Facilitating a dream of doing nothing by doing something!

At long last I feel that I have started to become a country girl. It's not because I have become used to no longer wearing high heels and a suit and hose, nor because I no longer mind having to drive 60 minutes for certain activities. No, it's because I have started to make jam! Yes it's true—I have discovered the delights of seeking out our marvellous, seasonal local produce as well as picking my own garden rhubarb and grapes. The slow and careful measuring, the preparing and the stirring all delight me. I feel enormous satisfaction in seeing rows of my neatly labelled jars. Even the odd disaster, such as the batch that I overcooked, resulting in something with the consistency of a preserved rock, or ending up with purple hands for two days after deseeding 2 kilos of grapes, has not blunted my enthusiasm. I love being able to proudly respond to my guests here at B&B Vert Le Mont with: “Yes, I make the jams myself” as they spread this season's pear and peach on a tender, warm croissant (thanks to Lyse's skills at the Café International).

This delight in taking two hours to make something that I used to buy in two minutes seems to me a good example of what living here in Sutton is all about: having the time to do something as well as the time to do nothing. It's easy to forget what a precious thing that is. This point was brought home to me the other day when I was reading an article entitled: “ Des clients rêvent de ne rien faire!” The piece explained that many urbanites dream of holidays spent doing very little or just being with the family in a very simple way. This phenomenon is a response to a city life that is becoming increasingly pressurized, organized and timetabled in all its aspects. The article went on to say that this particular clientele poses a special challenge to those of us in the tourism industry—namely to facilitate a feeling, to create an ambiance if you will, rather than offering specific products and structured activities. It seems to me that it is in the former that we in Sutton excel. I say this with confidence, as I can see my clients idling away an afternoon sitting on my verandah, a book unopened on a lap, or dreaming in front of the fire over a tea tray with hot buttered crumpets and, yes, my homemade jam. They may not have the time to make their own preserves and biscuits, but they can come closer to the experience by staying in the home of some one who does. So, whether you live here or are just visiting, remember to take the time to do nothing or to do things that take time; facilitating the enjoyment of that time is one of the gifts our region has to offer.

Lynda Graham