Mike WoolleyTheme tune by Tom Rosenthal & Lucy Railton Incidental music by Maddie AshmanEnd song : 'Never Stop Talking' by GeneviveStream it here : https://ffm.to/neverstoptalkingListen to all the end songs featured on the podcast (so far) on one handy playlist :https://ffm.to/soabendsongs————————————————————————————Instagram : @strangersonabench Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hello. So it's all to bother you. Can I ask you a slightly odd question? I'm making a podcast called Strangers on a Bench, where essentially I talk to people I don't know on benches for 10 or 15 minutes. Are you up for that? Do you want to give it a go? So traditionally, I obviously I get people to stay anonymous so I don't say their name. And if I need to remind myself of your name, I'm touching your name. It's a funny thought, isn't it? Yes. There you are.

Are we recording? Yeah, we're recording now. Okay. We're on. This is the reason why I'm here. Right. Okay. So, on one side of the bench, your side you're sitting on. It says Gina.

Mm-hmm. And then on this side of the bench that I'm sitting on, it says, and soup. Yep. So, I mean, do you want to tell me about all this? Who's Gina? She was my wife. She died last year, as you can see. And she wanted a bench here. We chose this spot. Well, I chose this spot because in the last couple of years of life, she was quite disabled. Well, she'd been. living with stage four cancer really well for about five years. Then she had a stroke. She was quite disabled in a wheelchair. After the stroke. Yeah. And we used to come here and get a coffee or an ice cream from the cafe there and we come and sit along here and watch the kids playing football or the dog walkers or whatever was going on. So it seemed like a perfect place to

have her bench. So actually some of her eyes, she's buried around the back here. I have permission and so she's actually bits of her here too. And I come and sit here, not every day but quite often, and just talk to her. Sometimes I get my phone up so people don't think I'm mad if I'm talking to somebody on my phone. And I came now because tomorrow, I'm flying to America to see my sister and niece who live in Brooklyn. And I just wanted to let Gina know that I wasn't going to be around for it. No. No, it's magical thinking. I know it's magical thinking.

But I do feel that presence here. And the other day, there was a shooting in the park. And it was actually just up the path there. And I was so worried that she'd be scared. Magical thinking is the best kind of thinking, I think. think. Yeah, life would be very dull without it. It would. For sure. So it's been a year. What has this year been to you? Well, grief is a really interesting process. I thought I knew about grief because I've worked a lot with people who were bereaved. I've read quite a lot about it. My own

parents died, but really this I did not know until Gina left. And it's such a journey, it's such a journey. It's very intense. There were times when I felt a bit mad, but in a good way. Very, I mean, very, like, passionately intense to begin with. It really was. Do you describe that a bit? Well, paradoxically, I felt very alive.

Yeah. And that might have been, because I was a care of two years. I mean, I was a carer for a lot longer than that, because she needed quite a lot of emotional and psychological support. And I retired early to look after her. But in the last couple of years of her life, I was a full-time carer. So that part of it was a sense of freedom.

You know, I could do things that I hadn't been able to do for a long time. Like travel, you know, go to the cinema in the middle of the afternoon, go out to dinner with friends that are willing. win. So there was that kind of freedom. But alongside that, a sense of sometimes like, who am I now? You know, because so much of my identity was caught up in being a carer and looking after her. Prior to being in a caring role. I was a carer. I was a psychotherapist. I was a cranium therapist. I was a cranium therapy. So it's sort of, yeah, my whole life. And was your identity also wrapped around her just because she was your wife.

Yes, absolutely. And like anybody who's been through this journey say the same thing, it's like you always carry them inside you and you carry the grief inside you. And sometimes it's overwhelming. You know, like talking to you now, stranger, but in the early days,

I'd be walking down the street with tears streaming down my face. But the internal grief changes. But I remember an image I had the early days was like I had this big balloon full of water full of tears inside. Now it's more like what's it like now? I suppose it's like it is a bit like living with a hidden disability. Like on the outside, I look fine.

Put me in a social situation. I'm fine. I can manage. I can make small talk, all those things. And on one level it's true. I am enjoying myself and I am that person. But I'm also a person who needs to do. needs a lot of solitude and I need to be able to talk to her and I need to be able to

process what I'm feeling because if I don't it sort of catches up with me of course what are you saying to her when you're talking to her um sometimes it might just be this is what's been happening what do you think what do you hear back good question even though I talk to her as a person and I look at the focus on the phone and I'm talking to who she was. I think my sense is now that her essence is sort of in the ether. So if I hear anything back, it's more a sense of reassurance, like a gentle sense of reassurance, like it's okay.

