Anna I have just been to the beach

Yes

We have new beach furniture

I know it was Daddy’s gift to us both

Do you like it

Yes and no

Why no

Because the old beach furniture was part of the beach

It had rusted and aged with the passing years

It was beach worn

I like the new furniture but its newness offends me

Really

Where is the old furniture

In the back garden near the roses

Our green beach

The people next door have told me that their cat is pregnant

How nice

That raises the question of certainties

Explain

It is certain that the cat next door will give birth to a litter of kittens

Obviously

These kittens will as the grow with identical characteristics

They will kill birds

They will deposit dead rodents in the house

They will be totally independent unlike dogs

They will love you and ignore you at the same time

I am totally different to my brother

Even though we share the same mother and father

I am very artistic whereas my brother is an engineer

That would not happen if we were cats in a litter

Your point being

That one can hang from a church spire wearing a boiler suit

With a carrot up your nose for no reason at all

You can do this of your own free will

Whereas a kitten is going to follow the characteristics of other cats

A cat will never think to hang from a church spire wearing a boiler suit

With a carrot up its nose

A cat has no conception of free will

Did your father really buy this beach furniture

No Outlaw did

Why did Outlaw buy this furniture

Because he feels that he was using us to illustrate philosophical points in his fictions

I cannot say that I noticed that

I must say these chairs are larger

At a stretch we could seat six people

Whereas in the past it was just you and I

And Jasmine Tea would have to sit on the rock

I wonder if the people sailing by on the yachts will notice the difference

Maybe

Maybe not

Let us go in now and sit on our new furniture after dark

Why

Because it is said that the Northern Lights have been spotted in southern counties

Really

How exciting

Do you think we will witness them

How long is a piece of string

Outlaw told me he saw The Green Ray last year

Where

Here in Deal

So there is no reason to suppose that we will not see the Northern Lights

Whilst sitting in these new chairs after dark