What’s in an image? Sometimes quite a lot, more than meets the eye.
I’m posting an image every day (or as often as I can). A photo, an image from the internet, a diagram or a map. Whatever takes my fancy.
Here’s another view of the gardens at Hidcote. Lawrence Johnston designed Hidcote with the concept of ‘garden rooms’, one of which is the focus of this photo. Walking through the Hidcote garden you pass from one room to another, to another repeatedly. There are constant surprises every time you turn a corner or pass through an opening in a hedge. It’s delightful.
I love this kind of garden and I think you might too, if you ever have a chance to visit Hidcote – take it!
This, to me, says something about the nature of creation in general. There’s a design stage during which the idea of ‘rooms’ is a foundational step, and even some of the layout, or even most of it, take shape in the designer’s imagination. And almost always there’s a second stage after things start to be laid out on the ground (for a garden). In this second stage, it may become clear that improvements are possible once you see the ‘lay of the land’. Little tweaks and changes can improve the design significantly.
But always, in any creative work, something comes into existence that was simply not there before. Any creative work seems quite magical, as what was only in the creator’s mind appears in actuality and can be seen and touched, or in the case of a garden – walked in and admired.
Themed image collections
The links below will take you to the first post in each collection
If you enjoyed this or found it useful, please like, comment, and share below. (If you don’t see those links, click the article’s title above the main photo and they will appear.) Send a link to friends who might enjoy the article or benefit from it – Thanks! My material is free to reuse (see conditions), but a coffee is always welcome and encourages me to write more often!
What’s in an image? Sometimes quite a lot, more than meets the eye.
I’m posting an image every day (or as often as I can). A photo, an image from the internet, a diagram or a map. Whatever takes my fancy.
A waterlily at Hidcote
Hidcote is a wonderful garden near Chipping Camden, north of Cirencester where we live, and I took this photo in June 2024. Donna and I spent a while casually strolling around, enjoying the sunshine and the gardens and stopping for lunch. Hidcote is managed by the National Trust to very high standards, and National Trust food is also very good. We are National Trust members so we don’t pay an entry fee and can come here as often as we like, we know the place really well.
Most of us would agree that a water lily flower is a thing of beauty, yet it is also ephemeral; it’s here today, gone tomorrow. Living things are all like that, from the tiniest bacteria to the largest blue whale. Life makes up for temporary fragility by it’s abundant reproduction and ability to adapt to new opportunities. Life is amazing!
Themed image collections
The links below will take you to the first post in each collection
If you enjoyed this or found it useful, please like, comment, and share below. (If you don’t see those links, click the article’s title above the main photo and they will appear.) Send a link to friends who might enjoy the article or benefit from it – Thanks! My material is free to reuse (see conditions), but a coffee is always welcome and encourages me to write more often!
What’s in an image? Sometimes quite a lot, more than meets the eye.
I’m posting an image each day, or as often as I can; a photo I took, an image from Wikipedia, NASA, or some other open source, a diagram or a map. Whatever takes my fancy. This is the second in the series.
The robin at Pretty and Pip
Pretty & Pip is one of my favourite coffee shops in Cirencester. I wrote ‘therobin‘ because he’s always there, in their lovely courtyard. If I didn’t know the guy that owns and manages this place I might even think the robin ran it! He certainly thinks he belongs there, and he does a pretty good job of picking up cake crumbs and generally keeping the place spick and span.
But come on mate, get preening! How do you expect to find an attractive female robin with scruffy, untidy feathers like that?
Favourites
For convenience, here’s a list of my favourite images:
If you enjoyed this or found it useful, please like, comment, and share below. (If you don’t see those links, click the article’s title above the main photo and they will appear.) Send a link to friends who might enjoy the article or benefit from it – Thanks! My material is free to reuse (see conditions), but a coffee is always welcome and encourages me to write more often!
What’s in an image? Sometimes quite a lot, more than meets the eye.
I’m going to post an image each day, or as often as I can; a photo I took, an image from Wikipedia, NASA, or some other open source, a diagram or a map. Whatever takes my fancy. This is the first in what may become a long series.
Roadworks on the A417, at the Air Balloon Roundabout
The scarp slope of the Cotswolds is steep, and roads usually have to twist and turn to reduce the slope to acceptable levels. A new section of dual carriagway is being built near the village of Birdlip, to complete the link from the M4 near Swindon to the M5 near Gloucester.
It’s involved the demolition of a famous old landmark, the ‘Air Balloon’ pub, and the amount of rock being moved is astronomical. All of this to smooth out a course for the new road that will let it make the 300 m climb in one, long, sweeping bend. The completion date is estimated to be Spring 2027.
