Friday 8th May

The day dawns again with beautiful weather, and we are plummeted into celebrations of the end of the second world war.  The radio is alive with Vera Lynn, and the country has to celebrate without being together.  Bunting lines the garden of Jo and David, and Jo will ring the church bells at 12 o clock.

I think I will record our battered old bells and think of these two, both over 80 years. David carries a photo in his wallet which shows them as children in India, yes they have known each other that long, and this most romantic gesture tells me all I want to know of them as people.  They are active members of the society around them, David a town crier, Jo sings in a local choir.

The church has been empty since before Christmas, as religion slowly draws away from society.  In fact I haven't seen anyone visiting, occasional visitors in the churchyard to attend graves but that is all.

Only one small excitement, drawing the curtains the other night at dusk, I spied two people outside the front gate, opening the front door, it turned out that they had seen a leak in the stopcock outside the gate.  It is not particularly large and I notice yesterday the Yorkshire Water has marked it in blue with an arrow pointing towards it.  They turned out to be people I knew Nina and Paul who lived in the next village, she owned a fish and chips shop in Leeds, and had brought us all those years ago Pekin duck and the relevant pancakes to cook.  She offered in that  kind manner so many people are taking on to do some shopping for me, trouble is my list would really be long and full of heavy stuff but I do appreciate such kindness.

I choose this photo to remember this day as so many of the terrible photos and paintings are of war torn Europe, it just wasn't us who experienced it.  I remember as a young child drawing a picture of a horse and cart with a family and their belongings piled high.

https://theecologist.org/2020/may/07/getting-back-nature