Although I enjoy living by the sea, I am happiest when wondering through the woods around our home for waifs and strays. Just closing my eyes and thinking about trees can bring my blood pressure down to below normal. I can see the roots, anchored to the ground and the tree stretching upwards as if holding up the sky. Everything connected!  And I am always amazed that some have the strength to live for thousands of years. Incredible! I cannot help but feel emotional as I walk through the oak woods of Wales. This brings to mind the words of William Blake....

"The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way.  Some see Nature all ridicule and deformity, and some scarce see Nature at all.  But to the eyes of the man of imagination, Nature is Imagination itself."
-  William Blake, 1799, The Letters

     If you look at the picture, you will see the trees I stumbled upon after a storm. The earth had been washed away, leaving the knotted and twisted roots exposed. But still determined to survive! And they will, for a long time to come! 

     ‘God is a fine artist,’ my father once told me. I was always thought that this was a strange thing for an atheist to say. But, I never said anything, of course, for I knew that deep down, his love and respect for all animals and nature was God enough for him.

      All kinds of birds fly through the great oaks of Wales. But for me, I love to hear the owl at nightfall, when the torch is out and we sit beside a campfire and smell the damp air in silence.       

      In West Africa, the Oubangui people plant a tree each time a child is born. As the tree grows, so does the child but they believe that same child’s health will be at risk if the tree ceases to thrive. From time to time, gifts are left by the tree and when the child becomes adult and dies, the Oubangui people believe that their spirit lives on in the tree.

     I think, just like the Oubangui people think, that I too would not thrive without trees....nobody would!

I have never known rain to be so wet! In fact, I have never known it to rain so much in all of my life, and that’s saying something, coming from Wales!

     We are proud, in Wales, of our green valleys and lush mountains, but all this greenery comes at a price. Rain! Big fat rain! Fountain rain! Sheets of rain! Lazy rain that would rather go through you than around you! Or rain like today that came bucketing down with a vengeance!

     ‘It’s raining old women and sticks,’ my granny used to say, or, ‘it’s throwing it down!’ Whatever we say about the rain, it is always wet!

      And as I drove my car over the old horse bridge earlier today, the rain fell in all its glory, causing the river below to bulge with waves like gulping fish. I paused for a moment and stared at the wipers flipping the offending water off the windscreen. This was Man versus Nature but Nature is rebellious in any attempts to train it!

    ‘You must always treat the sea with respect,’ my father once said to me, and as I watched the river flood the marchlands, egged on by the sea, I nodded my head in understanding.

     As much as I love spring and summer, there is beauty in the seasons we are blessed with on this island of ours. Seak to enjoy nature and the great outdoors, whatever the weather, whatever the season. It is indeed later than you think!

To-days blog will be dedicated to Saint David, the patron saint of Wales.

     One stormy night in 542 or thereabout, a baby was born called David. What’s so special about that? Well, apart from every baby being special, that wee baby grew up to become a Saint, Dewi Sant, the patron saint of Wales.

      David was the son of Welsh aristocrats, his mother was Saint Non. As he grew, David was said to have preformed many miracles whilst preaching around the country. During one such time, it is reported that the ground rose up to form a hill which enabled David to be seen and heard by everyone. He soon became Saint David, and later, the patron saint of Wales.

     Legend says that during the battle with the Saxons, Saint David ordered his men to wear leeks in their hats, so that they could be distinguished from their enemies.

      He was buried in St David’s cathedral in Pembrokeshire and will always be remembered for this little saying,

 “Do ye the little things in life” (“Gwnewch y pethau bychain mewn bywyd”)

Freedom is just two days away! For some at least!

February 28^th 2017 is marked FREEDOM on my calendar in red. It’s been a long time coming but two more sleeps and the door will open to the world. But what will the girls think after being cooped up for almost three months.

Avian flu has taken the lives of many birds over the past few months which prompted the government to enforce a law stating that all poultry (including backyard hens, ducks etc,) be separated from wild birds. This has proven extremely difficult for many people as well as the animals.

But time has passed and here we are, at our home for waifs and strays, preparing for the big day. We were fortunate in as much as we had a large greenhouse to house the hens during this time and just attached their hen house to the end of it. However, the girls, used to roaming around the pond and doing their own thing, have had to adjust to sharing their space and it hasn’t been easy for some.

Today, in Wales, is wet and gloomy but work is still underway to move the hens to a new home in our garden. We have decided to fence off the area around our pergola, where shortly, the purple wisteria will hang down like layered lanterns. Apple trees also grow here so there is plenty of shade from the sun. And tucked away in the corner is smaller greenhouse where the girls can shelter from the rain. A perfect new home for our hens!

But for now, there is much to do, although, my kind and unassuming husband does most of the hard work. Keeping animals is no easy task but the rewards are enormous. Roll on Tuesday!

Many tales ago I wrote about the Adirindack Mountains, Up State New York. A place where I took shelter when I was a lost and confused teenager, a long way from my home in Wales. As a storm raged around my life, I took refuge in the mountains amongst the wildlife, rivers and lakes. That storm has long since left me but a chance meeting with an old friend made me think about those mountains once again. I sought out the tale and here it is once more.....

There is a place in my heart that will always be forever wild, just like the Adirondack Mountains, Up State New York. This is where I lived for a short time, many, many summers ago.

     This 6 million acre wilderness with its 3,000 lakes and 30,000 miles of streams and rivers has made a footprint in my heart to last my lifetime. Perhaps it is the way in which it rebels against all attempts to train it that appeals to me. I certainly feel one with nature when I am there, despite knowing that these spectacular mountains are home to the black bear.

      They roam through the forests, hunting for berries and nuts.  These big black eating machines prowl around the lakes, rivers and streams, searching for small mammals and the white–tailed deer fawn.

       Ursus americanus, as they are otherwise known, symbolize how wild this wilderness is. Let it remain forever wild.

A Poem to the Adirondacks

“The Poet of the Dusk”
John Shalhoub

Adirondacks, hills and valleys,
Are you listening?
Your splendor awes my spirit.
You grapple with the skies and the stars
My love lives in the shadow of your rocks.
Moving with soft winds by day
Attending to the whispers of my soul.
Your crown creeps into my dreaming soul.
Your crown reflects my love,
As I pass in waking dream through your forests
Of towering trees with murmuring tongues,
I salute your splendor,
And glorify the Maker,
Who bids me peace.
I stand dumb before you,
And speak to your soul in beautiful silence,
While the leaves play the music
To the clouds, mountains, hills, and valleys.
My love lives in your majesty
On the boughs of your spruces,
In every breeze across your face,
Through the ever greenness of your cloak,
Into the brightness of your winter blanket.
Beyond my tears, I rejoice
You are a refuge for my heart.
Adirondacks, are you listening