A bustle surrounds me that is strangely comforting, nurturing, inspiring. I take a sip of Soya Mocha and recline into the wooden chair that almost reminds me of being back at school. Wherever I look, cups are being lifted, people are talking and people are thinking. Hot chocolate, cappuccinos, iced tea and lattes – all at…
A giant bee buzzes behind my head and hops from one flower to the next. Wonderfully lost in its own world, it’s oblivious to me sitting here with my cup of morning coffee. No sooner than I turn around to watch it, it takes off and disappears over the hedge. I suddenly notice the…
Rumour has it that there were once two brothers who didn’t get along. Like most siblings, Marco and Pedro would fight…a lot. In an attempt to stop the feuding, their father would take them to the family restaurant after school and put them to work. It was during these long summers that their father’s love…
With an estimated 2.5 million people in the UK today who have had a cancer diagnosis, the number of family members caring for them is also growing. Jeff Chandler takes an intimate look into the life of a local woman who discovered the harsh realities of caring for her sick husband…and what was through the…
I placed the bunches carefully onto the kitchen worktop with the rest of the shopping and began to put everything away. I snipped off the elastic bands holding the stems together and trimmed the ends. Over the next couple of days, I casually glanced at the buds as I walked past the vase. I looked…
As the heavy door clicks quietly shut, the familiar scent of a hotel room embraces me. Keycard goes in, ambient lights come on and I suddenly notice that I have a new friend staying with me. Sitting on the bed, with an upturned trunk, is a sweet little elephant fashioned from various towels. I…
Sunday morning and the city is slowly waking. Apart from a light breeze that strokes the branches overhead, everything is still. Steam swirls up and out of my yellow mug. It sits next to my red smoothie. And I’m looking out into the world. The daffodils that I placed in the vase a couple of…
As I walk along the beach, the sound of lapping waves and soaring seagulls surrounds me. A salty wind picks up and tickles my ears. The sand is soft and golden. I turn my head to look back and see a set of footprints glistening in the sun. They follow me faithfully. Making my…
I’m up above the clouds once more. From 38,000ft up, I can see for miles. My magazine is closed on the table. A clear plastic cup containing what’s left of my sky-high cocktail, a small piece of ice and half a lemon slice sits next to it. I look out over the horizon. We soar…
There’s only a few minutes left of day. The air is changing right in front of my very eyes. Soon, the sun will be gone and I will be indoors, sitting beside a roaring fire. The mountains begin to turn a deep shade of red. I tip my head backwards and see white contrails cutting…
The first time I ever laid eyes on you, you were looking out through a window on Charing Cross Road. I knew instantly that you were the one. I stepped in from the cold…and the rest is history. Our history – it was all meant to be. I will never forget the moments that we’ve…
I’m sitting in the bay window looking out to sea. If I travelled in a straight line from this exact point, I would eventually reach the North Pole – no land would get in my way. People wrapped up in coats and hats amble along the stretching pier as waves lap gently at the metal…
I was 2 when it last happened. I might have been cuddling with my mum on the sofa or playing make-believe in my wigwam; laughing, crying or smearing chocolate around my little mouth. I was completely unaware of the celestial show happening just up in the sky. The lifelong scar that now sits on my…
I step out into the cool morning air and pull the door closed gently behind me. I walk down the path and zip up my coat before reaching the gate. Sunday morning in the city: quiet, damp, peaceful. There is a still in the air that provides a perfect backdrop to my footsteps on the…
Sunday morning, not a cloud in the sky. There’s a peacefulness in the air that I’ve not felt in a while. With only a gentle breeze wafting through the branches, the city is unusually quiet. I am alone but for the bees buzzing from one purple Chive flower to the next. Taking a sip…
Jeff Chandler 