Dear Mother and Father,
Now Jardic has gone, the house is so quiet. Rua is out a lot, he says he is getting ready for another trip to search for ores. I think he misses Jardic and the evenings drinking and telling stories by the fire. For myself, I sort of miss him, but not really. I mean, I don't miss the mess he made, for sure, but he is a very entertaining fellow, always singing songs and wanting to do things. I do hope he'll be alright on his adventure.
I've been trying to keep busy myself, so I went to the Green Dragon on friday and I just could not enjoy myself. Even when master Simbo asked me to dance, I couldn't get my feet to move. It was very upsetting and confusing. I just felt like a great weight was on my shoulders, so I sat the whole evening and left early. Rua says I am not cooking as well lately, that I'm putting salt in the tea and sugar in the stew! I think he's just teasing me, because I haven't noticed anything, but I shall be more careful what I am putting into the cooking from now on.
To clear my mind, I went to the opening of the Museum of Hunting and Fishing, which was very informative. There was a large crowd visiting the museum and Master Ponso knows a great deal about fish. The museum itself was very well set up, with all sorts of different types of fish on the wall and master Ponso stopped at each one to explain where they could be found and the best way to catch them, including what they liked to eat. After the tour he handed out catfish cakes while music was played and a few hobbits danced and then we all went outside and fished while master Ponso gave tips on how to hold the fishing rod and things like that. All in all it should have been a very enjoyable time, but it felt like something was missing. And I had no appetite for the catfish cakes at all.
I'm a little afraid that I am coming down with something. I hope it blows over soon, I feel listless and I don't want to eat anything and it's an effort to go anywhere. So I shall stay home for a few days and see if that helps.
Your loving Zara