Cirencester
For convenience, here’s a list of all the Cirencester area images:
If you enjoyed this or found it useful, please like, comment, and share below. (If you don’t see those links, click the article’s title above the main photo and they will appear.) Send a link to friends who might enjoy the article or benefit from it – Thanks! My material is free to reuse (see conditions), but a coffee is always welcome and encourages me to write more often!
Notes from bygone years – Julys duly described Hint: Click on the thumbnails for larger images.
July 2023 (1 year before publishing this article)
Solar panel installation
We decided to take the plunge and install solar panels on our roof. We had a long wait as demand was high, but the installers arrived in July and after a few days work we were delighted to have the system reducing our electricity bills to almost nothing. Of course, we knew it would be different in the winter months, but with a 10 kWh battery included, we found we could get right through the night on our own stored energy in the summer.
I was also experimenting with a reduced eating window, having breakfast around 11:00. I’ve tried restricted eating before, but this time I’m following evidence-based suggestions from Zoe (see also the Zoe website) .
I was doing Monday walks most weeks with my friend Stephen. We met at one of CBC’s Small Groups here in Stratton, and we got on really well together. Among other interests, Stephen played saxophone in the ‘JJ Band’. We shared similar views on many things and both had backgrounds in computing.
Stephen lived in the town so I’d usually walk down to meet him, we’d enjoy a walk in the park, and often buy coffees from the van or sometimes in town. I always looked forward to my Monday walks.
This was a busy month, I walked several sections of the old Thames and Severn Canal (something I’ve been doing again in 2024), we were regularly arranging the chairs at CBC on Fridays, and two people I knew died, Bob Morris and then Michael Sleggs.
Donna’s Dad was getting weaker and his Parkinson’s symptoms were worsening, so her Mum was needing more help than before and we travelled to Poole to help out more often.
We were living in St Neots, this is a view of the River Great Ouse flowing through the town centre, an easy walk from our house in Eaton Ford. Donna was looking for a school placement for her teaching, I was meeting with a group of friends in coffee shops, hanging out, doing Bible study here and there, hopefully helping people grow and thrive. I was also meeting at home with friends from various local churches.
World events: Israel attacked the Gaza Strip; and a Malaysia Airlines flight was shot down over Ukraine by a missile.
I went to a house church conference and was astonished to bump into my friend Jim Russell there. He’d always thought my views on church were not right, yet here he was! We had some great conversation and he took my photo while I took his. I had no idea that this would be the last time I’d see him.
Donna took part in the Bedford Race for Life organised by Cancer Research UK, along with her friends Gayna and Claire, pictured here wearing their medals. There was a big turn out, along with large numbers of pink-themed balloons and so forth.
We were living in Donna’s cottage near Kimbolton and had decided it was much too small for us both. We’d been looking for somewhere larger and the image shows a survey document for the house in St Neots that we eventually bought.
We visited Mum and Dad in Cirencester on my birthday. As usual we enjoyed spending time with my parents. The photo shows my nephew Tom, my Mum, Beth and Judy chatting together in the back garden. Rachael, Dan, Rosie and Tom were here the same day so it was good to see them too.
Debbie flew to Bordeaux on her French exchange trip (her exchange partner, Anne, had come to stay with us in March). We saw her through check-in and then waited with her on the tarmac, waving goodbye as she walked out to board the plane.
It seemed very strange to drive back home again without her.
We had a summer holiday travelling through Wales from south to north, staying at bed and breakfast places (gwely a brecwast). A few days before we set out, there was a fairly large earthquake, and in Bethesda our landlady was anxious as aftershocks were still continuing. The photo shows Debbie and Beth at the top of Snowdon with a train waiting at the summit station.
This was a short note on a combined staining method for plum reproductive tissues, to aid microscopical studies of the fertilisation process. It wasn’t published as a scientific paper as far as I recall, but was part of a poster presentation at a conference. I hoped other people would try it on different kinds of plant material so that together we could get a much broader view of its usefulness. I don’t think anything came of it in the end, but it’s important to try – that’s part of how science works.
World events: The Sony Walkman first went on sale in Japan; and NASA’s Skylab space station re-entered the Earth’s atmosphere.
Judy must have become pregnant about this time, but we didn’t know that until a little later, of course.
The Severn Bridge was only eight-years-old, and it still seemed amazing that we could drive to Wales instead of queuing for the old Aust Ferry or driving all the way to Gloucester. And there was no thought of a second crossing, of course! I took this photo, but forgot to adjust the focus (no auto-focus in those days).
I was lodging at Archgrove House in Long Ashton along with other students working at the Research Station that summer. Judy sent me the postcard from York (pictured) where she was on holiday with her parents and brother Frank. You won’t believewhat her Dad said about York Minster!
World events:John Fairfax was the first person to row solo across an ocean (the Atlantic); and Neil Armstrong was the first to walk on the Moon (we watched this live at Archgrove House).
