February Snow

We woke to a white garden this morning with snow falling fast. It looks so
pretty but creates havoc everywhere. I can't help feeling excited, the same feeling I had when I was a child.
It is quiet and there are no buses passing the house every few minutes and no lorries either. There are no buses
running anywhere in London. The sky still looks full of snow waiting to fall.

Here is a reminder of Spring

Memories.

This is a collage of many of my Hampshire relatives taken a long time ago.
I had lovely holidays in Hampshire in pre war years when I was a lttle girl. I
am shading my eyes in the front row of the big group photo. It was just a walk
down a country lane to the sea. What a long time ago that was. Where has the
time gone?

January Bird Table

January Bird Table

Black shadows in surrounding trees
Wait for the provider on January mornings,
For one who holds a few of the keys
To avian winter survival.

Water, seeds, nuts and fat,
Bread if it’s brown and crumbs of cake,
Break the ice, shoo the cat,
First of jobs on a January morning.

A blackbird flies to the apple basket,
Pecks and pecks again and again,
The sweetness of summer it’s her task to eat,
To carry her on to vernal survival.

As dusk descends I hope they’re full,
Warm for the night, fluffed on their roosts.
Waiting for morning and the golden jewels
Flaming above the horizon, their signal for flight.

MSK

Father Christmas with his elf.

Here he is, striding from the forest. I think the elf is tired.

Some Christmas Oddments

One Father Christmas got left behind!!

A Memory of Summer.

Here are some summer flowers for a dismal, wet day.

I love Christmas Trees.

Christmas is fast approaching.

Glorious Variety

I have been thinking of writing about my thoughts of the busy North West London suburb, Burnt Oak, where I live. I think this will have to be a celebration of humanity. There are so many people from so many different places in the world. Some of these places I have barely heard of and know nothing about. It makes every outing to the shops a lesson about humanity and its variety. I feel privileged to have such an opportunity, something I would never have thought of in the past.
One thing I have learnt from these observations is that whatever our language, colour and apparent differences, in fact we are all the same in our humanity. I have come to the conclusion that this is so by observing tiny children of many different races. Their ways of behaving and playing are all the same, there is no difference. Whatever anyone says we are all Homo Sapiens.
.

A Walk By The Welsh Harp

A favourite walk

A reminder of summer days.

It is so cold though sunny today. Here is a reminder of summer.

Spring 1979

The sun has come out today.
Venturesome leaves are a golden green;
The freezing wind has departed.
Whatever can this mean?

Is it Spring that has come out of hiding,
To startle those used to grey?
“Please stay with us now, don’t desert us.
Let Winter flee far away.”

MSK

Scotland

A causeway leading out into the Firth of Forth.
I ventured out myself to my great surprise as I thought
I might fall into the water. It was a lovely feeling to be out
there.

Summer roses

Some beautiful roses to remind us if the summer. We are threatened with
freezing cold weather this coming week so I like to have a reminder of summer.
I shall shortly be going downstairs to have a warming cup of tea. I shall read a
cheerful book as I have depressed myself recently by writing a couple of war
poems for the remembrance weekend.
The London Plane leaves have been brilliant this Autumn, gleaming gold.
Now they are falling fast. Winter is really here.

Summer

Here is a collage of some of our summer flowers to brighten up a winter's day.

A POPPY FOR REMEMBRANCE

Remembrance

War

I have no words
They will not come.
How can they come,
How convey
My innermost thoughts
Of war and its terrors,
Its misery, its heroism,
Its fear, its hate?
“Never again” is always said,
But always it comes,
It comes.

MSK.

Remember

Sayings

I like this saying that I came across recently.

Time is the most valuable thing a man can spend.

It is by Theophrastus

approximately 382- 287 BC

He was a Greek philosopher

It is fascinating to think that people living so long ago could be thinking in that way.

A Leafy Paradice

A Verse From Puck's Song by Rudyard Kipling

She is not any common Earth,
Water or wood or air,
But Merlin's Isle of Gramarye
Where you and I will fare.

This verse is from Puck's Song byRudyard Kipling. Gramarye is magic. The poem is referring to England. For some unknown reason this verse moves me deeply.

MSK

Whipsnade Tree Cathedral in 2002

These pictures of Whipsnade Tree Cathedral were taken on a

day out in 2002. The weather was perfect and the place beautiful.

We have only been there once. I would say that it is one of the most

peaceful places we have visited. It was planted after World War One

in the hope that that would be the last terrible conflict. The trees were

planted in the position of a cathedral.

Fun at the seaside

Here is a picture I took a few years back beside the pier at Southend.

Having worked in Southend for several years I like to visit that

area now and then. This visit happily coincided with a fair.

Here is my Grandmother Rosetta with her little brother William who was ten years younger. I believe
that Rosetta was 16 years old when this photo was taken. In the photo of William with a barrowload of firewood he seems to be a few years older. As can be seen, the photos are badly damaged which is a shame. They are very small, about three inches by two and a half.

Pan Pipers at the Edinburgh Festival

Our visit to Edinburgh while the Festival was taking place was very exciting.

A pleasant summer barbecue

One of the few evenings this summer when the weather was fine enough for a barbecue.

Happiness

When I'm happy it's not because I'm heedless,

Knowing nothing of misery.

It's because of the sad times

That I appreciate the joy when it comes,

Drawing it into my being,

Where it will carry me through the rest.

MSK

Yorkshire

We are back from Yorkshire. We had a lovely time.

Longing

I love the fells of Cumbria and North Yorkshire. Being old people now my husband and I do not get so far from home as we used to. I hope that we may get to Yorkshire some time this year and also to Scotland. We have family in both places. I scribbled the following to try and convey something of my feelings.

Amongst the Fells

I want to go to the fells again,
To feel their presence in my heart,
To walk along lonely paths
With only sheep sounds.

I want to see the hawk hover
Along a ridge, searching the far down ground
With eyes of gleaming sharpness
For poor, small creatures.

I want the small creatures to escape
The cruel beak, but the hawk must eat
And feed its young. The only cruelty
Is cruel necessity.


Since I wrote the above paragraph and verses we have been to Scotland and, all being well, in a couple of days we are off to Yorkshire for a family visit.

A Day in the Brecon Beacons

A Day in the Brecon Beacons

Reaching the mountain top
Was a worthwhile attainment.
Aching footed and out of breath
We sat enveloped in the joy of it
While the winging larks filled
The air with their summer song.
The surrounding azure vault
Stretched away to infinity,
And we were replete with satisfaction.
Maternal ewes with attendant lambs
Roamed the green distance
While far below diminutive vehicles
Sped on their frantic, fuming way,
Leaving the hills to us.

MSK

This was such a lovely day, warm and sunny but not too hot, one of those days that live in the memory, a reminder that the recent dismal weather we have been having is unlikely to last for ever.

Alice and Jack

This is my mother, Alice, and the dog is Jack. I have been doing
my best to edit an old and damaged photo which must have been taken in
the esrly 1920s. This is the best I have managed so far. Alice died many years ago.
Jack I remember when I was a child. He was a dear old dog and he lived to be very old.

The Forth Bridge

There is always something exciting about going over this bridge.

Marmande Tomatoes

Joe grew these magnificent Marmande tomatoes in his greenhouse.
Although they are strange to look at they are sweet and delicious
with tender skins.

We are back from Scotland.