Country parks and nature reserves

On Thursday morning just before lunch time I felt really awed as I watched a swarm of newly emerged damselflies fly away from their place of emergence. I had noted several damselflies, almost transparent as they emerged from their exuviae. They were perched on some stakes which are part of a fence and some feet away from the water. To watch this is absolutely amazing and makes you feel insignificant when in nature. It’s not something you see every day.

But however wonderful these parks and reserves are, there is always someone who does not appreciate what is there. They leave dog poo or if they pick it up they hang it on a branch in the car park. Dogs are allowed in the water where they disturb birds and insect larva. I have seen children run and chase the birds on the edge of the water and teenagers throw branches at the ducks.

Yet many reserves and country park run activities to ensure that we all appreciate what is there. Some parks put up signs to show what the trees are called or the wild flowers and have trails for children to follow. All this is good but we need to educate people more. There can be a distinct lack of understanding about the area and that it is not just a place to walk or run around. There is a lot to see if you look for it, insects of many kinds as well as birds, bees and butterflies. Take your time and enjoy your walk, it’s not a first past the post race.

Miscellany

I have been thinking about how much we waste things recently. It came to the forefront of my mind at a recent coffee morning where there were cakes to celebrate a birthday. Many of those living here like Mr Kiplings cakes. I am naming them and shaming them because each cake in the box was in a plastic tray with a plastic film around it. I thought it was bad enough that the cakes were wrapped as pairs, in a tray and with plastic film around them. To wrap each one individually seems absolutely a waste of resources and adds to the plastic problem. To say I felt shocked was an understatement when we are all aware of the plastic disposal problems.

Someone admired my waistcoat the other day. I bought it over twenty years ago in a charity shop for £2.50. I have patched it and added braids and ribbons over the thin parts so I can still wear it. It has good pockets which I find essential and can even hold my small camera. I am not throwing it away for some time even though it needs more patches. I also have other clothes I wear which I have had for a long time. I don’t like the idea of a new wardrobe every summer and autumn, it seems like a waste of money to me.

But some good things are around. The recent large amounts of rain have helped the plants to grow much larger and taller than they should so the wildflower patch I planted now looks a bit like a jungle, lush, green and full of flowers. I was out with my son on Thursday recovering from a visit to the dentist and we walked amongst some wonderful green shrubs and trees with birds singing, bees buzzing and a wonderful feeling of peace. I need more of this!

Time to sit outside and listen

After all the rain it is good to be able to sit outside for a while. The plants have grown rapidly with all the rain and many are now in flower. There are lots of bees, birds and butterflies too

I sat outside on a bench for some time just before noon today. I watched the birds on the feeders and some still gathering twigs for nests. Many of them were singing merrily telling us all how wonderful a day it is. The butterflies were busy too, many in pairs doing a courting flight ritual of some kind. Brimstone and holly blues mainly but there were a few others. Lots of bees buzzing and many other insects around. It is so refreshing and replenishing to just sit and listen and watch.

I have been busy with my local history research and writing as well as sorting out a lot of old paperwork so this time out in the sun was a wonderful respite. I think we all need to take time out to just sit still or even stand still. Those moments of reflection are good for us all.

On another note I am disappointed to see how protests are being handled by those in power. What happened to free speech? If this kind of thing is going to happen more often then the time spent in quiet and reflection will be much more necessary. I want to fight to stop trees being unnecessarily being felled and I want to fight for the right to speak out freely about my feelings and thoughts on our natural world. If we can’t do this then how are we going to make sure that our natural world is not built on and destroyed?

But back to being outside, my son and I went to a different nature reserve last week and even though you could hear the traffic going past there was a peacefulness in the reserve. It is possible to tune out the traffic and tune into the birds singing.