Spring Dawn and Drovers' Roads

I am lucky to live in a beautiful part of the country and when I awoke early to misty sunshine, for once I lept out of bed intent on catching the best of the day.

I used to live in Bishopstone when I first moved to Wiltshire and I still remember the excitement I felt on discovering the countryside so near to our little cottage. Today, I returned there to explore the Cranborne Drovers' Road which took me up along the top of the hills above the village.

It is a perfect early spring morning and I wander along listening to the birdsong and taking my time to look around me. I have always been an ambler rather than a seeker. I like to take the time to become a part of my surroundings and will often sit with my eyes closed so that I can listen properly. Every flower is smelt and many trees are hugged. 

Winter ends early in this part of the world and already the Blackthorne is in bloom and butterflies are basking in the sunshine. When I start my walk, the heavy dew is still on the grass and the spiders' webs. I saw Wrens, Chaffinches, and a pair of Yellowhammers, and the Larks were splitting the skies with their song. As I descended back into the valley I came upon a pair of Munjack deer and most exciting for me- a Hare.

I think the best part of the walk was discovering a wonderful line of mature Beech trees. They are my favourite tree and I can see myself returning here again and again, so as to see them in every season.

I sat in the sunshine and ate my breakfast sandwich and felt that this was truly a 'moment of being'. I felt completely happy and so glad that I had taken this chance to capture this elusive time of year- everything seems to be just on the cusp, the buds are just about to burst open and the tide of spring is unstoppable now.

New beginnings, old friends

 As the lockdown finally starts to lift, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Spring is here, and everyone is beginning to look ahead, so I have been looking back over my blog here.

It is a long time since I have posted and many things have changed in my life. My work as an Independent Celebrant has taken up nearly all my working hours and I have been so busy writing ceremonies, I didn't feel capable of creating blog posts as well.

My varied and exciting life as a Celebrant

However, I have missed this lovely community and I have enjoyed re-reading stories from my past, which reminded me of the satisfaction of recording happy events with words and photographs.

So I have decided to start again.

There is a particular reason for this- in September I am taking a month off work and spending the whole of those glorious, golden weeks in Wales. I rarely take more than a week's holiday, so this will be a treat for me.

September has always been my favourite month

 I have already found four cottages to stay in and I may also spend the occasional night in a campsite, sleeping in my Berlingo car. To many people, this may not be very brave but I will be doing this by myself and to me, it feels like a true adventure!

My friends and family have asked me to keep a diary of this little expedition and as I plan to visit secondhand bookshops, independent shops and art galleries, local markets, and restaurants on my way, I hope other travelers might be interested too.

I have a few months before I go, so I intend to regain the habit of capturing the best of my days and sharing my stories with friends old and new.

It's good to be back.