What do you think she would think of your... Oh, it seems good squirrel chasing me. Yeah. Squirrel, hide and seek. Which side of the tree are you? They're trying to figure it out. Yeah. Where's you can't?

Where's it gone? Is that one going to be about to be surprised? Yeah. We've all got our own games. So you have to... You're forging now an entirely new identity in a way. It's a completely new start for you. as if from how long?

It is and it isn't actually. Of course it gives you what you're established as you. I know, but as in like kind of, is this like an opportunity? Is this a burden? Is this what does this mean? Tell you something I noticed. Actually, I can back track a minute, the first year. Yes.

I marked all the anniversaries, because I know about anniversaries. If you don't pay attention to them, they'll come around and smack you in the face. I really didn't want to do a family Christmas because it would have been too painful. too painful and what I decided to do was walk around London I walk quite a lot so on Christmas day I packed my little rocks I had a smoked salmon bagel I had a flasker coffee I had minced pies and I walked down to the city and all around St Paul's and across the river and it was really nice it was such a great thing to do I love that mayor briefly interrupted by saying my favourite Christmas day my first one away from

my mum, she was away somewhere and this family in East London, who I knew, kind of welcomed me in. But I walked all the way across London to that. And I remember my most favourite walks, it's so rare to you get to this walk through London in this kind of completely other state. In the middle of the day, just to kind of, and you feel so kind of, I don't know, so it's an amazing feeling. Yeah. Yeah, it's sort of special. Well, it is a special day. Yeah.

What a clever idea. So you had your backpack for a bit of spice. How many mit spies to see you through? I think only two. And then her both day, I'm vegetarian, but she wasn't. And on her birthday, I actually cooked a rose chicken dinner. A roast chicken dinner. Oh, that's great.

Did you enjoy the chicken? I like the crispy skin. I don't much like meat. Oh, what a sweet marketing. What other anniversaries were there? Your wedding anniversary, is that one? Yeah, I'm just trying to think, what did I do then? What was your wedding like?

Oh, God, it was a two-day affair. We had a civil partnership, which was just for family. And then the next day, we had one of the rooms at Kenwood, and we had a big party there. And we'd ask people to give readings or play music. And it was great. It was really great. It was lovely weekend. How long have you been together before? 33 years.

33. Yeah. And last weekend was the anniversary of her funeral, which again was great occasion. It was over at the church over there, outside the park. And everybody just let me organise it. We had like a hearse with her EU berry on the top. What?

You know, blueberry with the yellow stars, a Brexit berry. Yes, that's what it's cool. Anti-Brexit berry. Yeah, yeah. And people said, you can't do the eulogy. You've been too emotional, but I did the eulogy. Well done. I did to get through it.

I cried a little bit. I had to do it because I knew nobody else would be able to do it. What part of the eulogy was most important to you to say? I think what I wanted to do was because there were people there from all different parts of her life. And I knew that not everybody knew everything about her. And I think a lot of people didn't know how hard she found life. I did it by talking to her. I addressed her.

Oh, that's sweet. Did she talk at all about what she wanted from any of that herself before she died? No, we'd talk quite a lot about dying itself from what. happens and we had we had a narrative what was that narrative I mean what happened in the end was um well first of all she had a premonition I didn't realize this I came in one day and she looked really scared and eventually she said I heard on the radio that I'm dying and I said oh I don't think you are but I will let you know if it looks like you are and three days after that she had turned out to be a massive bleed on the brain.

Ambulances came around again. Got very used to ambulances coming around. Took her to the hospital and she died two days later. And I was with her the whole time. So I was telling her the story, just lying on the bed next to her, that when she died she wasn't to worry, she'd just look for the light, go to the light.

And that all these people would be there to welcome her. people that she'd known who'd passed over they'd be there saying where have you been, we've been waiting for you and there'd be fish and chips and there'd be roast dinners and they'd be ice cream and Manu would be winning all the football

every single match yeah and if she got scared on the way just to say a few our fathers and say a few worse

the big guy So that was our narrative. Yeah. Were you have a similar narrative? Yeah, yeah. You use the same one. Yeah, yeah. He's going to say it to you, though.

Yeah. I've got to find that person. Or maybe you know already. So you're telling her this story as she's dying. Yeah. Did anything particularly strike you in those two days that stayed with you? God, I was cold. I was so cold.

