The Empty Silence.

I am almost afraid to say this, but my kitchen roof seems empty and strangely silent.

None of this makes any sense at all because Harry and Sam didn't find any rat runs when they were underpinning the end of the kitchen. The concrete they put in was well over a metre deep and shortly after they did that repair, the problem got really bad. The rats sounded like they were having a party. Thumping and running around and desperately scratching the ceiling and sounding as though they were coming through at any time.

I was furious with the men.

"It's worse than it ever was before," I shouted, "You have opened up a highway!"

I was so upset I threatened to leave and stay in a hotel or something. I had an offer to stay with a friend fairly locally and an offer to go to Canada! I tell you I was sorely tempted.

However, seeing that the menfolk were almost as upset as I was, I took pity on them and stuck things out.

As the time went by the noises got less and the smells started in earnest. Incense sticks were burnt one after another during day time. However, even the bad smell seems to be fading now, though I have got bundles of incense sticks to still use up. The woman in the shop where I bought them, must have been puzzled by the quantity I bought. Well I wasn't going to tell her about my problem, was I? You don't actually tell people things like that, do you?

Could it really be that the rats were trapped up in the ceiling, right from the start and had to die off?

It was some days later when we suddenly heard the silence. Does that make sense to you, hearing the silence? Well that's the way it seemed. We noticed the absence of scurrying and jumping about.

I am wary of saying this, as I know that rats are intelligent creatures. They might at this very moment be plotting a new way in! Maybe they are getting new recruits lined up ready for attack! I don't suppose they want to give in gracefully after having 6 years of free lodgings.

I am really scared that I might hear another noise up there in the ceiling. I would be so disappointed if that happened. The work is not even finished yet but is it really possible that the first lot of concrete did the trick? Or are they just waiting........ waiting to strike again when I least expect it?

I am just beginning to hope now, that they have really gone.... but only time will tell........

Keep hoping for me too.

Footnote:-  I wrote this post a few days ago and can you guess what happened a night ago while I was preparing the evening meal? Something scampered across the ceiling! My spirits plummeted. 

I decided to post this anyway because it gave me so much pleasure writing it and I'd like you to know just how much control these rats have on my moods.

Oh well..... back to the drawing board. Roof next!

Silence is Golden, Isn't it?

Silence, so deep that you could almost cut it with a knife!

I can hear the clock ticking, the boiler firing into action as it heats the radiators and Harry turning the pages of his newspaper, but that is all.

Earlier this morning the house was a cacophony, heaving with all the family noises, shrieks of laughter, little squabbles and noisy games, breakfast sounds while eating in a rush. There were last minute checks .... passports, coach tickets and rummaging in the attic, as Sam and family got ready for their holiday. Debbie, our daughter, up early to say goodbye to them and Dean, her youngest son, managing to come down in time to join in with the farewells. Rick, the eleven year old, somehow managing to sleep through it all!

Now, they, too, have gone back to their own town, miles away and Harry & I are in complete silence!

Family reunions are a blessing which we enjoy, but how is it that when we are all together, the bustle of family life can seem too much? We are sometimes longing for peace, time, space and a quiet place to do a crossword puzzle or read a book without interruption.

Now, the silence does not seem perfect at all! It engulfs us in a threatening, lonely, even boring way.

Within a few days, Harry and I shall be quite used to it and by the end of the week, when the Japanese contingency arrives home from their holiday, it will be like a riot going on - a blast, shattering our peace!

Why does life have to be so extreme?