Today’s note is being written somewhere high over Africa on a flight to Johannesburg. Technically already the next calendar day, but psychologically still the same one that began with a flight to London and a transfer so that our little family can join the South African part of our big family.

Dreamt last night that I was caught up in a crowd of refugees being stopped by German police. I could fortunately step over to an official and show them my passport which guaranteed my freedom to move on. They had a few questions about my name, but that was it.

Our daughter was christened today. A beautiful day with a clear blue sky and incredibly mild weather for the last weekend in September. Essentially a private event, shared with family, it’s not something I have a strong urge to write about (I’d prefer to think through the meaning of the ritual and have time to absorb the day’s experiences). At the same time it feels strange to write about something completely different (these entries are a kind of record of the thoughts filling my attention on a given day) and ignore that which has given so much, turned out so beautifully.

I’m amazed at the fascination books and screens hold for our not-quite-yet-four-month-old daughter. I never imagined that it would start so soon. Her fine little fingers couldn’t be held back from the screen of my iPhone this morning and produced the following string of emojis:

👨‍❤️‍💋‍👨👄💉👙🕕🔵🔸⚫️🎂💌💍🏊🏻

My wife and I are celebrating our 9th wedding anniversary today and it’s easy to read various bits of the story of our relationship into those small pictures – I guess that’s part of what’s so great about them. A little private picture novel even though the meaning is just between us.