Sheila was sitting in the tennis club having a coffee with a couple of friends. Coffee seemed to be more fitting for them, each in their late 60’s, running around the tennis court was not as frequent or speedy these days. As the waitress brought over their coffees, Sheila’s mind briefly flashed back to her days working at The Teapot, her first ever job. Of course, she immediately thought of Otis. How could she not think of the Teapot and her sparkly, exotic older man who stole her heart, and more, all those years ago? Back in the room, she had planned to cancel when she first woke up this morning, but found getting out had helped, even if they did have no idea what was going on. Oh God, Mary was talking about getting around to dating again, Shiela had heard it all before, but this time Mary was threatening to sign up to a dating app and was asking for their help. What on earth would mine say?, wondered Sheila. Could anyone see beyond the painted smile? Could she ever be truly herself with anyone again? ‘Make me laugh and I’m yours’, is about the best she could muster, she smirked inwardly. Mary was still in full flow. Would either of them have missed me if I hadn’t shown up today? Derek at the corner shop would be the first to notice, no fags for a few days and he would think they’d finally got me. Heaven knows how long it would take Mike to realise she hadn’t left a heavy hint on Whatsapp to phone his mum. Sometimes Sheila dreamed of disappearing, turning up in a new life, never having to lie again, no more cover-ups. Unburdened and free in the world with a new identity. This came with a lonely label though; honestly, what’s worse? She sighed, it’s best sit and enjoy this deliciously boring idle gossip, and help Mary re-enter the dating scene, she certainly did deserve it after all she’d been through. She looked down at her coffee, the perfect crema, with a little heart on top. Coffee would make the world right again, and she could keep her heart to herself, just where she needed it.

@Mark O Sullivan ah, thank you. I will have a go. It still feels like a dark art, so I'm looking forward to tomorrow. This came out in about 10 mins on paper, I typed it up and tweaked a little, whole thing 20 ish mins, it flowed so easily. I find it much easier to write something in this form, especially when you set the questions! It was a fun exercise.

I was finding myself feeling frustrated, since my initial burst of enthusiasm. I wanted to be able to have an ending in mind, or a more coherent idea of where I'm going, and I don't. I've had a word with myself. This is supposed to be fun, I'm exploring something new, so I'm going to write bit and bobs without worrying about the outcome and see where it takes me. I'm going to remember to enjoy the process, not fret about where I'm headed!

Where do we find deets about the premium tier please Mark?

@Mark O Sullivan Ah now I see, it's a level of membership here - I thought it was something we signed up for outside of here! I think it would be good to explain it to the group in a post (unless it was only me who didn't understand how Skool worked?). I think you have been rather subtle about it in previous posts, so others might not realise that we can progress to that and gain more insights?

Good to meet tonight, thanks for the patience at the outset (there was a message there about keeping me quiet!!!). Thanks for organising Mark and it was exciting to be a part of our discussions and hear what might be possible......