Dad drove out to the gravel pits near South Cerney. Some of these were still being used to extract gravel, but some had been worked out and were used by anglers, for swimming, and for water-skiing which we’d never seen before. I took two cameras with me, my old Kodak Starmite loaded with 127 colour transparency film, and my new Kodak Retinette loaded with 35 mm black and white. This photo shows Dad using his camera and my sisters Rachael, Ruth and Cindy.
World events:Malawi became independent of the UK; and NASA’s Ranger 7 send back the first close-up images of the Moon.
I thought you might like to see this birthday letter from my Grandpa. He had emphysema, and died on 22nd August, my 11+ results came in before that and he knew that I had passed. Granny had decided that a sleeping bag would be a useful present as I was off to Cub Camp soon after my birthday and would then move up to the Scouts.
This is a postcard from my Mum to her family back in Northern Ireland. She writes about Cindy and me suffering from chicken pox. I had it before Cindy, so it’s likely I gave it to her (sorry, Cindy). Read the card.
My very first birthday came at the end of the month, a special day, no doubt, with doting parents and grandparents. I must have had other birthday cards, but this one from Watermoor Church is the only survivor. That’s interesting in itself; Mum would have kept them all for a while, but this one seemed more important, perhaps because of Mum and Dad’s strong faith.
On the back of the card is written, ‘Christopher James Jefferies, 37 Victoria Road, baptised October 24th 1948′.
Dad, along with his friend Joe, travelled by lorry, train and bus to Yatesbury where radar training began for them and many others. Dad liked this posting, writing, ‘Radar people seem a good lot’. He was able to hitch home in two or three hours to see the family in Cirencester, sometimes Joe came along too. By the end of the month Dad and others were using radar equipment to plot movements of real aircraft (‘pukka kites’). The photo shows an old aircraft hanger at Yatesbury in 2014.
If you enjoyed this or found it useful, please like, comment, and share below. (If you don’t see those links, click the article’s title above the main photo and they will appear.) Send a link to friends who might enjoy the article or benefit from it – Thanks! My material is free to reuse (see conditions), but a coffee is always welcome and encourages me to write more often!
There was a young man holding a baby just a few weeks old, and right opposite him a young woman, clearly the mother. The three of them were interacting so beautifully
Here’s a short story from a morning recently, here in Cirencester where I live. It involves the very briefest of interactions between me, a young man, a young woman, and their baby. Maybe we can learn several things from what happened, useful lessons about life, about ourselves, about politics, and about the nature of Love itself.
I sat in Coffee#1 in Cirencester enjoying a white Americano, I’d walked into town and had a heavy load of shopping in my rucksack to take back home, a range of fruit from the market stall in the beautiful old Market Place, and a loaf of fresh bread from a traditional bakery. I fancied a break before setting off for home.
I put down the weighty rucksack and my hat on a chair at a vacant table, ordered the coffee and waited while it was prepared, then returned to the table, put in my earbuds, and caught up with some of the news following the previous night’s exciting General Election. While I was watching and listening, I couldn’t help noticing the people at the next table. There was a young man holding a baby just a few weeks old, and right opposite him a young woman, clearly the mother. The three of them were interacting so beautifully, the parents obviously very fond of one another and completely relaxed, the baby equally happy to be held by either of them, and both the adults alert to the needs of the little one. It was a triangle of love and of trust, a happy and peaceful grouping.
They were still there when I got up to leave and I had to pass their table to reach the door. I put on my rucksack and hat, stopped briefly at their table and said, ‘I just have to say that you three are such a lovely little family, and I want to wish you the very best going forward’. I received two huge smiles and headed out through the door to the street. As I passed the shop window, they were still beaming and the young man and I waved to one another, both smiling.
Why am I sharing this little story? Because it seemed notable to me. How many young families are there with difficulties and troubles? All of them! We all have problems during our lives, the important thing is not whether we have them, but how we will handle them. The threesome at Coffee#1 will likely grow to four (maybe more) but it seems to me that they’ll deal with any difficulty wisely and lovingly and will come through any troubles stronger than before. Love is such a powerful thing. There’s a lesson there for everyone.
Go through life pouring out love towards those you meet along the way, and you’ll fare better than if you approach life asking, ‘What can I get out of it? How can I profit? How can I become wealthier or more successful? How can I benefit by ignoring the needs of others?
This is not irrelevant to the politics of our day. For some time there has been a rather nasty drift towards selfish, arrogant, pushy, self-serving, uncaring attitudes from some quarters. It’s not too hard to find examples of this approach in Britain or America with some disturbing and growing trends towards noisy, yet empty politics. The old adage remains true, ‘Empty vessels make the most noise’. In Britain, the Labour victory may work to quell this for the next four or five years, and hopefully the electorate will appreciate the change and clearly understand the dangers, and not support parties or politicians that behave like that.
