I am coming into one of those periods of my life politely called a crossroad. This is the place where one has choices to make which will redound for a decade or more. Not making a choice is a choice in itself and so, the crossroad must be negotiated in one way or another. Put simply, this house is too little for two adults and two children, where the latter are male and female and teenage and not related by birth. Should Ann come through the complicated PR process unscathed, then we are hopeful of bringing her daughter JJ here to live.

So there are some decisions to make over the short term. Do we get a bigger house a little further down the mountain, together with a new mortgage. In that case, I will have to find some paid work to do to ameliorate the repayments, not easy when you are the wrong end of your fifties. Or, perhaps, I could build a small dwelling (read, a room) that would accommodate one of the kids, probably Tom. Or maybe put a little caravan in place for the same purpose, subject to NSW regulation, of course.

I know that Ann would like a clean move, for lots of reasons, so that option is the first cab off the rank. I am loath to get a new mortgage but I may have little choice in the matter, ultimately. Ann likes to say that you can never know what is around the corner, which I know to be true, even if I don't like it. Sitting with uncertainty is difficult, but it must be done.