That’s one of my favourite electricity poles. Why? Because when I used to run it was the first thing I saw when I got close to home again. Always a welcome sight.
I was thinking that after this trying year we could all do with a welcome sight or two.
For everyone that welcome sight will be different. For me what would it be….
Maybe a rock concert,
Maybe going to see my team get beat again at St James Park,
Maybe it’s the view from the top of a mountain,
Maybe it’s the Sea,
Maybe it’s seeing Switzerland again,
Or just maybe it’s seeing a friends smile in person.
Let’s hope that whatever that view is, you and I will see it in 2021.
It’s Sunday so it must be time for our weekly trip to alpine heaven. Time to visit Switzerland.
It’s Sunday so it must be time for a little wander down memory lane. Back to 2015. Our last family trip to beautiful Switzerland. Last week we looked at the last long walk we did as a family of three. A walk at the Gonnergrat. But we had one more walk. A much shorter one but still memorable. This would prove to be our LAST walk with my partner.
I give to you that walk. I give to you one of the most beautiful countries on the planet.
I was listening to the radio this morning and the presenter was happily chatting away. He talked about how things had changed for him. This got me thinking about how much it has for me. Changed beyond recognition.
Let’s go back 20 years
Just starting a life changing relationship
Still playing football and cricket,
Regular mountaineering and climbing,
Drinking alcohol a bit too much,
My social life often centred around the pub,
I would get edgy if I wasn’t meeting up regularly with friends,
Using alcohol to overcome social anxieties,
Work was super busy with so many meetings. So many people to deal with,
Spending little time at home (time at home was seen as a bit of a waste)
Holidays,
Frequent family meetings revolving around mum,
Concerts, football matches, the Theatre and the Cinema,
Trying to avoid being by myself and if I was I would try to drown out the silence with my MP3 player,
Fuelled on caffeine.
Now contrast that with this week….
Single parenting,
Aspergers,
Revisiting wonderful memories,
Emailing one or two friends,
Blogging,
No work,
Housebound with one trip beyond the gates to the Vets,
Tea total, no caffeine,
Lots of silence,
No meet-ups,
No prospect of holidays, trips out, concerts,
Reading,
Time spent talking with Hawklad,
Only one other physical conversation (briefly with the Vet),
Homeschooling,
Working out in the garden,
Trying to practice mindfulness.
Life definitely has changed. It always does eventually. Some things for the worse. Some things for the better. Some things I would change back. But many things I cherish. On balance I definitely wouldn’t go back.
It’s Sunday so it must be time for our weekly virtual trip to beautiful Switzerland. A country that is 900 miles away from our house in England but actually feels more like where our hearts want to be. One day we will return.
Today we are going back to 2015 and our last trip to this alpine wonderland. It was the second last day of our holiday and the weather was glorious. So we went on a bit if an expedition. We went to the Zermatt. From there we caught the mountain train which took us to 10285ft (3135m) to the top of the Gonnergrat. The train is an experience as it’s Europe’s highest open-air railway.
The top is a huge rocky ridge with a luxury hotel, restaurant, shops, astronomical observatories, a beautiful stone chapel and views of The Matterhorn. It overlooks a stunning glacier and has views of 29 4000m mountains. It’s a truly epic place.
After a few hours at the top we walked down most of the way. Poignantly this would prove to be our last long family walk as a team of 3. So it’s extra special to me and our son.
It’s Sunday afternoon here in the UK. Sunday means it must be our weekly trip down memory lane. A lane which leads to one of the most stunning countries on our planet.
🇨🇭 Switzerland 🇨🇭
Switzerland is such a special place for our family. Hawklad’s Grandfather is scattered here. His Granny and his wonderful Mum will be laid to rest here as well. Yes it’s 800 miles away and that sounds such a long way some days but actually it isn’t. It’s so close. Hope exists that one day soon we will return.
But tonight I’m living in memories. Surrounded by grey, misty Yorkshire weather. A place lacking in colour for days. Then the old photos bring colours flooding back to lift my soul. A reminder of just how special this alpine paradise is.