The first night in the hospital, I was freezing. Yeah. And I think I was in shock as well. Yeah. I never thought to stick my head out of this little thought. We were in a private room and asked the nurses for some blankets. What else do I remember? I think love that, you know, everybody who came came because they loved her.

And also, privilege doesn't feel like the right word, but it's a very special thing to be able to do. You know, to lie there next to her and see her out. Have there been any kind of renewed, is there a sense of like, a kind of lurking new purpose there that you've been to explore? I think this is a bit of a cliche. I think it's more about being than doing now. Just being still. I've had a meditation practice for years, but I'm still not very good at being really still for a long time. So, so, I mean, what will your days look like then?

We totally skipped the opening question of this podcast because this is a very rare event of sitting on a bed on someone at actual bench. I totally missed it. But it's just funny how these things come around. Well, I always ask people's favourite day of the week as a starting question because it's kind of Wednesday or something. I say, what is a good day for you now? If I've had a week where I've been very busy, seeing a lot of people, been out a lot, had a good time, then a good day would be a day that has absolutely no commitments in it. When I can just potter around and talk to the cats or sit in the garden or read a book and not have to talk to anybody.

On the other hand, if I've had a week where I haven't done very much or I felt a bit low, then a good day would be meeting up with somebody that I really like, having a really nice meal out somewhere, maybe a restaurant I haven't tried. So it depends. I just realized you didn't answer the difficult question about who's going to whisper in your ear. I don't know. Actually, I think I'd quite like to die alone. Really?

Yeah. I'd like to be able to say goodbye. But I don't think I actually want anybody there, like family or anything. when I go, maybe a death doula, and just make a farce, just lets me get on with it. Is that based on what you've seen with Gina, or do you think that's just how you would have been anyway?

I think that's what I'd want. I'm saying that now, knowing that when the time comes, whenever it is, it might be completely different. You're like, get them all in? Yeah. The whole bunch, many as possible. No, I don't think so. No, I don't think I don't think I want people to watch me die.

That is it. I don't think I want people to watch. Yeah. That does make sense. So no kind of, you haven't had any particular kind of mad ideas about how you might spend your time. You just want to have a calm time. Well, the thing is, if I was 30, it would be very different. Yeah. But the rest of my life is not that long.

Well, it could be. I wouldn't want it to be. How long do you want it to be? How long do you want it to be? I'm going to be 80 and three, four years. three, four years time. Okay, fine, but... I certainly don't want to live to 90.

You do a lot of walking around. Yeah. So, we maybe start doing less walking. Okay, look, you can just take up skateboarding like this. No, my balance is not good enough. I couldn't have done that when I was 20. No, I could not, I know. I wouldn't mind you, it'd be quite nice.

It's a bit like flying, isn't it? Yeah, there must be a really... There must be a reason they'd all do it. There you go. Skateboarding, next thing. But yeah, so, you know, you could easily have 10 years. 10 years is a long time. No, it's not.

It's quite long. I would have disagreed. I think it's quite long. I think it depends whereabouts in life you are. I have two cats that I have to see out. Yeah, that's good. That's tough. What are they called?

Tabithra and Marmaduke. And you talk to them? Yes Yeah Yeah Good morning cats That's all they get though Are they good company

Yeah they are because they're very elderly So what they want Is for me to sit down at be still So they can sit on me Well both of them at the same time Yeah Do you have a favourite Yeah, mum would you

Because? Because Because around about the time The last pair of cats had died and we were looking for new ones. And I had a dream about a ginger cat who was going to be a helper. So when we went looking, one of the stipulations with the rescue agency was, one of them had to be a ginger kitten.

So I got my ginger kitten. Fantastic. So you're also having permanent. Everyone's having promenicians. Or dreams. Is it a premonition or dream? What is it? It's a dream.

Can I ask you how you came to be in love with Gina at the start? I was introduced to her by a friend of mine that was on the same training as me and this friend was staying at Gina's flat. So we were all training a psychotherapist at various different institutes. And do you remember your kind of first moment of connection? Well, when you say that, what comes is when we left, and I think there were a couple of other people, I remember Gina leaning over the banister and saying,

are you going to leave me all on my own? That was the first meeting? Yeah. She'd just been to her adoptive mother's funeral in Manchester. And she'd gone out and bought the Bar PASSION, and the Mozart passion, records. So that was the sort of thing she did. How swiftly after that the things kind of materialized?

