Strange Days
Dear friend,
Taking a walk in the late morning sunlight; the cold air and the sunshine transport me back in time, three hundred miles north to the fields and the fells of my childhood.
The soft bare earth between the clumps of broad leaved grass, pull me into themselves and there’s a feeling of belonging and being held by the planet. I become aware of our Mam’s presence and by force of will I see our Dad next to her, and Santy walking just behind me on the narrow path across the marshes.
There’s nothing to say, other than hello.
It dawns on my mind for the umpteenth time how fortunate me and my brother are to have been loved by these two.
How I never put myself in mam’s shoes, and when I do now it’s overwhelming to feel a mother’s love.
Mam said that when Dad dropped me off in Sheffield, when I left home, he cried all the way back across the moors.
You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.
But these moments are real. When we think of our departed loved ones they feel it. The love we transmit reaches and warms them.
I practice walking meditation.
Looking at the vivid reds and pale yellows. Thick trunked gnarly giants, roots extending out under the silted bed of the river Lea.
When I get home I feed and water the potted plants at the front of the house. An acorn has seeded in the ivy trough and I’ve been meaning to replant it. One of those jobs you remember and forget about. I bring the little trowel and as carefully as I can, dig the tiny oak sapling out. I get most, but not all of the root. The very end of it breaks. Just below the surface you can still see the husk of the acorn which I assume was planted by a squirrel.
Once you get into the details of a day it opens up and becomes fascinating.
A Squirrel buries an acorn and now hopefully an oak tree will be growing on our back garden.
One day it may reach the size of the giants by the river.
Long after we’re all gone.
Like waves that had their time.
Especially in these strange days we need to dive into life.
Remember the small things.
Saying hello to neighbours.
Look up at the sun behind the clouds.
Feel the wind on your face.
Listen to music.
Call a friend.
Cook something.
Stay human.
Honour the good you find in yourself.
The good you find in the people who enter your world.
And if you are alone.
Be kind to yourself.
Always do that.
Hold to your humanity.
Love endures.
All else.
Passes away.
Till tomorrow
Love
Mikey