We now have a chance for more well-considered sanity in our politics, and less mis- and dis-information, or so I fervently hope. We need debate that is less like the destructive accusations and anger inevitable in broken families, and more like the love and gentleness and hope for the future of that young family in Coffee#1.
I like what Paul wrote about love in 1 Corinthians 13, here’s an extract:
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails.
Such love was abundantly present in those parents in Coffee#1. They clearly cared for one another, and they trusted one another completely in caring for the little one. Babies are vulnerable and helpless, it takes parental love to keep them safe and to guide them well as they grow. And the examples provided by two good parents will give a child the best possible chance to develop the same sort of love themselves as they grow and mature.
Paul, as he wrote about love, was thinking of the love of the Creator King acting as Parent, Offspring and life-giving Breath, showing love and care for us all; and the love that we have for one another, for the world, and even for our enemies as we do our best to follow his lead. Paul expresses this clearly, but he was also thinking about the nature and attributes of love itself.
The Victorian teacher and writer, Henry Drummond, had some wonderfiul perspectives on John’s words to the believers in Corinth; he, too, draws out deep truths about love.
If you enjoyed this or found it useful, please like, comment, and share below. (If you don’t see those links, click the article’s title above the main photo and they will appear.) Send a link to friends who might enjoy the article or benefit from it – Thanks! My material is free to reuse (see conditions), but a coffee is always welcome and encourages me to write more often!
The field was a lovely thing to have, we and all our neighbours shared it and it became a place to relax, a sort of unofficial reserve at the end of the garden.
Notes from bygone years – Sing along to some crazy Junes Hint: Click on the thumbnails for larger images.
June 2023 (1 year before publishing this article)
Dunrobin Castle and gardens
Donna and I had a Scottish holiday; we flew to Inverness Airport and took a hire car anticlockwise around the North Coast 500. It was an amazing journey! The photo is of Dunrobin Castle in Sutherland early on the road trip. We saw many interesting features in the towns and villages, the countryside, geology, and coastline. Definitely a holiday to remember.
We walked a section of the Cotswold Way with Donna’s brother Paul and his wife Vanessa.
This view is from a point near the old ‘Air Balloon‘ pub, now demolished to make way for road improvements. The view is north-west towards Gloucester; Crickley Hill is on the right and peeping up beyond it is Churchdown Hill. Coopers Hill rises from the horizon on the left of the image. Hazy in the far distance are the Malverns and Wales beyond.
World events: There was a G7 summit in Germany to discuss events in Ukraine; and a NATO summit was held in Madrid.
Vanessa was running in an event from Sharpness to Gloucester along the old ship canal. Paul, Donna and I made the same trip by car, stopping to watch her pass at several points along the way. After completing her run she joined us in the old docks area, now being redeveloped and including the Gloucester Quays shopping centre.
It was Aidan’s eighth birthday in June and he had an animal themed birthday with everyone able to hold and interact with many different creatures. The photo shows Meredith getting all wound up about a snake! Ten years ago all our grandchildren enjoyed themed birthday parties; and my word, didn’t we have some amazing themes!
We met our newest grandchild for the first time (that’s the one on the right in the photo). Verity was only a few days old, and it was lovely to see her already holding a philosophical conversation with her Dad. But seriously – new life is such a precious and wonderful gift.
I bought my first electronic camera with 640 x 480 resolution, ie 0.3 megapixels! We had a week’s holiday in Scotland with our friends Rob and Jean, staying in a log cabin between Fort William and Loch Ness. The photo (taken on my new camera) shows Rob, Jean and Donna in Leakey’s, an Inverness second-hand bookshop.
Beth had bought a small kite when we went to the Bristol Kite Festival in Ashton Park, and here she’s flying it on a windy day in the field at the bottom of our garden in Stowey Road, Yatton. The field was a lovely thing to have, we and all our neighbours shared it and it became a place to relax, a sort of unofficial reserve at the end of the garden.
World events: The film, ‘The Lion King‘ was released by Disney; the last Russian troops left Germany; and MS-DOS was no longer supported by Microsoft.
Dad sold us his old car, a Volkswagon, and we drove to Cirencester in Jumbo to collect it. Here, Judy is about to travel home in Jumbo, and I followed shortly afterwards in the VW with Debbie and Beth. A little later we sold our old Marina for not very much; it had served us well, but was now near the end of its life.
It was about this time that we waved goodbye to Computer Tutor and the Clever Clogs range of software. I wrote some simple educational games for the Sinclair Spectrum, just for my daughters to use; and brother-in-law, Peter, developed the concept as a viable business and extended the range considerably. By this time Peter had sold the business to Argus Press Software, and none of us remained involved.
I was working on fruit pollination full time by now, having transferred to the Pomology and Plant Breeding Section at Long Ashton Research Station. I had a particular interest in temperature effects on pollen tube growth. By June I would be starting to study the samples I’d collected earlier in the season. The squiggly, yellow lines in the picture are pollen tubes.