Was it a quicky or slow burner? It was fairly quick. She asked me out on a date, we went to Pizza Hut. And at that time I was unemployed, I had no money. And she would do everything and then said, we're splitting the bill and didn't quite realize. and then you were off, that was it. Yeah, it was never an easy relationship.

In a way, it got a lot easier, and it was a lot easier to love her when she got sick, which I know sounds like a strange thing to say. It was never an easy relationship, but the long time, that's a long, there must have been so much good. There was a lot of devotion between this. To last that amount of time.

What wasn't easy about her and what was tricky? because she was so anxious and I don't think I fully realized how anxious she was until quite towards the end of her life she had a huge need to know and could be very critical of people who didn't sort of fit into her way of thinking so for example if we were going to go anywhere visit people she needed to know when we were going to leave she needed to know when we were going to leave she needed to know if we were going to a restaurant what was on the menu so I had to download menus

so I had to look at so that she could check whether there was something she'd be able to eat and she would take on people in argument sort of fearlessly about politics she was a Labour supporter

through and through and would argue with anybody about it in fact all our nephews and nieces have memories of sort of being bludgeoned by Gina politically and feeling very guilty if they forgot to vote, that kind of thing. So there was a kind of natural volatility to had?

Yeah. And at least now, to me, you don't seem like that. No, I'm... Was and much more laid back than she ever was. And how did that dynamic kind of work? I suppose you were calming her down. I've tried. Yeah.

I quite like the idea of mundane memories. I think often we can go for big dramatic moments, but if I ask you to think about a small event with her, what does your mind go to? I'll tell you the first thing that came into my mind, okay? She already had her cancer diagnosis, but before she had her stroke, She'd gone to the kitchen, which was down a flight of stairs to make tea. And she was coming up with a tray

and there would have been mugs of tea, maybe a plate of biscuit on it. And she tripped on the stairs and it all went on the floor. And she was so upset. And I really felt for her because she was trying to do something special. Oh, that's a sad one. We've got to think of a happier one now. Okay, all right, okay, all right. Again.

A happy small one. This is what comes to mind. And this was decades before. I'd been away somewhere or I'd been out for the day. And it was actually just over there. And she was coming across the park. And she was just running towards me with this big grin on her face and her arms out. Just over there.

Oh, that's lovely. Was there any reason why she was running towards you? She was pleased to see here. Yeah. You know, you've, you've, You've lived an entire long relationship with somebody. And clearly there's been moments where it's been really complicated. It sounds like you've clashed heads at various points.

Imagine someone's listening to this and they're a few years into something and a few doubts are in there. Now you've seen all the way through the other side. You know, what would you say to that person about how I might proceed or not? Go see a therapist. You, you are. Are you trying to get back in the game?

No, no way. That's another life. It's gone. Are you saying first try and fix your own problems and then it's easy to kind of... It's easy to project onto other people. Rather than look at what's going on for you. And sometimes the dynamics that gets set up in couples, it is really helpful to have an outsider. be able to observe and see what's going on and help unravel them.

Did you do that in your couples? Yeah. Yeah. So you had a couple's therapist. We did, we did. We did various times go and see a couple therapists. Yeah. You weren't. I didn't work with couples. No. So you were a therapist for how long? 30 odd years. What kind of therapist were you? Eclectic. I never really trained properly in any one discipline.

so gestaed psychosynthesis, psychoanalytic thinking and theory, body psychotherapy, trauma therapy, EMDR, EFT. I've seen it all. Yeah. I think I used to say on my bio, that I tailored the therapy to the person who came. It's a great service you had to provide. Thank you. Yeah. I mean, you must have seen so many people and try to

to help so many people. And you stopped doing it at some point. I don't think I tried to, I don't think I tried to help. I think I tried to provide an environment where they could help themselves. Sure, yeah. Was that your style? Is that your just general, overriding, I didn't. This isn't my original saying, but if you let someone talk long enough,

they'll find the answer for themselves. Yeah. Yeah. I can totally see it. Oh he's back. It does look very happy. I bet it feels great. Yeah.

Maybe we should both do it. This is the takeaway from our conversation. What were the last sessions like when you retired? What kind of atmosphere do they hold? Well, I think we did a lot of reviewing the work and what had changed and what hadn't and what it might be like. living without me. How you all cope without me? Top tips to cope without me.

