The equinox happened at 21:47 GMT, marking the end of the year and the beginning of light winning over darkness. The previous day was the shortest day, which means that it was a time of mixed emotions looking back at the past year. However, the author was on vacation and happy to not think about work for two weeks. Jools, on the other hand, had a bit of work to do before going to a fancy place in Folkestone for lunch with her employers. It was a time of celebration, which made the author realize that recognition for a job well done had not happened in their workplace since leaving operational quality.
The author drove Jools to work and planned to spend the day driving to the far west of Kent where they visited various churches. It took some time to get to some parts of the west of the county as main roads run mainly from London to the coast. The author went to Penshurst Place first, where they visited the Sidney Chapel and saw the memorials and tombs. The church had a colorful roof and heraldic shields. They then went to Speldhurst, where there was no place to park near the church. The author skipped this church and went on to Groombridge where they took another look at the fabulous glass. It was raining heavily at this point, and they missed the church in the final village. Instead, they went straight to Tunbridge Wells, where they visited the church, observed a service, and took photographs.
The author was questioned by a warden about why they were photographing the church, to which they replied that they simply enjoyed it. On the way back to the car, they kept a promise to a young man selling the Big Issue and gave him a fiver without taking a copy. They then had to rush back to Folkestone to pick up Jools after her achievement lunch.
In summary, the author spent the day visiting various churches in the west of Kent, observing services and taking photographs. It was a day of mixed emotions, but the author enjoyed the time away from work and the opportunity to appreciate the beauty of the churches they visited.