“Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen.” Michael Jordan

I have never believed that fate is pre-ordained, no I believe that fate simply falls out of life, supplied under the rules of the chaos theory. It is the luck of the cards that deals your fate from the very instant you are born, from where you are born to whom your parents are, just luck, good or bad some things are simply out of your control. Well both Alison and I were handed the Ace at birth and both of our sets of parents were the good ones, strong, supportive and loving.

I am very aware that as I write this it is just minutes to midnight on New Years Eve and one of the worst times to wax lyrical about the ones you love, especially cringe worthy after a few drinkies. But I have had no drinkies except the Yorkshire brew cup of tea that I am sipping as I write this and my only reason to touch on this sentiment is to highlight how lucky we have been and the thanks that we owe our parents is simply immeasurable.

So we are both only too aware how lucky we have been. Then you need to put your spin on your luck and try to bring the odds onto your side to improve your life's lot. You know, who you choose as friends (and we have been blessed there too) and finally how you 'manage' your working life. I think our philosophy has been to expect nothing, give everything and be as true to ourselves as possible in everything we do. This seems to have paid off and I believe neither of us have any regrets with our career decisions.

There is one last card that I have not mentioned .... Our family. Two children, Stephen & Claire of whom we are immensely proud, and Alison my wife and Bestie! For without a shadow of doubt I, WE, would not be doing what we are doing now if there was not the initial momentum from Alison. It was her drive to satisfy what was both an escape from an inevitable decline in my career as age would creep in and cause me to struggle in later years and a small pipe dream of possibly an enjoyable occupation to take me towards (and perhaps into) my retirement some 15 years hence.

“Some people want it to happen,

some wish it would happen, 

others make it happen.”

 Michael Jordan                                        

 Alison is that "Other" person.

So we sold up our home of 25 years in Sussex and here we are, running a B&B and Holiday Cottage in the heart of Norfolk and I have to say really enjoying it. It is said that it is better to regret something that you did do than to regret something you didn't do and whilst I still had some wits about me it was clear that it was now or never.

The decision made Alison looked for a suitable position within her Bank for a job any where in England and eventually landed a job in East Anglia that covered an area from the Humber in the north down to the Thames in the south and across to the Chilterns in the West. From that vast area we chose to live in North Norfolk to try to start my new venture in a reasonably high tourist area.
From the whole of North Norfolk we could only find one house that looked like it would fit our criteria for a B&B and that we could afford, in a small village in the centre of the region. It was one of those villages that was so in the backwaters that many of the locals never even knew it was there!
So then we put a bid in on this random house called The Old Bakery, because up until the last owner bought it in 1974 it had been a Bakery for about 140 years.
Then my brother recognises the name of the village from way back in the family tree and long story short he identifies that two of my uncles 5 generations back lived next door to the self same property in the 1840's!
THEN he makes the connection, another to generations back, that ties me in as a relative of the guy that actually built the Windmill on this site and turned the building into the Bakery that gives it its name today! (the person was my 7th cousin, 3 times removed).

I don't believe in fate, or maybe I do...? Or not,  errrr well I mean to say, ummm,  mmmphhh. Is that fate? Is that co-incidence? I just don't know now!

Then he finds a photo of this relatives (John Pegg) daughter, her name is Hannah Pegg, my 7th cousin 4 times removed (I think!).

We bought this 260 year old building at random and find that we have a blood connection to a person that owned it about 172 years ago and we even believe that we have his photo on the wall in our dining room....

We believe he is one of the three adults by the cart and now I look again is that Hannah by the horse?

Now as I sit here in my armchair, fire burning in the hearth, I'm sitting behind the window that is behind the horses head in the above photo I have to question my beliefs regarding fate and all I can say is that they are no longer black and white but as is the picture above they too are formed with shades of grey.

Happy New Year everyone.






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