Yeah, good. Were you, did you get emotional during any of these moments? Yeah. Is it a funny thought you wouldn't, I'm guessing you're emotional because you're leaving, I mean, you're not going to see, you can't really see the people again. No, that's right.

The thing about being a therapist is you never know the end of the story. You never know. Well, actually, with Google these days, you can with some people. Do you? A little twinkle on the keys. Only, oh, this sounds like I'm being ever so ethical.

There are some people who are actually in the public domain, so I'm like with them. Yeah. Just to see what they're up to. Celebrities? No. Artists and makers and writers. Yeah.

Yeah, we've got one in our street. We've got a celeb in our street. Oh, that's exciting. How did you welcome the celeb in? Low key. Low key. Have you said hello to the celeb? Yeah.

He says hello to me. Oh, fantastic. As he should. Yes. Do you ever think this isn't me being, at least I don't mean it as like an ageist thing. But. If I were your...

age, ground or age of 76. Yes, if I've got your date of birth here. What were the 50s like by the way for you? My 50s. No, the 50s. The 50s. Um, quiet, I guess, compared to life now. I went to a Catholic primary school, even though my family wasn't Catholic, it was the best primary school in the area. Did you have to pretend to do anything in particular? For me at that age it wasn't pretending like saying the prayers to the statues in the corner of the room it was real it was for real. Of course. I had I left room for my guardian angel when I had my dinner. Oh how you mean in it with a chair you mean? Yeah yeah

on your own chair. On your own chair? Yes. Oh sorry for a minute I thought you were never sitting next for anybody. I collected the holy cards. What is a holy card? So I'm know that? Little, little cards, like Pokemon cards. But with pictures of the saints on. That's where it all comes from. How many saints are there? Oh, hundreds. Yeah, so there's hundreds and hundreds. Did you have a favourite? No, but I like Mary Magdalene there. I'm sure we've been talking for more than 15 minutes, haven't we? No, it's been a 16. No, it's been more than three. You're right. So what's so? This is a thing. This is a lot. This is a This thing about psychotherapist, they have a sense of an hour going by, even when there's

no clock looked at. You know, you should think about training as a therapist. You get people to talk to you. You're a good listener. That's very sweetly to say that. I'm sure I'm not the only person. You're not. I'm not sure I would do it.

I'm not sure I could do it in a professional sense. Anything, I mean, as a therapist, anything you would tell me to do differently in terms of talking to people? That's the first time I've asked that question on the bench. Okay, one thing, I'm sure you pick up when somebody has a non-verbal response to a question before they answer it. Yeah. And sometimes it might be helpful to comment on that. You know, like, oh, look like that question made you look a bit uncomfortable.

Or you don't have to answer that if you don't want to. if you don't want to. Yeah, that's interesting. I probably guess that's, you know, you feel these things so instinctively. I mean, that's the first thing you kind of see anyway. Are you telling me you don't? No, I say I probably do.

I'm saying I don't necessarily ask questions about number of responses. You don't have to ask the question. It could be more like a neutral comment. Yeah. Like you've responded like this. Yeah. Yeah.

Do you think some people feel a bit, sensitive about their non-verbal responses because it's like kind of more truthful responses you know or you're kind of pointing to something more direct I think most people like to be seen this is true even if it's a bit painful that's a good thought yeah no I'll take that with me I'll ask you a few more questions and I'll leave you alone you're right a pack it has been more you're going to Brooklyn yeah do you say family my sister good and well yeah that's nice younger marginally.

Oh. 18 months. Okay. Sorry. Remember not they could be twins or so marginal. Have you found any kind of odd coping mechanisms in your grief? None that have really surprised me. I mean, the usual coping mechanisms, like the importance of routine.

I've read so much detective fiction because it's easy. Perfect. You'd be a detective. Oh, thanks. I don't want to be anything. I'm desperately trying to make you beat up. I don't want to do anything. Just want to have a quiet time.

But you're going to New York tomorrow. I am. I am. I'm going to have a really nice time. We're going to spend a day on the Hudson River. We're going to stay overnight in an inn. We're going to an opera at the Met. We're going to some jazz in Trinity Church on Wall Street.

Going to have lunch for them. There's a plan. friend. Yeah, we make plans in our family. I mean, I don't know how to enjoy it. When I was there last time, it's a bit like where she lives, it's a bit like here. Yeah. And there are a lot of really interesting patisseries and bakeries. So we went to about half a dozen of them and bought one croissant from each one. We also went in the local supermarket and bought a packet theirs.

