A blanket of green moss soothes the brain

These familiar walls on the lane border my regular walks. They are old walls, built by hard labour when fields were cleared for tillage or grazing and in this area small bogs were reclaimed and drained. In places the stones are blanketed in generations of moss and creeping greenery which thrive in the exposed damp winter.

When there is little else to feast the eyes on, these mosses and grasses are layers of greens on other greens and feed the insatiable need for comfort and beauty. The nooks and crannies created by the neat stone drains are ideal for frogs and newts. These walls support a whole world of life and growth that has taken so many years.......

This week the headier issues of work and problem solving befuddled my poor brain. Thanks to the soothing beds of moss I perched on a customary old softish spot and chatted to a couple of bullocks.  I already have hundreds of photos of mosses and green stuff......but these stones are photogenic specimens, not to be ignored on any given day. No, these shots just seeped into my camera unbeknownst to me!

Green is the perfect antidote to brain weariness, and harmony is restored in the old and the very familiar fabric of the landscape.......

Hedgerows of silver and white as everything, including me goes to seed....

 

Strange days. Everything is changing. The hedgerows, only a few weeks ago full of inspiration and activity, are quieter. Some days I think nature will have little to offer an enthusiastic blogger with a camera, but luckily, so far, each time I find some treasure. Sadly today I came across a beautiful hare, now road kill, but completely perfect in every way. The lanes are sparse and brown, and the challenge of continuing the walks is greater.

My attention may well turn to more inward and interior observations. Like the one that the shortening days bring some gloominess to the view, like the one that many of us are struggling to find hope or to understand why, or like the one that the seasons are a powerful force that influence all of our moods and thoughts.

Next week I am hitting the big city of London! The balmy weather and the bright lights will probably turn all this "going to seed" talk upside down. I will miss the quiet silver hues and the golden western skies over the Comeragh Mountains each evening, but I won't miss the grey mist coming in from the Atlantic or the brown stalks, all that remains of the wildflowers that I love.

Packed noisy cafes with the strong smell of baking and coffee here I come! Art galleries, book shops and vintage markets are where you will find me but I will also sit on a bench and observe the wildlife of London in a small square in the sunshine......

Just a few seconds of listening to lakeside grasses, birds and art.....

Sitting by the lake on a summer's day, just listening to the silence.........you hear the grass grow, the breezes singing and the birds telling us their stories. Sometimes it's nice to just let them speak for themselves.......

And I suppose it's the same for painting.........