Judy’s parents and her brother, Frank, had a chance to visit the Falconry Centre at Newent in Gloucestershire. She took my camera with her and grabbed this lovely portrait during the trip. I needed to be at work that day so couldn’t join them. Work? Day out? No brainer, really, but it just wasn’t going to happen, sadly.
World events: A bomb exploded in Westminster Hall; and Isabel Perón was sworn in as the first female President of Argentina.
I was working on the final sandwich section of my Bath University Horticulture course. I’d been assigned to Long Ashton Research Station (LARS) near Bristol and worked for Eddie Catlow and Martin on the experimental farm team. This placement had the advantage that Judy and I were be able to meet up at weekends.
World events: There was a serious collision between an Australian aircraft carrier and a US destroyer; and Judy Garland died in her London home.
I was taking my O-level exams at Cirencester Grammar School. The photo shows a page from one of my exercise books (not related to an exam). ‘The happiest days of your life’, people told me. But I found exams a real trial, suffering with intense hay fever made far worse by everyone wanting the windows wide open because of hot weather.
World events: Greece rejected direct talks with Turkey over Cyprus; and Nelson Mandela was sentenced to life imprisonment in South Africa.
This month brought Rachael’s 2nd birthday, Ruth’s 3rd, Dad’s 33rd and Grandpa’s 80th, I was still 10 in June, nearly 11. We were living at Queen Anne’s Road in Cirencester, the photo shows me, Rachael, Cindy and Ruth playing in and around the blow up paddling pool in the back garden. Summers seemed to go on forever in those days!
In June I was enjoying the start of the long summer school holiday. I was still five-years-old (nearly six) so this was my first school summer holiday. I probably felt very grown up to think that when I went back in September I would be in the second year. Meanwhile I had time to play inside or out in the garden.
Dad had his 23rd birthday in June, but of course I was not yet storing long term memories so I don’t remember it. But at nearly eleven months I’m sure I joined in the fun and certainly would have appreciated cake if there was one! It’s likely I was able to stand if I had something to hold on to, and I might have been able to say a few words, but any notes Mum and Dad might have made have been lost.
World events: A rhesus monkey, Albert II, was the first primate in space but died on return due to parachute failure; and the first TV Western, Hopalong Cassidy, aired in the USA.
Dad noted in his diary on his birthday (4th June) that the city of Rome had been taken. And on the 6th he wrote:
‘D. Day!! At last the second front has started. Was transferred to C. shed. Was on guard at 2 Site all night and spent pleasant evening in guard room. Listened to Montgomery and King on radio. Wrote to Phillip and Ronald. Letter from Nor.’
(Nor was his mother, and later my Granny).
At the end of the month he heard unofficially that he was to be posted to Yatesbury (a centre dedicated to radar training).
If you enjoyed this or found it useful, please like, comment, and share below. (If you don’t see those links, click the article’s title above the main photo and they will appear.) Send a link to friends who might enjoy the article or benefit from it – Thanks! My material is free to reuse (see conditions), but a coffee is always welcome and encourages me to write more often!
Notes from bygone years – May all your Mays be amazing Hint: Click on the thumbnails for larger images.
May 2023 (1 year before publishing this article)
Warners hotel near Hereford
We took Donna’s Mum, Isobel, for a weekend break at a Warners hotel; the one we visited is Holme Lacy, not far from Hereford. Donna thought Isobel would enjoy this place, and she was right. In the evening there were tribute bands singing songs that were popular in the 50s and 60s, so music that is still popular amongst the older generation these days. The outside areas are attractive too as you can see from the photo.
I had a suspected cold but needed to be sure it wasn’t COVID as I was planning to be with a group of friends, but as you can see the result was negative.
I don’t think any of us wants to go through another pandemic! It was very disruptive in so many ways.
Choosing a day with beautiful sunshine, we visited Hidcote Gardens and then Charlcote Park (pictured). The ingenuity, design and construction that went into gardens and houses like these is astounding. But they depended on the work of large numbers of people much less fortunate than the people who lived in them.
New Frontiers were holding their annual gathering at the National Agricultural Centre at Stoneleigh and I felt I should take my friends Kev and John to one of the sessions. They’d shown real interest in Jesus and we’d been reading through parts of the Bible in a local coffee shop in St Neots. The photo shows them listening to news about church planting in Pakistan.
River Church in St Neots had a day out at Grafham Water on 25th May. Here’s Jim’s giant Jenga being put to good use. Everyone had a great time, but Jim’s Jenga tower is nowhere near the largest. Try this one for size!
Ken and Gayna are good friends of ours. Ken and Donna were both working and I was working a four day week at that time, so Gayna and I visited Ely Cathedral which she’d never seen before. The photo shows the lantern, an astonishing design and structure for medieval times.
