Hello again everyone, on what is a lovely, mild and sun-drenched afternoon here in Yorkshire. I’ve been quiet for a few days as weekends are busy for me; finding the balance between two young and (feeling in a generous mood today thanks to the peace and quiet) ‘rambunctious’ children, the housework, spending time with my husband and cramming in some private study means very little mental energy left for anything else! It’s lovely to find the time to catch up on this thread.
It’s also exciting to hear from fellow Jung fans; his work was a huge influence on me as a young adult, and I’ve recently begun to refamiliarise myself. Today I've been reading about the mythopoeic imagination and his use of mandalas.
A little synchronicity to report: I recently moved (with a great deal of reluctance) to a house on a newly built estate, after living almost exclusively in Victorian houses. In the absence of previous owners I’ve become a lot more interested in the history of the local landscape (always good to check your house isn’t built on an ancient burial ground and all that!). A few months ago I bought a nature diary written by a farmer who lived in this village 140 years ago and have enjoyed learning about local traditions as well as the wildflowers and plants that used to grow in the area; I’ve had a vague notion that I would try and recreate something of that landscape in my garden, which is currently barren and neglected – really just a rectangle of patchy, balding grass - filling it with native plants and herbs, and hopefully a small vegetable patch. Yesterday I came across an old tithe map from 1828, and after a bit of detective work, overlaying that map on top of the present day, I discovered to my surprise that the farmer who wrote the diary actually owned (and very likely lived on) the land where my house was built just over a decade ago. Perhaps synchronicity is the wrong term, but I’ve taken it as a sign that I’m on the right track with my garden plans.
Speakout what a beautiful, healing song. I’m also paying very close attention to your recipes – house full of fussy eaters here, but now the fussiest ones are back at school I’ve been starting to cook for myself again, at least during the day. DH is sometimes a little skeptical of my experiments, but all in all he’s enjoying our long-awaited release from the beige food diet!
YashmisCrone it looks you live in gorgeous, wild place; even if they can't do it full justice, those photos convey so much energy! Unfortunately there are vanishing few truly wild places where I live, but I’ve always been drawn to water, and there’s a lovely, ancient little brook that runs along farmland not far from my estate; it passes through a straggle of woodland that’s managed to survive the last century of ‘progress’ – I often go there to be alone and reconnect with the older energy of the landscape (and, in spring, to avail myself of its plentiful supply of wild garlic).
Kate, my children are still (although the eldest is just beginning to suffer from that mortal illness, embarrassment) and you’ve received good advice from those more experienced, so I’d just like to say that I’m thinking of you, and I hope your daughters come out the other side 