Now most of you know I'm much more of a big blue sky kinda guy, and that grey leaden skies can often trigger a session curled up under a blanky listening to the Best of the Carpenters. On repeat. But as I walked across the lawn from the Chookery to the house, on Saturday afternoon, I reflected on just how beautiful it is to live here at Larnook and that even when it's wet, it's an absolute delight (even though we do start complaining when we get too much rain). A slight misty rain was falling gently and the clouds had closed in around us, obscuring the Billen Cliffs behind the house. The greens of the lawn, the lomandra garden, the jacarandas, all seemed to be intensified in the soft light. I remembered how I used to fantasise about us owning a weekender in the Hunter Valley somewhere, probably in the Dungog district, when we lived in Newcastle, and how I loved the idea of retreating to the weekender on a Friday afternoon, returning to the city on Sunday night. And now we live that dream. 24/7.
And as I continued my walk in the gentle rain, I stopped and watched this pair of wood ducks graze on the lawns while several red necked wallabies looked on. And I smiled.
4 comments:
Very poetic Kevin. As we've discussed, your blog is my little rustic fantasy - one that could never be realised due to a combination of temperament, ignorance and incompetence. So I get to groove on your close-to-nature experience - all vividly rendered by your expert art of bloggage.
One thing though - some days, after battling the M4 and Parramatta Road in the gathering evening gloom, I travel east along the City West Link and there, just on the crest of the hill at Lilyfield, the illuminated city skyline comes into view. That's urban beauty!
What a lovely post. And yes I can see how the wallabies and wood ducks would make you smile.
Thanks so much, David. To have my writing described as poetic from a wordsmith such as yourself is indeed an honour. You must hate my intemperate and inconsistent use of commas, though, as I do, myself. Unfortunately, in my rush to publish I often fail to closely re-read and edit my posts and it's only when I read them after they have been published that I cringe (and often go back in and edit them).
And yes, I can appreciate urban beauty as much as I can the beauty from the so-called natural world. My time in CIPPS reinforced that attitude. (Agh CIPPs, fine memories come flooding back).
And thanks Louise, I love that you comment so often on my posts...
How wonderful! We "only" have the weekender, and live in the city center, but we sure enjoy every trip up north as well. And we catch ourselves occasionally thinking about selling the city pad, putting a house on the land, and rent a 1-bedroom flat in town. Then live up north and stay in town just for work, about 4 days a week...
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