Читать книгу Our House is Certainly Not in Paris - Susan Cutsforth - Страница 23

‘Bon courage’ are words that I would be profoundly grateful to never hear again. It seems that every passer-by, every casual drop-in, every artisan and all our French friends, utter this phrase when leaving our petite maison. No translation is needed. The meaning is absolutely clear. Underlying this seemingly casual, polite phrase is an undertone that distinctly conveys, firstly; they think we are extraordinarily mad to tackle such a project and secondly; how grateful they are that it’s not them. Shades of one of my frequent thoughts, ‘Is a working holiday a vacances at all?’ rise to the surface whenever I hear this phrase. Somehow too it is always uttered in a tone of the utmost bonhomie.

As I continue to labour long and hard at whatever the current task is, I always gaze wistfully after their rapidly departing backs, knowing full well, that they are returning to relax in their jardin to linger over an afternoon apéritif... I can only begin to imagine the sage nodding of heads and absolute concurrence that yes, the madness of foreigners knows no end. My limited understanding of French would certainly not impede my understanding in this instance, of the speculation about a couple who come all the way from Australie each year to spend their vacances renovating.

As I get older, my penchant and inclination for renovating seems to rise in inverse proportion to the passing years. And so it is, that I find myself declaring with increasing vehemence – that next year when we embark on the bathroom – will be my last renovating push – ever. We will see. I seem to recall that those words have been uttered before. Despite all that ‘Bon courage’ implies, nevertheless when working life at home becomes challenging, I console myself with my escape clause – Cuzance. It reverberates in my mind, a place that somehow doesn’t often seem real and yet real it is. Cuzance is indeed a place to return to year after year. A very real and very real different life, even if does hold the oft-repeated phrase ‘Bon courage’...