Angel of the North

10th April 2019

Poem A Day in April -Day 10

Have missed writing a poem a day for April this last week.

Couldn't work out how to get to my blog . I was being asked for a password which I vdidn't remember.

This morning , not sure what happened, but I'm in!

Angel Of The North

Perched on this hill reaching for the sky

Seen for miles around, standing so high,

You are a sign of unity and togetherness

Strong and tall, For mighty Northeast

Yet also,

A beacon of warmth 

Throwing open your arms of welcome.

Ten Things of Thankful 21st Jan 2109

21st Jan 2019

Today I'm joining the TTOT - Ten Things of Thankful . If you go to :

tenthingsofthankful.blogspot.com

you'll find others who are taking up the challenge.

I always find it difficult to get my life back on track in January.
It did occur to me that making resolutions at the beginning of the year is much too difficult , especially when you consider that we are usually tired with having lived through/survived the Christmas season. Now don't get me wrong I do love Christmas, but apart from Church involvement there's lot of socialising  with family and friends and of course, the overeating and drinking too much. And, because, as a family, we keep the twelve days of Christmas, ie 25th Dec- 6th Jan,  we are still celebrating when people are making their new year's resolutions. So, it doesn't quite work.
So my proposal is, let's start our new year at the beginning of February. It makes sense.
So, that's what I'm aiming for this year. It gives me a few more weeks to get myself together and get my head around what I might want to do to make improvements in my life in 2019.

I'm getting distracted. Here's my ten things of thankful :

1. For the daylight which is lengthening as each new dawn. This morning it was getting light at 6.45 where we live and in the afternoon yesterday it was after four before I had to put lights on at home. So, we're getting there. I love the journey into spring . Next month we'll have at least another hour of daylight. And then another two in march . I look forward to that so much.
2. Following on from the last one, I'm thankful for my eyesight that gives me so much pleasure. Even the colours as I look out of my window. The brown of the tress silhouetted against a blue sky, grey shadows of plants and fence on the green grass.   The sun glinting off the glass in my husband's studio. A little robin with his red breast sitting on the fence.
That I can see the smile of my husband and my children and grandchildren.
On my birthday some of them came to visit and what a picture it was see them together around the table - healthy and happy.
3. I'm thankful that I'm fit enough to go for walks - legs still good. And I'm particularly thankful that I did an 11 km walk with my daughter and future daughter in law last Saturday, along the clifftop with the sea a glassy picture to our left ( well, to our right on our way back, obviously) and a beautiful view of Reculver Towers (look it up). It was such a precious time. We talked, laughed and encouraged each other. What happy memories we make

4. I'm thankful for the enjoyment of good books and that I belong to a book group that pushes me to try things that otherwise I might not. We've just read THUG ( The Hate You Give) by Angie Thomas. Unexpectedly I enjoyed it. Not something I'd pick up for myself. Before that I'd read and enjoyed The Tattooer  of Auschwitz, which I thoroughly recommend.
5. Only at number five? Here we go then. I'm thankful that we have enough to eat, especially when I think that so many don't have much even in this country.  Food banks don't seem to touch the  tip of the iceberg. I would hate to think that anybody didn't have enough to eat.
6. And, along the same lines, I'm so thankful that we have a house (home) to live in. This time of year is deadly for the homeless, literally. Many die from being out in these cold months. But it's not just have a home, it's being able to afford to put the heating on , at least for a little while in during the winter. And those who need it most, namely the elderly, who spend the majority of their time indoors, are the ones sometimes, who are least able to afford  to keep warm.
7. Only three more to go. Number seven , but actually first on my list, because it is just me. I'm so thankful for my faith. And for God who believes in me. Something a friend said comes to mind. Her son said I'm not going to pray, I don't believe in your God anymore, it's all rubbish. She turned to him and said, well, that's ok, because God still believes in you. Magic...
8. I am thankful for my parents and my grandparents who have gone before me. They have made me who I am . Some very special people there
9. I ma thankful for birdsong . I can hear it as I sit here writing and it cheers my spirit no end.
10.And I am hugely thankful for people creating blog posts like this one - TTOT - that I can get involved with and that wakes up my little grey cells.

