Images

                                                                                                     Crop Circle

                                                                                                   Stonehenge
 

 

Dear Reader,

I have often wondered about crop circles and why they come, and where do they come from.  After fairly extensive reading I have discovered the following.

The patterns stamped in fields are treated as a lens through which the initiated can witness the activity of earth energies and ancient spirits, the anguish of Mother Earth in the face of impending ecological doom and evidence of secret weapons testing, and of course, aliens.

A crucial clue to the circles' allure lies in their geographical context.   Wiltshire is the home of Stonehenge and an even more extensive stone circle in the village of Avebury.  The rolling downs are dotted with burial mounds and solitary standing stones, which many believe to be connected by an extensive network of "leys" or paths of energy linking these enchanted sites with others round the country.  It is said that this vast network is overlaid in the form of "sacred geometrics'.  The region has also given rise to a rich folklore of spectral black dogs, headless coachmen and haunted houses.

 It is said that people go out at night and produce these circles, but I wonder and am still not sure how they come about and who makes them.                                                                          

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From Gilbert White, 1785, August 23rd, in Hampshire

'Martins and swallows congregate by hundreds on the church tower.  The birds never cluster in this manner, but on sunny days.  They are chiefly the first broods rejected by their dams, who are busyed with a second family.'

 

From Richard Jefferies, 1879, August 23rd, in Surrey

'Rain steady all morning:  heavy till afternoon - caused local flood.  Evening dry but cloudy.   The wood pigeons are now in the wheat in flocks (they beat the ears with bill).'

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Images

 

Jars of honey

beeswax candles

sea shells

chickens with chicks

soft boiled eggs

corduroy jackets

pin cushions

Holly Cottage

blackberries, raspberries

dogs curled up

by the fire

white jugs with daisies

white jugs with lilies

pine tables

pine dressers

velvet ribbons

lavender

Roberts Radios

sandy beaches

churchyards

horses, ponies

oak trees

well-kept lawns

willow trees

Wind in the Willows

Mole, Badger and Ratty

digestive biscuits

cocoa

 

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With best wishes, Patricia

 

                                                                            

Francis

 

 

 

Dear Reader,

The Monarch butterfly is a milkweed butterfly in the family of Nymphalide.  The Monarch is well known for its ability to travel great distances and the migrations in North America are one of the greatest natural phenomena in the world.   This butterfly is also very occasionally recorded from the British Isles, making it our largest and rarest migrant butterfly.  They have been recorded throughout Britain and Ireland with a concentration of sightings in the south-west notably from Cornwall and the Scilly Isles.

Monarchs live in gardens, on farmlands, in parks and in roadside hedges. They can be encourages to visit gardens by growing a range of suitable flowers from March until frosty weather ends the the butterfly season in October-November.  On average most butterfly species have a life span of two weeks in their adult stage.  Each of their life stages lasts a different amount of time.  A butterfly's life starts as an egg. It takes between 5 to 10 days to hatch into a caterpillar.  The International Union for Conservation of Nature as of July 2022, lists the Monarch butterfly as an endangered species on its Red List.

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From William Cobbett, August 28th 1826 in Wiltshire

'Five a.m.  A very fine morning....My horse is ready; and the rooks have just gone off to the stubble-fields.  These rooks rob the pigs; but they  have no right to do it.  I wonder (upon my soul I do) that there is no lawyer, Scotchman, or Parson-Judge, to propose a law to punish the rooks for trespass.'

 

From Gilbert White, August 30th 1772 in Hampshire

'Michaelmas daisy begins to blow.' 

 

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Francis

He came into my life
at the end of my life.
Five years later he is
still here
and how lucky I was, am.
He is perfect for me
peaceful and quiet,
helpful and loving,
my safety and rock.
Has the key to my heart
overflowing with love for him.
He is clever and inventive
both funny and kind.
I am grateful and appreciative
amd will love him dearly
until my end.

