Laters, Stroud (From Stroud News and Journal)

Laters, Stroud

WELL, now it's my turn to say goodbye.

The recent wave of SNJ departures has stolen my thunder but my plans to quietly slip off have been thwarted by the paper's tradition of encouraging reporters to write a swan song.

I would tell you what a wonderful neck of the woods we live in and how Stroud with its vibrancy, active arts scene and campaigning core makes it a local reporter's dream.

But it's all been said before and I guess we all know it already. I'm not leaving because I'm bored of Stroud and had enough.

Neither is it ambition that's driving me onwards towards the bright lights of London. Soppy though it seems, I'm afraid it's for love. I'm moving to be with my girlfriend.

Stroud, I guess, is always going to be here whereas the chance to find happiness is rather more fleeting and I'm going to grab it while it's there rather than risk becoming a bitter and lonely old hack. But I am going to miss Stroud. A lot.

In recent months I've been hovering between Stroud and London and as it has gradually dawned on me I won't be living in these hills and valleys forever I've come to appreciate them so much more.

The woods I couldn't be bothered to go walking in, the beautiful old villages that cascade down the hillsides and the big, open skies over the commons and the Severn Vale are now somehow more appealing and seen with a slight rosy tint. I guess you'd call that homesickness.

Who knows, maybe at some point in the future I'll return to the Five Valleys, but for now a daily diet of exciting city life awaits. So see you Stroud, and thanks for the memories.