So, thank you everyone. I can't wait to see all your posts and see what you are all thankful for.

Dark

10th Jan 2019

Just a few words to match my mood this morning:

There is so much dark

Dark in the sky,
Dark in my mind
Dark in my soul
Dark in through the windows, through all windows

Dark back through years
Dark behind all the tears
Dark whilst standing in the sun
Dark whilst having so much fun

Where is the light to see by
Where is the light to show the way
Where is the light to reveal the joy
Hidden deep and locked away

He is the light, he helps us see
He is the light, he shows the way
He is the light , he reveals the joy
He can no longer be hidden away

Move dear soul so you can see
Move dear heart to find the way
Move dear child, reveal the joy
Move, hide no more, come into the day

Elevenie - Sun /Goldfish

23 rd April

The challenge for napowrimo today is to write an elevenie poem. Eleven words. Here's my double elevenie, which now makes twenty two words.

Sun / Goldfish

Sun

shining brightly

in clear sky

caressing earth and bones

warmly



Goldfish
circling around
lily pond chasing newts
swimming

China 1

 I am going to try and blog about our ( my two sister's and my Mother's) journey to China.
I did write about it at the time but unfortunately a lot of the interesting personal stuff is lost. But here, I'll give it a go. This is for you guys, Mum, Kay and Di , oh and you Dad too, of course - as I promised:

 Part 1

19th March 2007.

Everything packed , much more than I need in fact and I arrive at Mum's at 9.30.p.m. on the Sunday evening, relieved to be there safely the night before flying off to China.  Di, Mum, Dad and myself ponder the great adventure in front of us. As it's a Sunday Elaine is also there drinking tea and enjoying the chat.  I am looking forward excitedly to this special holiday with my two sisters and mum.

Looking at our luggage, huge suitcases bursting at the seams you'd be forgiven for thinking that we were going for three months or more, but no, it's just a couple of weeks.

So the next evening we arrive at the airport, get confused about where we are supposed to be and wait around chattering on about the mighty sights we will see. What fun we will have. We giggle like school girls, mum being the biggest culprit.

The flight is long and I sleep for a good while but about  12.40 a.m. (English Time) I am wide awake and discover we're only a few hours away from Beijing. It's 8.30 in the morning  ( big time difference) and the sun is shining.

We are so excited and when we look out of the window we see that we are flying over the most glorious mountains.  We all go to the toilet .

Morning has come too early and they bring breakfast. We're not ready for breakfast. after all, to us it's the middle of the night (1.0 a.m !!!! for goodness sake and dinner was only 6.30.p.m.)
Di and Kay, still sleepy after travelling through time zones, but where food is concerned we are not known to say no. We make a good effort at eating breakfast - you never know when the next meal might be and it looks as if we'll be out of routine with dinner etc etc .
We haven't long finished breakfast when we start the descent into Beijing.





Just a very small section of the enormous city of Beijing







The view from above is amazing - a concrete planet of high rise buildings. Beijing City, we discover is at least the size of  the county of Kent and  makes London ( Greater London, that is ) seem so teeny.
The population of London being 8 million, Beijing has 11.5 million. Not all of areas of Beijing are as crowded as London but the centre seems much  more dense with people .

And when we travel long hours to the hotel on that first day we  wonder how big it is with it's many roads of six lanes of traffic and huge skyscrapers wherever you look.

We are given a tour guide, who, for the sake of us English folk calls himself Mike. His accent  is tinted with a collection of other languages but mainly American. He is helpful and enthusiastic and tells us a bit about the History of Beijing.   It is one of the four ancient cities of China along with Xian, Luoyang and Nanjing.. It is known as the cradle of humanity with Peking man living here 700,000 years ago.