On 1st May we visited Donna’s parents. Her Dad had a hot air balloon flight for two as a birthday present and this was the day he chose for the ascent, inviting me to join him. In the photo, I’m on the left and Tony’s on the right. It was an amazing experience!
I replied to a mailing list message about SUPER.EXE, an MS-DOS utility for getting temporary admin rights on a Novell Netware server. It saved logging out and in again (twice) or, even worse, going to the locked server room to perform the same task from there.
World events: F1 world champion, Ayrton Senna died in a crash; the Channel Tunnel opened between England and France; and Nelson Mandela was inaugurated as South Africa’s first black president.
We visited Cirencester and my Mum and Dad took us to North Meadow at Cricklade to look at the snake’s head fritillaries growing wild there. After that we drove up the Stow Road to see orchids and pasqueflowers. It was quite the botanical field trip!
My daughter Beth loved hamsters, so when she was six I wrote a Sinclair Spectrum text adventure for her, starring a hamster. If you use a Spectrum emulator you can still load and run this game. I suggest the Fuse emulator (free). Once installed, here’s the Hamster! download.
World events: The Severomorsk Disaster was an enormous explosion at the Soviet Severomorsk Naval Base; and a gas explosion in Lancashire killed 16 people.
We travelled to a Post Green meeting at Lytchett Minster near Poole with our friends Paul and Jenny as we had no car at this time. Tony and Faith also drove down. This was an eye-opening experience for all six of us, we learned so much about community, making music, and the gifts of the Spirit. We camped in a borrowed tent and our one-year-old, Beth, slept in a cardboard box. Beth’s first birthday came in May as well, Debbie was already four, our family was growing up!
World events:Margaret Thatcher became the UK’s first woman prime minister; and Greenland was granted limited autonomy from Denmark.
I was still doing a little work on willow growth rates for Ken Stott, the Willows officer at LARS, but Ken had been providing help to the Pomology Group and I was working more and more on that. I’d had a promotion to Higher Scientific Officer (HSO) and was eager to spend more time on microscopy and pollination.
As Bath University Horticulture students, we visited commercial sites from time to time see horticulture in action and ask questions of the managers and staff. The photo shows one of these visits in May 1969. Peter Thoday, one of our lecturers at the time and later a TV personality, is at the back on the right.
World events: An American teenager died of a baffling medical condition, later identified as HIV/AIDS; Apollo 10‘s lunar module flew two astronauts to within 16 km of the Moon‘s surface.
Here’s my sister, Ruth, busy with coloured chalks and a little slate. The floor covering is linoleum, bought by my grandparents for the house, now relegated to the garden. In the background is my old scooter from the mid 1950s. Ruth is on the loggia, a covered area in the garden with three open sides.
May probably brought school half-term, Spring Bank Holiday was 18th, the Eleven Plus exams loomed, and probably came in June; it was strange to realise that at the end of term, my days at Junior School would be over! Uncertainty lay ahead but I don’t remember feeling anxious, nor indeed excited.
I had a letter from my older cousin, Jill. At this time she was staying in a hostel in Deptford, London. She had watched the Royal Yacht Britannia returning home with the Queen and Prince Philip on board. The ship was brand new at the time and she wanted to describe the event for me. Click the image to read an extract.
Approaching ten months old, I might have started imitating sounds. I’d have been fairly mobile and no doubt making a nuisance of myself by crawling. Perhaps I had a favourite toy by this time too. We were still living with my grandparents, though Mum and Dad were hoping to move to a home of their own soon.
In May, Dad had several firsts during basic training for the RAF. He threw a live hand grenade, went through a gas chamber and removed his mask inside, fired a Sten gun, and suffered a carbuncle on his neck that required a stay in Sick Quarters. On 25th May Dad was moved, with 12 others, to an RAF station at Wilmslow in Cheshire.
If you enjoyed this or found it useful, please like, comment, and share below. (If you don’t see those links, click the article’s title above the main photo and they will appear.) Send a link to friends who might enjoy the article or benefit from it – Thanks! My material is free to reuse (see conditions), but a coffee is always welcome and encourages me to write more often!
I set out for a walk along the canal, not intending anything more than a quick explore. I began near Chalford and thought of walking in the Stroud direction, but on the spur of the moment I decided to follow the canal through Chalford village instead as I hadn’t gone that way before.
This is a typical view of the canal in this section
A gentle stroll turns into a major plan
I was enjoying my walk and soon decided to extend it as far as the mouth of the canal tunnel at Daneway Inn. While driving home afterwards I had the idea of walking the entire route in small chunks. So I now have a plan for the old Thames and Severn canal; I’ve done several sections previously, but this time I hope to repeat the walks, covering as much as possible in short sections, and writing up each walk for Journeys of Heart and Mind (JHM).
