1st June 2025

 Wild Folk - Tales from the Stones

I once blew a blast into the Blowing Stone, which rolled a hollow wave of sepulchral sound into the hills. The megalith builders, taking their lesson from the conch-shells of the Eastern Mediterranean, blew into this very stone to summon the gods or, more probably, the goddess of the high places. Another two miles and there is the goddess herself or rather, the celtic descendant of the goddess, stretched in white and in flight across the bald brow of Uffington Hill. The downs lift to 800 feet and by their very godliness of combe and crescent, of jutting ness and plunging spur, ordain the tie beam of White Horse Hill to be one more of the holy places of the chalk. So it was on Windover Hill.... and so it is here where the Celtic town of Uffington is flanked by the galloping horse and a Neolithic workshop on the one side, and the chambered long barrow of Wayland's Smithy with its grove of beeches on the other........

H.J.Massingham - English Downland

Owning the stones again.  There is one magical place in Wiltshire, on the dry chalk land a Neolithic long barrow that has been restored in the 20th century but has the peace and beauty so beloved of our English countryside.

 

 I had Massingham's book, Prophecy of Famine which he wrote with Edward Hyam.  The famine never happened though he worked out the amount of food that each family should eat, measuring prisoner's diets and ours as well.  He lived through the two world wars, so perhaps his book had some significance.

But these words are for Wayland's Smithy a place of stories .

Wayland, should you ride your horse past will shoe it if you leave a coin.   

Moss hoping that my meditation will end and the ball thrown again

A sad occasion.  The scattering of 'Treaclechops' ashes.

I have just found this link on Bensozia's blog (thank you) and will record it here for it gives a picture of Orkney, viewed by Londoner's of course.  Here is the link.  The photos are fabulous. There is talk by Andrew of visiting Orkney next year  and camping there.  I feel rather sad about the fact that these Scottish Isles have become awash with tourists but that is the way of life I suppose.