                                                                           *

 

With very best wishes, Patricia

 

Spring Fair

                                                                     Spoonbills
 

Dear Reader,

Although Spoonbills bred in East Anglia during Medieval times, they had not bred in Britain for over 300 years until 2010 when a small colony was discovered on the north Norfolk coast.The new chicks, known as teaspoons because of their tiny beaks are the first in Norfolk since the spoonbill was hunted for its white feathers and meat during the reign of James I.

The roseate spoonbill sleeps standing on one leg, with its head tucked beneath its back and shoulder feathers.They can live up to 15 years in human care and an estimated 10 years in the wild. Spoonbills are monogamous but as far as is known, only for one season at a time.  Most species nest in trees or reed beds, often with ibises or herons.

Blackfaced spoonbills are mainly found in Est Asia, including China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, as well as some parts of south east Asia.  The typically inhabit coastal areas, estuaries, mudflats and other shallow wetlands where they feed on small fish, crustaceans and other aquatic invertebrates.

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From Dorothy Wordsworth, 1800  August 22nd in Westmorland

'Very cold.  Baking in the morning, gathered pea seeds and took up - lighted a fire upstairs....  Wind very high shaking the corn.'

 

From Gilbert White  1787 August 26th in Hampshire

'Timothy the tortoise, who has spent the last two months amidst the umbrageous forests of the asparagus beds, begins now to be sensible of the chilly autumnal mornings; and therefore suns himself under the laurel hedge, into which he retires at night.  He is become sluggish, and does not seem to take any food.'

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Spring Fair

The young girl
and her mother, holding hands,
hurry down the hill
where the bright lights beckon,
see the big dippers hurtling
painted horse swirling, yellow
swing boats diving, swooping,
smell the grease and diesel
hear the load beat of music,
the children's screams.

Young men of the fair,
long-haired, dark, a little wild,
eye the girls with bright,
knowing looks.
The air is full of restlessness, of quickening,
an urgency to act
before the end of the night,
when the morning light will move them on.

Dusk falls, the young girl drops her mother's hand,
stirred by the primal desire of early spring.
Running silently she disappears into the night, eager
to share what ancient fires of life can bring.

                                                                              *

With best wishes, Patricia

 

Leaving

           Bampton Village as seen in Downton Abbey with Mrs Crawley and the Dowager
                                                              Lady Grantham

 

Dear Reader,

 

A little sunshine was forecast on Wednesday and we decided to go to Bampton, a large village not very far from here where the filming of Downton Abbey took place. And it was a glorious outing.

I am a great big fan of Downton Abbey and watch the series over and over again.  In fact I know what the characters are going to say before they do, and laugh at the jokes the irrepressible Dowager, Lady Grantham elucidates whenever she is in the scene.  If you shut your eyes just a little Bampton Village still seems to be England of yesteryear..  Lots of beautiful honey coloured cottages with flowers in the gardens and a large and dignified church in the middle of town.  Lots of friendly people we met, mostly from America,  all of whom loved the story and knew the series well.                       

I have never advertised anything on my blog in the seven years I have written it but if you like the idea of seeing where Downton Abbey was filmed I thoroughly recommend a visit to Bampton Village.

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From Gerard Manley Hopkins   August 7th 1872  Isle of Man

'We went mackerel fishing.   Letting down a line baited with a piece of mackerel skin - tin or any glimmering thing will do - we drew up nine.  A few feet down they look like blue silver as they rise.'

From James Smetham  August 9th 1868  Sussex

'A yellow sun fast setting and all entwined with other influence, with the pale gibbous moon, with the scent of honeysuckle.'

                                                                         
From John Ruskin  August 13th 1872  Berkshire

'Entirely calm and clear this morning.  The mist from the river at rest among the trees, with rosy light on the folds of blue; and I, for the first time these ten years, happy.'

              

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Leaving

The day she left
her heart hammered
tears streamed down her cheeks

the rain beat against the car windows
and east wind blew
the road was black ribbons.

She took a small suitcase.
It held a red skirt, two shirts, underclothes,
two cardigans, a duffle coat
and three favourite books.

After twenty years of marriage
that was her spoils.

Oh, and the kettle.

                                                                     *

With very best wishes, Patricia