Body clocks, always something new, just right
1. My phone battery dies overnight but our – and the animals’ – body clocks wake us right on time. 2. The bracken, brambles and balsam have died away to reveal new paths through the woods and fields. We walk them together, her tail spinning, my heels sinking into the leaf mulch. 3. I love [...]
For the sake of it, I heart Coopers, by proxy
1. The two dogs run around fighting over THE BEST STICK IN THE WORLD while he builds a dam in the beck. His handiwork will divide the water more equally between the two paths, so the one close to the path flows better. I know it’ll be washed away next time it rains heavily but [...]
No teeth to hold it back, up Thornhill, “ssh, I want to hear”
1. With each cough, his tongue pokes out further. It is almost impossibly cute. 2. A long walk at lunchtime. We bat some ideas around and enjoy the sun streaming into the empty woods. 3. The one person paying attention, the one person amongst the chaos who wants to listen and learn.
Temporary passages, tired out, silky smooth
1. A dozen old streams are called into action for the day. Lily tastes tests each one. 2. The stove blazing, Bonnie Prince Billy playing, keyboards clacking, the dog is sleeping. 3. The papier mache mix is different this time and it flows much better. I feel like I’m sculpting soft clay into something elegant [...]
Autumn Sun(day)
1. Rainbows fill the room. The dog has one on her chest as she waves her paws in the air. There is another on my legs. They dance across the ceiling. 2. The dew glistens on the cobwebs laced between the neighbours’ railings. 3. The woods have never been lighter or brighter. The trees are [...]
After the chicken run, stepping stone, repeating, evening walk, giveaway smell
1. I sneak back into bed and facing each other, we hold hands inbetween our chests. The dog snuggles her nose into the inverted v-shaped space between our arms. 2. I half open my eyes when I feel the cat step off me. I see her use the sleeping dog as a stepping stone to [...]
One about a dog & one about a lost cat, real/virtual
1. Jake the German Shepherd’s ears are marvellous: when he’s intrigued by something, they not only lift up but bend together to form one giant attentive ear. 2. I say her name and she meows. A few steps then we repeat it again and again. A barrier of nettles, brambles and a steep drop barely [...]
Refreshing, so glad he asked, greetings
1. After suffering salesmen, it’s a relief to see their slumped rugby socks and hear their no-nonsense advice. 2. We repeat the walk Lily & I took on Saturday – a more direct route though, and no getting lost in the middle. I take John to all the things I found he marvels as I [...]