And there were two of her kids there. Right, we put them all out anonymously and we had a contest. Which one rates on appearance, which one rates on the... On the snap? The snap, yeah, on the smell, on the taste. Oh, fantastic. The poor supermarket one was this sort of pale, flaccid. That didn't win.

No. And then the next 10 years, just pure peace. Oh, I'm waiting to find out. If it's going to be pure peace or not. No, what it's going to be like. I doubt it'll be pure peace. There's no such thing. Yeah, it's right.

I was doing some magical thinking there. I was just hoping. I've got a feat, I'm not, I'm just going to say annoying things now because why not? But I've got a feeling something will emerge. It will. And then it will always have all my life. And then it'll be surprised. Something has emerged.

It's just come towards me and I've gone, oh yeah, all right. I've spoken to so many different people, basically. You can see people who are half your age you don't have certain energy or you know, don't have certain not quite present. Yeah, life force. Yeah. And I think when people have life force, it finds its home, doesn't it? Obviously, skateboarding. As you said, like therapy, you don't find out what happens next. No, that's right. And I don't find out what happens to you in your podcast. Or you might do.

Very useful for you actually. I walked past you. When I first walked past you, you had your eyes closed. And I got a really good feeling about you. And I was like, oh, it's annoying that she's got her eyes closed. I feel like I can't. Were you walking up and down then?

Waiting for me to open my eyes. Yeah, basically. And I thought maybe she's just someone who's just not going to open eyes. That's just her thing. I mean, I've got used to really interrupting people, but interrupting someone who's got their eyes closed to just step too far for me. But it gave me a chance to really look at you,

to check that I was in the right place. And I don't need too long, I think. You know, you just get a real sense. So what was it about me that you thought, aha, she's a good one? Very, very still. So the eyes closed, yeah, for me that was saying you're thinking about something,

obviously in deeply and then just a general aura which is really just wordless it's just what someone gives off and then you hope that person says yes to you then I'm very glad you asked this bench by the way

is very used to having people interact because I will come up here if there are people sitting here I say I'm really sorry would you mind this is my wife she died last year I've just come to talk to her and most people go oh yes

oh wow that's amazing Do you shoe people off? I do. Good on you. Have conversations started as a result? Well, there was one guy who obviously didn't get the hint. And he just said, oh yes, I know I'll go and talk to my mum and then kept talking about himself.

Yeah, I think it's funny for most people because when you see bench your dedications, typically they're all dead, whereas you're a rare one to have a living one. Yeah. So maybe people don't get it. I hope it says something about our relationship, you know. Of course it does. My nephew has instructions that when I go, he has to change that and put my death date on as well.

No, that's a good one. No, no, it's a beautiful one. Last question for you. Okay. Actually, well, we kind of know what you're going to do, but I'll ask this question anyway. I always ask people what are they going to do next? On the way home, I need to buy some bread for the person who's house sitting for me, and then I'm going to pack.

Can they not buy their own bread? It's a nice thing. It's a courtesy. What bread do you get for someone who... For this person? A decent solid whole meal. Nice. Anything else?

I've got a fridge full of food. Oh, what a good gig. And he's just got to look after the cats. Yeah. What am I going to do next in life? Yeah. I'm going to go to America. Yeah.

I'm going to have fun with my sister. All your plans. And when I come back, I shall take stock. See where I am then. Actually, I'll probably do some taking stock while I'm away. It's good, you know, when you get a space from the life that you're embedded in. See things a bit differently. It's the end of the first year. Second year, some people say it's just as hard in a different way.

Wait and see. Don't forget the skateboarding, though. I won't forget the skateboarding. I won't forget the skateboarding. It's crucial. What a scooter do? Yeah, there's always not an electric one. Yeah, okay.

It feels a bit safer. It's something to put my hands on. It does really a bit safer, doesn't it? Yeah. You could say it's a gateway, maybe you can start with a scooter. Go on to the skateboard. You're really enjoying it. Well, thank you for talking to me.

Thank you for stopping and talking to me. It's at a beautiful time to talk to someone on their bench. What an honour. And it's been great, thank you. You're welcome. Magic thing can you do it too? Careful with words in case they come true. There's a mad lady sat in the park talking to someone who's back with you.

She's closing her eyes, taking a time. She's listening out for the answer. says Gina That's hello A dream Do the parties Have a good time Go to

That's what I first That's what I say From the other side I've never stopped Oh