It’s a beautiful time of year, even if we have been getting a bit of the rainy side of summer recently. I’ve still been enjoying the long evenings and the chance to get outside whenever possible, and hope you have too. Last weekend we were invited to pick fruit from our local village community garden. We went along on Saturday, and spent a very happy few hours picking gooseberries and strawberries. It was so peaceful, and there was something wonderful about spending the afternoon picking fruit grown locally by a group of volunteers. Several neighbours were there too, and it was great to catch up with those we hadn’t seen in a while, and get to know some new faces as well.

There was a plentiful bounty of fruit, more than we could eat in a dessert or adorning our morning porridge. So what better way to spend the evening than making jam with our hand-picked spoils? This is one of my favourite activities, it’s time-consuming but I find it very calming – and the result is not only delicious on toast, but it makes an excellent homemade gift. My friends and family invariably manage to make off with a jar or two every time they visit.

The day after, inspired by our success in the community garden, we took to our own blackcurrant bush, picking berries long into the evening. The bush was so covered in fruit that the heavy branches were sagging onto the ground - we made as much of a dent as we could. We then stayed in the kitchen topping and tailing them until midnight – they really are among the more fiddly jam fruits! But the effort will be worth it, I’m convinced.

Spending time on these fiddly but peaceful activities has reminded me how joyful the simple things can be. It can be hard to get away from the stresses of work, relationships or caring responsibilities, but when possible, spending however much time you can on something simple like picking fruit – even if just enough for a dessert – can be a huge boost to our mood.