When I arrived at Jo Sweeting’s Brighton home wearing the exact same Toast cardigan as her it seemed likely that we would find at least some common ground during our time together! What I wasn’t expecting was that by the time I left (just the right side of the maximum 4 hours visitor parking allowed in Jo’s street), we would have covered such wide-ranging and intimate ground with the ease and comfort that we did. It turns out that leaving my house and my town and stepping outside of my natural hermit tendency can bring really good things. And I hope that in sharing some of the conversation that passed between Jo and I you too might recognise parts of yourself and feel some of the sense of community that I drove back to Hastings with. Because whether or not we are part of a childless family of two (me) or a mum of three (Jo); whether we have two cats and two dogs (Jo) or none - yet! (me); whether we live in a bustling city (Jo) or a much smaller seaside town (me), the common language and experience of our middle years has potency. I hope you can feel it and that it brings you comfort…
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