Pea and I

Yesterday turned out to be one of those unplanned, unexpected, perfect days.  Pea started her GCSE exams this week and has been revising for and sitting exams since before Christmas.  She works incredibly hard; too hard sometimes, I tell her to have a break but she ploughs on, afraid of not getting the results she so desperately wants.  She awoke yesterday morning with a buzzing noise in her head and didn't feel too well.  She decided to have a day at home, in the quiet and take it easy for a change.

The sun was shining, the sky was blue, the lanes were calling our names, so after a brief rest during the morning, we grabbed the dogs and went for a slow amble in the countryside.

We were both in need of some relaxation time and time spent doing nothing in particular.  I think nowadays, we spend so much of our lives being busy that it is seen as being lazy if we do nothing.  But even by doing nothing, something is happening; we let our minds wander and open up; we let things that recently troubled us drift away on the breeze; we let our imaginations get a word in and that's when our best ideas can happen.  Day dreaming is never a waste of time!

Slow ambling is easy to do on a warm, calm day.  It was a pleasure to walk comfortably without the clutter of big coats and being bent against a strong wind.  Hardly a sound was heard, other than our own footsteps and the insects and birds around us.

Pea said she could easily spend a Summer as a cow.  Seeing these gorgeous girls lazing in the afternoon sun, slowly chewing cud with the scent of warm grass and dandelions around them, I could see why.  For once the air was still; Swallows swooped low over meadows and hedges, hoovering up insects in wide-open beaks.  Their excited chatter filled a deep blue sky and spoke of a Summer still to come.  It seeped into my bones and melted away the tension of a long, cold Winter.  Pea and I smiled with contentment and pleasure at the sounds, feelings and beauty the island was so generously giving to us at that moment.  A fleeting moment shared with my daughter; something so simple and unimpressive, but as precious and magical as a droplet of rain captured on the tip of a leaf.

The dogs, hot and tired, whined and broke the spell.  We sauntered home along quiet lanes as insects hummed drowsily among the bluebells and cow parsley.

Revision books and housework waited at home, but just for today they could be forgotten.  We needed a break from routine and Mother Nature provided it for us.  Never for one moment do I forget how lucky we are to be living in this beautiful part if the world.  The wind blows hard and the rain sweeps sideways across the fields, sometimes endlessly, but when it stops and the sky turns blue, there is no better place on Earth to be.

I hope the sun shines on you today and hope you find time to let your mind wander.  Thank you for reading. xxx