It was a harsh thing to witness when the chickens went at each other, but it was nature’s way. It was how they agreed who went first at feeding time and who got which roost. Things were fairly civilised now and to see them when they settled in for the night you would have thought they were all the best of friends, huddled together. Maggie had gone to a lot of trouble to make their hut and run fox-proof and, so far, it was working.

At one time this had been a thriving farm, so other people had told her. They had bought it shortly before her husband died. She’d sold off most of the usable land to surrounding farms since then, leaving her with about twenty acres of mixed woodland and hilly pasture. Her nearest neighbour was about a mile away, slightly less if she braved the field occupied by a large bull owned by the next farm. The smallholding was her island of distraction in a sea of boredom.

All was well so she made her way back to the farmhouse. Maggie put her boots next to her husband’s and went into the kitchen. She wasn’t sure why she’d kept his wellies. Most things had gone to charity, but she couldn’t part with his old boots. Daft really, but it made her feel less alone to see the wellingtons of years gone by all rowed up. She had a rummage in the freezer and found the last of the rhubarb. She liked crumble but unfortunately it was quick and easy to make. She set about making lasagne. That would kill some time.

Loneliness had crept up on her like damp seeping into her soul. She often thought about all the times in her life when she had wished for more time and now here she was with oodles of the stuff stretching out before her like it had all been saved up and paid with interest when she needed it least.

*

After dinner Maggie, wearing a kaftan teamed with her stretchiest leggings, made herself comfortable on the sitting room floor. She knelt down and moved easily into the Balasana or child’s yoga pose with her arms stretched out in front of her, her forehead resting on the rug. She let her mind wash freely with thoughts and focused on her breathing before moving onto a Shirshasana headstand.