With a fair wind we will one day return. But we will need to think about that beautiful rocking horse. As the shortest in the family now maybe it’s my turn to ride it. How much fun would that be.
It’s Sunday so it must be time for our weekly trip to beautiful Switzerland. A country we haven’t managed to visit for 5 years but is very special to our family. It might be 800 miles away but it feels so much closer.
Yesterday I was talking to our son about visiting this wonderful country again. Without promoting he simply said ‘shame we can’t just move there’. I’m so with him on that. Imagine waking up everyday in a country that looks this good. Imagine that clean, fresh mountain air. A country which is so friendly, where everything works perfectly and one which still feels so safe. Living there would be a dream come true.
We haven’t been able to visit Switzerland since 2015 but it still remains very special to our little Yorkshire family. One day we will return but in the mean time let’s take a virtual trip to this beautiful land.
In these troubled times there are certain thoughts that I cling onto. Thoughts that are so dear to me that they always part the clouds and make the sun shine. One such thought is that Switzerland is there. It’s still there and is most definitely still that beautiful.
It’s Sunday so it must be time for our weekly virtual trip to beautiful Switzerland. A country which we have not been able to visit in person since 2015 but still means so much to us.
This week I was talking to our son about Switzerland. I asked why he loved it so much. He thought for a while and simply said.
“It’s so big. Everything is bigger than I’ve ever seen before. You feel so small there”
He’s so right. In terms of area it’s not that big. The United Kingdom is six times bigger than Switzerland. But once you get there, it hits you. In Switzerland everything is on such a grand scale. It’s completely breathtaking.
That’s what my old Dad would have called a proper apple. Misshapen, blotchy and seriously tart. But with a lot of sugar it will make a grand apple crumble (crisp).
Actually that could be me. Misshapen, blotchy and seriously tart. I do like sugar as well. Actually that was definitely my Dad. Round here a better way of saying that is – he was well weathered. Another phrase is – he definitely had a well lived in face and body. He left this world when I was at university. So our son never got to meet him. In fact he never got to meet his other granddad. Which is sad.
Hawklad has asked about where their ashes are scattered. Unfortunately the answer is rather unclear. With my dad we just don’t know. How bad does that sound. Mum decided against getting the ashes back. They were scattered by the crematorium but we can’t remember where. We are not even sure that they were scattered there. It was one question we never got round to asking mum.
With my partners dad it’s equally hazy. He was scattered on a Swiss mountain top. The people who took them there have left this world now. The only person with a clue is me. The person with a capacity to forget important stuff and remember the useless stuff. I call it – Selective Total Recall. My partner wanted part of her ashes scattered on that mountain as well. One day she briefly described the exact location. I didn’t write it down as why would I need that any time soon…… So I’m a little unsure of the mountain and even less sure of the location on that mountain. Apart from its by a bench with some stones to one side. The ashes are where those stones are. Hardly GPS accuracy. At the moment it’s not really an issue. Travelling to Europe at present is not very likely for our family. But one day it will be.
Today Hawklad mentioned the need to get on with the ashes when he is ok in the world again. The pressure just ramped up a bit. I’ve started studying the names of Swiss mountains. Narrowing the potential choices down. If only I had wrote the instructions down. Still there’s a different way to look at things.
“Dad we might have messed up the scattering of the ashes in Britain by then. The secret is for us to do that before I get to the age of 18. Then I can officially blame you as the legally responsible parent and adult. No pressure on me then….”
It’s Sunday so it’s time for our weekly virtual trip to beautiful Switzerland. A country we haven’t been able to visit since 2015 but it’s still very close to our hearts. The family link started just after the Second World War when my partners worked in the country on charity work aimed at helping injured service men. The link has stated strong since then.
It’s such a friendly and utterly stunning place. It’s a clique but everything does work like clockwork. Once you visit those mountains and lakes the place just stays with you. Gets into your soul.
So here’s the thing. Those in the family with the strongest links to Switzerland have now sadly left us. So the baton has passed to me and our son. To maintain those links. It won’t be easy. Single Parenting, Aspergers, Finances and European Travel will make it difficult. But we both respect family tradition and so love Switzerland. We will find a way.
