SHARING

Tomorrow I'll be alone again for a week. My husband is going to play in the Annual Norwegian Poker Championship, which is held in Dublin, due to rules and regulations in Norway that don't allow professional poker here, and consequently not the Championship either.

I tend to be a bit flippant about my aloneness, regarding it as a luxury, but I sometimes ask myself if I'd enjoy it as much if it was imposed on me and I had no other option.

The neighbour's cat on the window sill - a frequent uninvited visitor when I'm alone in France

A couple of weeks ago I watched the Norwegian/Swedish talk show Skavlan, which in fact is broadcasted from London, and more often than not has English speaking guests. One of these was the adventurer Ed Stafford, whose latest expedition is now being shown on the Discovery Channel. He was dropped off on a Pacific Island for sixty days to fend for himself, without clothes, food or water. But what was his most interesting conclusion was this: If you're the last person on earth, there would be no point in writing a song, or painting a picture - or as Ed Stafford did - watching yet another breathtaking sunset. Because there is no one there to share the experience with. He went as far as to say that we need to share to be happy. His ultimate emotion after sixty days on that island was one of sadness.

Sculpture by Norwegian sculptor Per Ung

Not my T-shirt! My daughters made it for a friend! (From the song by Lady Antebellum, which he loves).

This evening we shared a short but oh, so sweet moment as a family, watching Jelena's class perform a play that they'd really put a lot of work into, everyone memorising long texts. Before the performance I asked Jelena what role she had. She said "Ellinor," "gardener" and "nurse"!

What would have been the point in her acting in a play if she couldn't have shared it with her family?