Come rain or shine

What are your favorite physical activities or exercises?

Walking my dog three times a day 🐾🐾

Once again, WP, I find that I have an empty page now, so I can fill it with words of another. My favourite poets are mostly from a time gone by, but today something different.

FEATHERS


Each morning I walk the valley
treading the same worn path,
though no bird flies over the same way twice,
the bees attend different flowers,
cicadas sing where yesterday there were none,
and the hawk is scanning new trees.


A feather lies in wait for me,
having fallen from the sky.
No feather will fall in quite the same way;
not in this spot, from that height,
to be caught between two heads of rye.


The land looks the same each day
but is different in a thousand small ways.
We wake thinking one day is much like another,
that we are still who we were the day before,
or we can let ourselves be changed.


We are as new as the world we see;
what looks familiar is not.
Notice what is happening, be the response to your day.
Be delighted, be surprised,
expect feathers.

By Mary Walker, a contemporary poet from New Zealand

Judge thee not

What is something others do that sparks your admiration?

Folk wisdom suggests you don’t know someone until you live with them. This I understand as people can be pretty clever at hiding their true selves.

I’ve never been a good judge of character, often someone turning out quite differently than I had initially/momentarily  thought/decided ( a lesson there for me about not being judgemental in the first place)

Having said that, there are things people do that sparks my admiration. In fact, there are lots of things, but to be generous of spirit, that is a truly fine quality to be admired and totally respected.

Words today by Rumi

What’s your favourite cartoon?

Hey, WP. Like lots of people, I enjoy screentime, but it never occurs to me to watch cartoons.

There was a day I’d sit with kids and enjoy their squeals of joy over some slapstick moment-or watch them totally engrossed in a new animated movie. But that was way back when.

And so, with little else to say, I’ll do what I love to do at times like this-hand over the space to someone special.

The Guest House

This being human is a guest house.
Every morning, a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honourably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.

The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.

Be grateful for whoever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.

By Jalaluddin Rumi ( 1207~1273)

Translated by Coleman Barks

Tick-Tock ( typos corrected! duh)

What could you do less of?

Hey, WP. An easy one to answer today, with little thought.

A while back I stepped back from the Socials. It sort of happened organically, without planning. Maybe my subconscious giving me a dig, telling me time was passing at an alarming rate, and there were other things I could or should be doing.

All was well, no cold turkey going on, nada, and then I get wind of a WP buddy checking into Tik Tok early each morning for a few minutes whilst he’s out walking with his dog, Lily.

By now, the faithfuls will have gathered dogs are my thing. I couldn’t resist reinstalling the app and opening a new account.

I get to see them briefly during their walk, and after they are well gone, I’m still there, aren’t I? An hour later, watching cats knock items off shelves and dogs being so goofy, and I’m  laughing, out loud to the extent Patch looks concerned, thinking I may need help.

But I don’t. I know I am back to spending too much time on Tik Tok, and I really should do less of it-but hey, laughing feels good!

Positively 2025

What positive events have taken place in your life over the past year?

Spring 2024 was an absolute washout. We were robbed of what is a beautiful season. All that newness. Mother Earth awakening and showing us bursts of growth and colour for the first time in months. It didn’t happen then, but this year, it did, in a truly spectacular way.

Summer was a surprise, and what a treat! England basking in brilliant sunshine day in and day out.

Autumn, not to be out done was majestic. The colours so bold and vibrant.

There, we had three traditional seasons in a row. What will winter bring?

Personal events to celebrate included a very happy birthday, a car which passed its MOT. A clear mammogram and a lovely holiday with old friends.

*Myself and Other Animals

Do you ever see wild animals?

For such a huge animal lover, I’m pretty much starved of seeing them in the wild.

I’ll get a whiff of fox or hear about ‘those wretched badgers’ ( that gets my hackles up, of course!), and  I’ll get an occasional glimpse of a Muntjac, It’s all very sad, really.

We were out just before sun up this morning and crossed paths with an escapee pheasant, wandering lost and alone without his family ( they would have all be slaughtered at the hands/guns of nobs, yesterday)

We didn’t see today, but sometimes a rabbit, sitting close to the road, oblivious to the traffic-clearly in the throes of Mixymotosis- another horror cooked up by Man. The cruelty/abuse of animals will never end.

I’m presently trying to befriend a crow that hangs around here sometimes, but they are remarkably skittish for such a large bird. Oh, talking of birds, there was a Red Kite out and about early this morning, too.

Squirrels, how can I forget those. They’re always around much to the annoyance of Patch.

*I’ve taken the title for today’s DP from an autobiography by Gerald Durrell. ( 1925~1995)

Gerald Durrell

And now I shall go and read what the others have to say about wildlife they get to see. I’m sure bloggers from other countries are going to have more interesting sightings -ooh. I wonder if anyone will mention brown bears? I love those!

Cornwall/Kernow

Do you have a favourite place you have visited? Where is it?

Having written about it several times this year, I’ll just share some holiday snaps. Cornwall on the far SW coast of England. 

433 miles of coastline and over 300 beaches ⛱️

Are you positive?

Share five things you’re good at.


I guess there are going to be some spectacular achievements and abilities revealed today in response to this DP. I look forward to reading those and being suitably impressed.

Mine? Well, there won’t be any loud applause coming my way as I reveal five things I’m  fairly good at, but that’s fine.

What’s the best thing? Knowing I am giving Patch his best life. Without any conditions. Yes, if I had a squeak, he’d gut me like a fish, but hey ho.

I’m definitely good at never getting/ being bored. I can always find something to do if that’s what is called for. Also, I’ve got chilling off to an art.

Next? Umm, I enjoy a good sense of humour. I like funny. I love funny people and/or folk who make some effort to be upbeat. I had given up the Socials, but I have been lured back into TikTok recently. There are things there-animal antics, mostly, that do make me laugh out loud.

I guess this one sort of continues from the last. I’m good at not taking my life too seriously. What’s the point?

And lastly, but not leastly. Gratitude. I’m properly good at that. No, I’m I’m not an angel, and I do lust after ‘things’ or a lifestyle I’m unlikely to achieve. But importantly, I recognise  I have what I need