27th Dec. 2016.

Two Christmas Day observations;

While walking the dog along Cliff Rd., S. Ferriby on this remarkably fine, mild morning in the hedge bottom was the young growth of cow parsley, white dead-nettle, cleaver and grasses, bright green and celebrating the fact that the winter solstice was past.

Late afternoon while walking dog beside the lakes off Far Ings Rd., Barton fell into conversation with another dog walker re the strange mellow half-light even though already 4-15pm. She hoped we would soon get more daylight, a comment that showed little faith in the natural forces that would ensure this outcome. As it was Christmas she was spared a lecture.

Boxing Day observation;

Last walk of the day with dog up to Sluice and, as on such cloud-free nights, as she sniffed around off the lead in the car park I looked up in this relatively low light-polluted spot. Visible some of the stars of this quiet corner on the fringe of our sun’s galaxy – and it is thought that there are a billion other galaxies. How insignificant Earth’s cultures, beliefs and politicking seem. Even if Trump’s American military forces thrash it out with the nuclear capability of North Korea or Iran and thereby destroy life on this planet, the same stars will be visible, the same far-off galaxies evolving, even the planets of our solar system in their orbits around the Sun, all will continue to follow the forces of the Universe unaffected by our madness.