The Long and Winding Road

Well it had its swerves and potholes, blind bends, hairpin turns, adverse camber, black ice, thick fog, punctures, road closures, out-of-town diversions, traffic jams, pile-ups, unforeseen Ribena slicks, speed cameras, ludicrous speed limits in rural areas and over-zealous traffic police, chicanes, sleeping policeman and dare I say it, even flooding... But Josephine tested the brakes, avoided any head-on collisions and managed - just! - to stay on the road.

Today she has reached her destination, or at least the next Service Station along the way. Exam results were released a day early and she has been commended for her map-reading efforts. She awaits the paper confirmation in tomorrow's post with some trepidation: it is entirely possible there has been a terrible mix-up. But just for now, she's going to put her feet up, have a nice cup of tea and take stock of the journey so far and where it's heading. Then she's going to check the oil, change the tyres, fill the tank up with petrol and pack a picnic before zooming off over the horizon. Josephine isn't even sure if there's a map for the next bit so she might, - Heaven forfend! - just might, ask for directions along the way.

Just please, nobody ask her to do a parallel park...