James C. writes:

I’m sitting on the cliff edge of the Sceptered Isle, gazing longingly across to ma belle France. Those Lilliputians you see on the cliff behind you are full-size people—Beachy Head rises 531 feet out of the sea!

Being so close, my Francophilia flared up and I decided to bring a bottle of dry Breton cider to go with my tartelette aux pommes, croissant and pain au chocolat. Why the pastries? I needed the energy; I had a 5-mile hike ahead of me, undulating up and down the famed, brilliantly chalky Seven Sisters.

And all in a day from Cambridge. What a blessing and a joy to be able to do such things. Laus Deo!

As the concertgoer said to Beethoven, “Once again, maestro, you have surpassed yourself.”

Travel, food, and a heart full of gratitude to God from Whom all good things come — that’s the good life.