I'm 37 years old and I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up

I'm a "full time mum" now and I'm very happy. Today Isabel clapped in all the right places during a rendition of "Wind the Bobbin Up" at her "Monkey Music"class, and that gave me as great a sense of "job satisfaction" as anything ever has.

But this phase of my life will come to an end. Isabel will not be 18 months for ever (give it another month ....) Soon she'll go to "big school" and I'll be back to where I was having graduated at age 21: clueless as to what to do.

Prior to motherhood I was a management trainer. In many ways, that was good and suited me, except that it didn't. Ohhh, what am I here for???? I have considered becoming a career's adviser, which begs a whole new take on that well known saying regarding teaching: "those who can find their ideal career, do; those who can't become careers advisers".

And of course I am not in the same boat as I was when I was 21 and had just graduated. Lots of career doors have now closed to me on the grounds of age and flexibility. I do not want that job on a North Sea oil rig, thank you very much, as I wish to be home every evening to feed, bath and bed the little ones. I enjoy hearing the slamming sound of those career doors closing actually - less choice makes for easier choosing.

In the past, BC (before children), I attended career seminars, read books, completed psychometrics, gazed long and hard at my navel and still did not know what I should do job-wise. I had hoped that during this extended baby-making career break some vocation or other might make itself apparent to me. But no. Retirement appeals. I know that much. But what's to do between now and then....?

Dear Denise Robertson (oooh, I do like her advice. I'd love to talk to her)
I'm a 37 year old has-been who needs to re-train into something exciting and well-paid with lots of time-off. What do you recommend?
Confused of london.

Of course, my plan is to return to not thinking about this for at least another 12 months.

It's just that I visited pastures old this weekend and realised that everything had changed and decided that it was time for me to change too. The village where I lived as a child just did not feel like home at all any more. It was like Trigger's brush in the comedy "Only Fools and Horses". Trigger was the road sweeper who won a prize for making his brush last for 12 years. "That's amazing, Trig", cried his mates down the pub. "You've really made the brush last as long as that." To which he replied "Yeah, Dave. Well, of course, I've changed the handle on it 8 times and replaced the head every year, but other than that, it's the same brush". And my old village was about as much like my old village, as Trigger's brush was his original brush.

So people are right when they say there's no going back, I concluded on Sunday evening. Time to look to the future.

Right. Time to bath the children. Except no can do. The water's off owing to a burst pipe somewhere. Remind me not to work for the Water Board.