One thing I am determined to do in 2013 is to slow down more and spend more time in the outdoors really seeing what is going on around me. I have read some wonderful books over the last 12 months, and I can't help noticing a common thread emerging... and that is my interest in other people who have slowed down and really look at the natural world, or their everyday lives.
Recent examples of this are - Otter country by Miriam Darlington, which is the year long account of a woman who is fascinated by otters. It is beautifully written and truly observant. A second book, which is one I've gone back to many times is Better off by Eric Brende. This is the story of a young couple who go to live for a period in an Amish type community, without connection to the grid, and many modern conveniences. This calls me back time and again, because this gives them more time to observe the world around them, and appreciate the everyday.
These are things I want to achieve in my own live...so I keep reading, hoping to be inspired.
A thought that came to me yesterday was that I could start to keep a photographic record of my walks along the river. I walk there at least two or three times a week with the dog. This could be a start, an exercise in observance.
So today....
We took a chilly winter walk. No frost or snow...but we found ice, forming swirling patterns on the ponds; the last remaining Hawthorn berries on lichen crusted branches; and low winter sun shining through the trees on our return.