Part of the canal runs through a tunnel with several sections blocked by collapses, some other sections run through private property and can’t be accessed. Others have been filled in, turned into roads, or are otherwise not walkable. But where the canal has been restored, the towpaths are in great condition. Elsewhere, towpaths are usually passable, especially in dry weather, and they are usually open for use even when the canal itself remains derelict.
Making a start
I was able to park the car right by the tow path (Map), just off London Road west of Chalford (very near Belvedere Mews). Don’t assume you’ll be able to do the same; you might, but there’s only room for half a dozen cars here.
The canal is quite derelict in this section, there’s water in it at many points, but not everywhere. The stonework and brickwork of the locks is severely damaged, and more recent structures such as pipes and small bridges cross the canal and will need to be rerouted or rebuilt. In places the canal has been filled in and one section has been used as a diversion and is now part of the River Frome. The eastern part of today’s route will be very expensive to restore; there are, for example, sixteen locks to rebuild, and not just a simple refurbishment of the masonry and new, timber, lock gates. For the most part it will be a combination of restoration and refacing where possible, but full reconstruction from scratch in many places where the damage is particularly severe.
It’s hard to grasp how destructive the natural world is to our built environment. The canal was dug 235 years ago (completed in 1789) and during its period of use must have been well maintained and repaired whenever necessary. The last narrow boat traffic passed this way about 100 years ago. It was already in bad shape by then, but natural decay, leaks and the growth of trees has resulted in the dereliction we see today.
Section by section
Leaving the car, and carrying my rucksack with a water bottle, I headed east along the tow path. I didn’t take a map, but the path is well marked. I subscribe to the OS maps on my phone (good enough for walks like this) and next time I plan to use the OS 6-inch map for 1892 to 1914 to better understand the canal’s surroundings while it was still in use.
The River Frome in Chalford
(Hint: Click any image to enlarge it.)
The section through Chalford village is very pretty, on the information boards it’s likened to a Swiss valley. That’s a fair comparison, I think. The wooded valley rises sharply on either side, the River Frome (or Stroudwater) runs along the valley bottom, and stone cottages cling to the slopes on either side. If you could only visit one place along the canal, Chalford would be an excellent choice.
Swan’s nest
Beyond the eastern end of Chalford, the tow path passes a lake on the left; originally this was a mill pond, supplying water to turn the wheel at Baker’s Mill. When the canal was constructed, water supply was a frequent problem and the mill pond was extended by the canal engineers to keep this section of the canal full enough even when the locks were operating frequently due to higher traffic levels. The lake is partly silted up now, especially close to the mill, and it has become a wildlife reserve. Passing this point I spotted a swan’s nest in use and a group of mallards nearby.
Marsh marigold in the canal
Some sections of the canal are badly silted and are full of plants like this glorious marsh marigold close to Siccaridge Wood. The nature reserve is well worth a visit if you have time. The site stretches up the hill from the canal and faces south, so it’s a warm spot when the sun shines and likely avoids early frosts in autumn and late ones in the spring. Further on again, a small footbridge crosses the canal and the tow path continues on the north bank until it reaches Daneway Lane.
I stopped at the Daneway Inn for a lovely Coronation Chicken sandwich with a simple salad and some crisps along with a welcome cup of coffee. I have to report that service was prompt and I felt welcomed. The canal continues a little further and the path resumes from the corner of the Inn car park. The tunnel portal (Map) looks mysterious and, frankly, uninviting. It would have been an adventure to travel through the tunnel in a narrow boat; one day it may be possible again!
If you enjoyed this or found it useful, please like, comment, and share below. (If you don’t see those links, click the article’s title above the main photo and they will appear.) Send a link to friends who might enjoy the article or benefit from it – Thanks! My material is free to reuse (see conditions), but a coffee is always welcome and encourages me to write more often!
Notes from bygone years – Aprils springing up everywhere Hint: Click on the thumbnails for larger images.
April 2023 (1 year before publishing this article)
Will it move or won’t it?
Donna and I spent a week in Weston-super-Mare while her brother and sister-in-law were on holiday walking on Dartmoor. We stayed in their flat and combined looking after their two, black Labradors (Marple and Maizi) with an enjoyable week away ourselves.
The photo shows Maizi holding a stick while watching another one on the beach, clearly hoping I’ll pick it up and throw it; she is ultra-focused on this possibility! They’re senior dogs now, when Maizi was young it would have been a much larger stick!
I’ve always enjoyed walking, and I also like taking photos. On April 26th 2022 I walked along the field margins from Stratton to the polo grounds outside Cirencester Park, then down through woodland paths into town. The wild garlic was in full flower in the woods so I took a photo of it, growing here amongst sparse stinging nettle. The flowers look like snow from a distance, but close up they are exquisite.
