Hi Lynne! I stumbled across your fabulous blog when searching for articles about The London Hospital, as I trained there about the time you spent there doing your adult nursing training. On reading the latest piece regarding retirement I had tears in my eyes as I identify with all you have written and as we once walked the same wards and slept in the same nurses' home in the early 70's I feel a connection with you. I empathise strongly with your sadness on leaving nursing as I, too, have just made the huge decision not to renew my registration last December after a life-long career which has given me so many memories and moments of great happiness intertwined with great sadness and poignancy. I feel relieved now that decision has been made and actually, relief that I no longer carry the great responsibility of a practising registered nurse. I won't go into the reason for making that decision here, but suffice to say as we must both be approaching our sixth decade (I can't bring myself to write the actual number as I still can't believe I am THAT old!) and with wide-ranging changes to the NHS it felt like the end of an era, OUR era! I think you will understand that comment. So, I hope you are finally able to enjoy the time to just 'be' - I am still fighting it, but each day seems easier, and your plans for future start to pan out as you wish. BTW the GOS nurses I had the pleasure of knowing were amongst the very best nurses & I held them in high esteem. Oh, and I was always so jealous of their pink & white candy stripes!