AN UNEXPECTED ACCIDENT
We started 2024 with big plans to increase our growing space, to undertake some building renovations on the barns and redecorate the house. As January began, we laid the foundations to deliver the work before the weather warmed up. That was until the 26th January, when disaster struck.
I (Fiona) was in the field burning our pile of hedge cuttings from getting the hedge "Spring ready". I turned and tripped, falling over. This was such a simple accident and happens to lots of people every day, but on this occasion, the worst happened. As I fell, I felt my bones crunch and crack in my left leg and I knew they were broken. At the time I thought it was my ankle.
Unfortunately, I was on the smallholding on my own, but thankfully I had my phone with me. I immediately called Hugh simply saying "I've broken my ankle. I need help", before dragging myself across the wet grass away from the bonfire pile.
Hugh was in town at the time taking his elderly mother for a hearing test and it would have taken 40 minutes for him to get back to the car and get to me, so he sprang into action. We have very few neighbours where we live, but those we have are great friends, sharing resources and trading skills. Hugh called one such neighbour, Nick saying "Fiona has fallen and I'm in town. She needs someone with her until I can get there". Nick didn't hesitate. There was no "I'm just in the middle of something" or "Are you sure she won't be, OK?", he simply said "I'm on it". He dropped everything and rushed to help me. Five minutes later he was calling 999 after finding me going into shock, lying on the grass.
Esta historia es de la edición April 2024 de The Country Smallholder.
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Esta historia es de la edición April 2024 de The Country Smallholder.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
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How to Buy a Smallholding in France- Long-time smallholder Lorraine Turnbull looks at the practicalities of moving to rural France
Aspiring smallholders are continually thwarted by the prices of smallholdings and property with land located within the UK. Even the humblest croft in Scotland comes with a substantial price tag and conditions which would make even an adventurous wannabee consider carefully. But all is not lost. For those willing to take the adventure of a lifetime, there is always Europe, and one of the most popular places is France.
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