Northumbria

 A long overdue holiday post from August and time in our ‘happy place’ shared with Mum H.  We did all the usual haunts of Hexham Abbey, Barter Books, Holy Island, Grace Darling Museum, Sea Houses and an additional extra Cragside  near Rothbury.

Hexham Abbey 

Say Cheese!

A finger labyrinth which was very meditative.

Prayer Chapel.

Barter Books 

Funny story - Mum H picked up this book and it fell open in the middle and so began reading from that point onwards 😀. Mum did in fact purchase the book and when she finished reading it she then passed it on to me to read.  The book in question was the autobiography of the now famous Catholic singer Susan Boyle and her rise to stardom.

I read the first few chapters of this book and since I was on a 'no spend' rule I decided to place it back on the shelf.  I had thought I could borrow it from my local library but it wasn't available.  I'm trying to reduce extraneous clutter on the bookshelf and I have books that I would like to re-read and then donate, so who knows I might purchase this book at some point and then donate to charity once it's been read.

Silly Sausages 😂

Holy Island and Sea Houses 

Stained glass window in St Aidan's Catholic Church.

I do love a good prayer table, they are great for marking the seasonal/liturgical year but also a visual focus during your prayer time.  Sometimes words elude us and just sitting with an image becomes our prayer.

The Anglican church a short walk from the Abbey ruins on Holy Island.

A well deserved coffee break in our favourite coffee stop on the island 'Pilgrims Coffee House.'

Once we'd finished our visit to the island we travelled South to Bamburgh for a visit to the Grace Darling Museum, followed by our final stop in Sea Houses for gluten free fish and chips.

Every time we spot a lone seagull we all say, 'its Uncle Bernard stopping by' 😊

Lots of happy memories from a summer filled with adventures and time with family.  I really enjoyed writing and art journaling a reflection of each day - it was a relaxing wind down activity whilst we all hung out in our YHA room in Alnwick. 

Bolton Priory

On Monday we visited Bolton Priory whilst Pip was in her fine art and 3D design lessons for that day.  The priory is only a short walk from where we ‘car camp’ near the village shop and information centre, so it’s a good chance to get the circulation moving and ease the pain in my lower back. 

Information on a decorative wooden board states that Prior Robert the first prior was in charge in 1126.  Thanks to bonkers Henry 8th many churches were ransacked and damaged, especially those who refused to declare allegiance to him only.  The other name associated with this space is ‘St Mary and St Cuthbert’ which signifies that it is Anglican - if it were Catholic it would be known as ‘Our Lady and St Cuthbert.’ Regardless of its current denominational leanings it really is a haven of peace and tranquility, and when you walk through its doors you are met with a recording of monks singing the divine office of the day.  All in all it’s a pretty good way to begin the week. 

 

The photo above is the country home of the Duke of Devonshire who owns the entire Bolton Abbey Estate.

Summer Writing Journal

 Over the summer I took part in a free writing course courtesy of the lovely Beth Kempton.  I decided to use the prompts in conjunction with art journaling as I could see it might be helpful in processing grief over Mum’s death.  Each day had a colour theme and you were encouraged to explore what that might mean through a series of questions and associated poetry reflections. 

Orange

A conversation with a tree. 

Blue

A poem where the last word in one line became the first in the next, I’m not entirely sure but I think the technical term is enjambment. 

Pink

This was inspired by photographs taken on my 3rd birthday. 

A Pink Haiku:

Birthday pink in June

Pink sunset on that last day

A cocoon of love. 

Yellow

‘From a seed of a lemon’ short story.

Brown

An autumn poem for Mum. 

White

 Social Media, Friend, Foe or Lifeline. 

Black

For anyone who might be interested Beth also has a lovely podcast entitled 'The Calm Christmas Podcast' it is full of lovely poems, stories, reflections and recipes and it's just the thing on the run up to Christmas.

Not What We Had In Mind

 ‘If you want to hear God laugh tell Him your plans!”

We thought that local college courses were on the cards for Pip because surely after the exam debacle last year, something should go right for this gal? Er, no!  I will save you a convoluted discourse of further mess ups and let you know that as from the start of September we have navigated a three day, 70 minute commute across the border into North Yorkshire, affectionately known as ‘God’s own country.’  I won’t lie the 5am roll call can be jarring but little by little we are all finding our groove.  

Craven College is on the outskirts of Skipton and is a small, vibrant and welcoming campus with views of the hills in the distance.  Pip is studying a Level 3 ( equivalent to 3 A’levels) in Creative Arts which includes photography, ceramics and graphic design alongside fine art and textiles in the first year, with majoring in her chosen  specialism in the second year. 

Whilst Pip is at college Dave and I have found various places to hang out and the Bolton Abbey Estate with its various walks, cafes and the opportunity of free WiFi from the car if you park in the correct spot is proving useful.  I’m trying not to think about the dark winter months that are looming on the horizon because I know there will be tricky days ahead.  Instead we take each week as it comes and give ourselves a pat on the back once Wednesday is done, and thank God it is a lunch time finish on that day. 

Here are some photos of our recent North Yorkshire visits:

Here’s hoping I can organise myself to share little snippets as I have missed documenting our days in this space x 

A Somerset Holiday

 Last week we managed to visit Dave’s brother and partner in Somerset, the last time we visited them was 19 years ago!  We also managed to meet up with relatives from Devon and Cornwall which was really lovely.  The purpose of the trip was for Pip to ride pillion on Uncle Andrew’s motorbike and despite being incredibly nervous on the day, she aced the whole trip 🙂. I was so pleased that I’d managed to find an accessible holiday cottage that could also accommodate Dave’s mum and so it was a real family holiday 💕

We are currently in Northumbria and so part two of holiday photos will be posted at some point 😂