We visited London for two days, here we’re visiting a tropical jungle at the very top of one of the city’s tallest buildings, the ‘Walkie-Talkie’ building at 20 Fenchurch Street. It’s really strange to visit a hilly area with mature trees on the top three floors of a 38-storey building!
On 16th Donna and I visited Burwash Manor, near Cambridge, where there were a number of small shops and businesses to explore as well as a place for coffee and refreshments. We very much enjoyed looking around and had lunch while we were there.
Donna’s birthday is in April, and in 2009 she was forty-years-old. She had a party with family, friends, work colleagues from Unilever at Colworth, and Open Door Church members all present. As you can see in the photo (click to enlarge it), the cake was a Noah’s Ark and was really beautifully and elaborately iced. There was an evening meal and dance at a nearby village hall.
We flew to Cyprus for a holiday at a hotel in Paphos. Cyprus is a fascinating place in so many ways: archaeology, landscape, biology, society – there was a lot to see. The photo shows ‘The Tombs of the Kings‘ near Paphos. It’ not a built structure, but cut out of the solid rock.
JHM: We had some thoughts about being in the King’s presence. – World events: A referendum failed to reunite Cyprus.
We were living in Tilbrook, Bedfordshire, and had a visit from friends on 5th April, Jacob is playing with a woodpecker toy. My job at Unilever was extended for a second year, good news as it gave me access to the company’s superannuation scheme.
Around this time, Judy was having slightly odd bowel symptoms and arranged an appointment with her GP who listened, examined her, but found nothing wrong and suggested there was no cause for anxiety and it might sort itself out . We were living in Stowey Road, Yatton.
We discovered a field mouse in the house, cowering in a corner. We caught it by putting food in a tall bucket and building a way for it to climb up the outside of the bucket. The mouse jumped in during the night but couldn’t jump out again. Debbie and Beth released it in a field; in the photo it’s about to jump to freedom.
This is a draft for the opening of John Jefferies & Sons new Forum Garden Centre in Cirencester. As you can see, it was to be a grand event with Lord and Lady Bathurst taking a leading role in the opening. There was a barbecue, several talks and films, and the Town Crier would announce it in the Market Place.
I was busy working at Long Ashton Research Station (LARS) with experiments on temperature effects of plum pollen tube growth rate. I used growth cabinets at a range of temperatures and plum flowers supported in wet florist’s foam. After some microscope work, the data had to be fitted to mathematical growth models (for which I collaborated with a statistician).
I was at Bath University in my third year of their four-year Horticulture degree course. Judy visited Cambridge on a biochemistry trip. Dad went to Fairford Airfield and filmed Concorde on an early test flight. The image is a still frame from his 8 mm movie camera.
World events:Concorde arrived at Fairford for testing; Richard Nixon was sworn in as President of the United States.
I was in the 5th year at Cirencester Grammar School. Here’s a photo I took of my sister Cindy in Girl Guides uniform outside the family home in Victoria Road. It was always a happy home, Mum and Dad were great parents and we had opportunities to do so many interesting things.
World events: Sentences were passed in the Great Train Robbery trial; and BBC Two television began broadcasting.
I was now in my final term at Junior school (Querns School), the photo is from 2023, but it looks much as it did in 1959. We were spending some of our time practising the sorts of logical problems we’d meet in the 11+ exam and pupils who passed would go to Cirencester Grammar School. About one in three would typically succeed, and although Mum and Dad didn’t make a big deal of it, I think they knew I was marginal and could go either way.
The Easter holidays meant that Querns School was closed and I could revert to spending the entire time playing at home or with local friends from Queen Anne’s Road where we lived. Linda next door was probably 6 and I was in the last few months of being 5. Our parents were friends too, so we spent a lot of time in and out of one another’s homes and gardens. The photo shows a building on the corner of London Road and Beeches Road. Both directions were good for the walk home.
I was nine months old at the end of the month, and was probably able to pick items up and transfer them from one hand to the other. I might also have looked for objects that had been moved out of sight. I’m glad to report that I can still do those things 75 years later!
Dad was now in Skegness (Skeggie) for basic RAF training. This involved marching and parade practice, rifle shooting and bayonet work, fieldcraft, watching training films, aircraft recognition and more. Sometimes there were fatigues to be done, in the cookhouse, for example.
There was also time off when they could visit the town, play football, write letters and generally do whatever they wanted. One highlight was an inspection by an Air Chief Marshal.
World events: The US Air Force accidentally bombed a Swiss city; and a large scale D-Day practice on Slapton Sands was attacked by German U-boats.
If you enjoyed this or found it useful, please like, comment, and share below. (If you don’t see those links, click the article’s title above the main photo and they will appear.) Send a link to friends who might enjoy the article or benefit from it – Thanks! My material is free to reuse (see conditions), but a coffee is always welcome and encourages me to write more often!
Journeys of Heart and Mind 
.jpg){kind=link}
