16th August 2025

 

The Bride Stones

Strange aren't they? They lie above our valley on the moors, geologically shaped, wind-swept over millions of years, they accrue folklore.  Though the folklore of Bride stones in England is quite common.

It was Andrew this morning coming back from a long walk, he had walked up to the stones and remembered that I wanted to visit them.  Well we are renting a car for a week soon and he suggests we all go there.  Facing you, the long skinny necked rock is the bride and the smaller stone next to her the groom.  You can read a much larger description here.  If I had to pick and choose a legend for the stones it would be the Brigid legend, yes I know she is an Irish goddess but 'up North' the Iron Age tribe was called Brigantia, which has a closeness of wording.

Isn't it strange we now use You Tube so much more than actual (what do you call it? terrestrial television maybe) to watch ordinary people taking us on visits to different places.  Explaining the history of their localities, explaining craft work.  Showing us their gardens and animals, that we have quite forgotten to sit down and watch the box.

So yesterday two old friends from the Darkside of the Moor  appeared in my subscription list.  No I have never met them but they make me chuckle.  Are they camp? will I be shot down for even asking that question? Life has become a tricky negotiation path through The Mores of today.

My other favourite video is The Mindful Narrowboat Vanessa and Zephyr her dog give a delightful view of the canals up North, and she illustrates her day so brilliantly in her notebook at the end, that for a moment in time you are making a pot of tea, sorting the biscuits with her and giving Zephyr his treat.

The third I will mention is of course The Last Homely House, though the less frequent The Last Homely Garden is just as calming.  Perhaps that is the secret, in this fraught period of time we are living through a sense of calmness is needed.  I was even thinking about a retreat at the Kagyu Sammye Ling Tibetan Buddhist Monastery, think that was the last holiday Paul and I had in Eskdalemuir just over the border in Scotland.  But sadly my religious zeal is nil, so presumably I would be a hypocrite in my untruthfulness.

Rebecca Solnit hits out (once more) at Trump.  All news leads to him unfortunately.

Now to check the red light highlights to see you get to the right places!