Jun 5, 2023·edited Jun 5, 2023Liked by Imogen Ashwin
Thank you so much for this, Imogen. What a beautiful meditation on early summer and so full of wonderful information and enchantments. I would have loved it just for your use of the word 'woodbine', but there is so much more besides. I love the story about St Petroc. He definitely has antlers! I am also thinking about what I might name this moon. I try to do this often in order to have more personal names but I find the pre-existing ones so intoxicating that I can never settle on anything else. Maybe Fledgling Moon...
Thank you so much Jacqueline and I'm sorry for the late reply. I seem to be behind on everything at the moment! But your words are much appreciated. I thought you would like St Petroc! x
Imogen as I read the opening line of the poem “Come into the garden Maude” I was transported back to my maternal grandma’s garden as she would always say that whenever we went through to her and my Auntie June’s pretty little cottage garden, I never knew why she said that and it just became a family saying, now it makes sense as she was a real poetry lover and it must have been from this beautiful poem. Your writing as always brings such joy and I always learn lovely little nuggets of information. Thank you for sharing and many blessings to you.
Thank you for sharing this, Tina! And for your lovely words too. My own paternal grandmother used to say 'Come into the garden Maud' too. Or was it something about 'Dora at the garden gate'? I'm hazy now, but I remember being told that in her era children were taught to recite by heart various classic poems, even at the humblest village schools. Interesting, as it's unlikely that they had all the nuance and meaning of the words explained to them so they became a sort of unthinking touchstone or talisman that stayed with them throughout their lives. Summer blessings to you too x
Lovely poetry choices! And the photos are so beautiful. I am just adoring spending time in the garden, on walks, at the water, as much as possible. I’m drawn more and more into the natural world - daily - hourly. With gratitude. Do you find that you don’t want to miss any of it? Your writing and connection to natural world is palpable. Thank you for sharing this.
Thank you for this lovely response Cornelia. That's so kind. I agree with you that you don't want to miss any of the beauty in all those different places. Admittedly that gets me into quite a muddle sometimes as I can't decide where to focus my energies and I can't be everywhere at once. Typical indecisive Libran! But I know how lucky I am to have such places to choose from. Gratitude, indeed x
They are! There’s a lot of woodbine along the lane but this seems to have more colour than most. I’m always discovering that there’s not just one wild species of this or that. For example I think I read there are 14 wild bramble species in the UK!
Thank you Daisy Anne. I loved researching all the sea lore while I was writing the stories about my Sea Charm candles. With the ever-present dangers of the sea, it's not surprising that so many charms and magical practices have grown up. I knew that swallows were a traditional tattoo motif but hadn't know why. And thank you for the kind words about the photos x
Thank you so much for this, Imogen. What a beautiful meditation on early summer and so full of wonderful information and enchantments. I would have loved it just for your use of the word 'woodbine', but there is so much more besides. I love the story about St Petroc. He definitely has antlers! I am also thinking about what I might name this moon. I try to do this often in order to have more personal names but I find the pre-existing ones so intoxicating that I can never settle on anything else. Maybe Fledgling Moon...
Thank you so much Jacqueline and I'm sorry for the late reply. I seem to be behind on everything at the moment! But your words are much appreciated. I thought you would like St Petroc! x
Imogen as I read the opening line of the poem “Come into the garden Maude” I was transported back to my maternal grandma’s garden as she would always say that whenever we went through to her and my Auntie June’s pretty little cottage garden, I never knew why she said that and it just became a family saying, now it makes sense as she was a real poetry lover and it must have been from this beautiful poem. Your writing as always brings such joy and I always learn lovely little nuggets of information. Thank you for sharing and many blessings to you.
Thank you for sharing this, Tina! And for your lovely words too. My own paternal grandmother used to say 'Come into the garden Maud' too. Or was it something about 'Dora at the garden gate'? I'm hazy now, but I remember being told that in her era children were taught to recite by heart various classic poems, even at the humblest village schools. Interesting, as it's unlikely that they had all the nuance and meaning of the words explained to them so they became a sort of unthinking touchstone or talisman that stayed with them throughout their lives. Summer blessings to you too x
Lovely poetry choices! And the photos are so beautiful. I am just adoring spending time in the garden, on walks, at the water, as much as possible. I’m drawn more and more into the natural world - daily - hourly. With gratitude. Do you find that you don’t want to miss any of it? Your writing and connection to natural world is palpable. Thank you for sharing this.
Thank you for this lovely response Cornelia. That's so kind. I agree with you that you don't want to miss any of the beauty in all those different places. Admittedly that gets me into quite a muddle sometimes as I can't decide where to focus my energies and I can't be everywhere at once. Typical indecisive Libran! But I know how lucky I am to have such places to choose from. Gratitude, indeed x
The colours of that woodbine are delicious
They are! There’s a lot of woodbine along the lane but this seems to have more colour than most. I’m always discovering that there’s not just one wild species of this or that. For example I think I read there are 14 wild bramble species in the UK!
That’s fascinating about the swallow tattoos! I really enjoyed all your lovely photos, especially that last one on the beach 💛
Thank you Daisy Anne. I loved researching all the sea lore while I was writing the stories about my Sea Charm candles. With the ever-present dangers of the sea, it's not surprising that so many charms and magical practices have grown up. I knew that swallows were a traditional tattoo motif but hadn't know why. And thank you for the kind words about the photos x
A joy to read whilst having coffee this morning. Thank you x
Thank you so much Mary. I did enjoy imagining you reading this while drinking coffee, perhaps in the company of your own Garden Guardians! x