Tonight I watched the film Chocolat for the first time.  I’ve been meaning to watch it for some time as so many people have said that I’d love it.  And I did.

Not only did I enjoy the film (oh the outfits!  I want to look like all of the women in it! And Jonny Depp is still deliciously fanciable, even with a funny plait), it has blown my mind somewhat.  I’ve often found that books will magically come along & find their way into my life just at the right moment, but I’ve never experienced that serendipity with a film before.  Until today.  After a busy day car-booting & a dinner date with the parents, I curled up on the sofa with a bag of Revels and the most perfect film for my mood appeared before my eyes….

I have been somewhat grumpy over the past week or so.  I have felt out of sorts & unable to identify why.  A sense of malaise & difficulty in trying to escape from it.  Then Chocolat helped me to see what it is: freedom.  The desire for freedom.  In a totally ridiculous way, I felt completely identified with Juliette Binoche’s character: the drive for freedom, the need for independence, the conflicting allure of belonging.  The challenges facing her character spoke to how I’ve felt over the last week.  The urge to be free, not held down or held back, while also craving roots & a sense of community.  Now I’ve secured a strong sense of ‘home’, I’ve got itchy feet.  I don’t know what for, to what, where I’m going – or even whether the journey is literal, metaphorical or somewhere in between.  I just know that I can feel the north winds blowing.