Advent 15

This one is as much about a time as a place. The time was 2006 and I felt myself, immodestly, at my professional peak. We holidayed in Denmark, spending a week by the coast and a few days in Copenhagen. Loved Copenhagen but it was the coastal resort of Smidstrup that I most marked.

We rented a house in the pine forests that lie behind the beach. I would wake early, leaving the Groupie to sleep (this was before my now permanent state of semi-sedation) and would run on the forest tracks before swimming in the sea and then returning to brew myself coffee. As I drank my coffee I would read management texts and plan mentally for my role as Managing Partner. As I say, the peak of my powers. Sadly I did not foresee my legal career crashing about my ears. Oh well, it was nice while it lasted.

As for Denmark, a decidedly civilised place