Having finished my writing task I felt this morning in urgent need of some refreshment, and the chance to reorient myself mentally. So I suggested to my wife that we take a good country walk. For some reason the idea came into my head that a walk along Rivock Edge might be a good idea. I haven’t been there for many years, but it has the attraction of views westwards over the Pennines towards Pendle Hill. It doesn’t require a long drive to get there. Also, the ascent involved is not too great, which my wife finds an important consideration these days.
Given the fact that we are only just emerging from winter, and the ground was rather boggy in places, it wasn’t a bad walk. My spirits were raised in particular by the bird life. We saw curlews (the call of which, for me, is sheer magic) lapwings and sky-larks, all of which are at home in that kind of poor-quality pasture land. It was a very restoring experience.
If I can clear my back-log of correspondence tomorrow it is even possible that I might be painting again by the end of the week! Something about the writing task has left me in a very unhappy mood. I can only hope that the process of renewal begun by the birds will be continued by a return to art.