And we were looking forward to our first Christmas as a married couple. A blissful few days of eating, drinking and merriment, love’s young dream played out against a backdrop of twinkling lights, tinsel and crackling fires – all spent in the easy company of one’s cherished new spouse, and . . .  the in-laws?

I’m beyond delighted to tell you that in late September, Falling for a Farmer, the book, will be published by the Mercier Press and available for purchase “in all good book shops,” as the saying goes.

I don’t normally do book reviews, however, when Lorna asked me if I’d consider writing one for her, I was happy to oblige.

First thing on Friday morning, I was in the hotel when my phone buzzed with a text from Jack: “I’m in agony. I think I’ve dislocated the hip.”

It’s a funny feeling when a moment you’ve dreamed about your whole life, imagined, and built up is suddenly imminent. I wanted to push pause. I wanted to slow everything down so that I wouldn’t miss a second of it.

After months of hard graft, and quite literally, blood, sweat, and sometimes, something close to tears, it was time to discover if their labour would pay off. I knew how hard Jack worked, and I willed the bidding to reflect that.

I hoped those seated before me wouldn’t notice my hands trembling as I raised the page and began to read . . .

As an occasional contributor to RTÉ’ Radio One’s “CountryWide” programme, I was delighted when they invited me to be a part of its Culture Night special — a live recording in the beautiful Chapel Royal at Dublin Castle.

. . . their banter got me to thinking about how my life now differs from theirs by virtue of being in a relationship with a farmer.

Interestingly enough, I haven’t seen much of Jack in the days since the broadcast . . . He’s “at the silage,” he tells me, but I wonder if this isn’t a pay-back of sorts!