That song came to my mind this morning when we had headed up the mountain to get some very fresh air! The skies seemed not to be able to make up their minds as to which clouds to form as the main players in the atmospheric stage. Some seemed fairly static but low level ones were racing each other above our heads it was fascinating to see the sky just seeming to be having some kind of a party or festival of atmospheric fun.
It was great to drive across the mountain road looking across at the panoramic view across the commons, some 3.000 acres of it. Bare of sheep at the moment as they are all held in safely until they have safely lambed. It gives the grazing time to recover.
But of course there have to fences between farmland and the commons and the two farms near me here used to be hovels until a few years ago and they now both run some livestock although far from the levels stocked by the long standing farmers here, some of whom go back generations and are sadly all past retirement age, with only a few whose sons will take up the challenge of full time farming, it will be all very sad to see this die out. Now as you know old Dafad here loves the unusual and the rotting posts along this wall have become like old friends, full of character. I almost dread the day when it is all renovated, neat tidy walls, impersonal posts holding up long stretches of shiny new galvanised wire.
It was great to drive across the mountain road looking across at the panoramic view across the commons, some 3.000 acres of it. Bare of sheep at the moment as they are all held in safely until they have safely lambed. It gives the grazing time to recover.
"Oh give me land lots of land under starry skies above. Don't fence me in."
Those are the opening lines of the song and believe me, here with very little light pollution, being up here on a cloudless night is rather magical but it is in the daytime too.
On a clear day one can see for miles and miles, the Chilterns, Malverns, Avonmouth Docks in Bristol and then back into Wales the Brecon Beacons and the Black Mountains etc etc.
"And I can't stand hovels and I can't stand fences. Don't fence me in."
But of course there have to fences between farmland and the commons and the two farms near me here used to be hovels until a few years ago and they now both run some livestock although far from the levels stocked by the long standing farmers here, some of whom go back generations and are sadly all past retirement age, with only a few whose sons will take up the challenge of full time farming, it will be all very sad to see this die out. Now as you know old Dafad here loves the unusual and the rotting posts along this wall have become like old friends, full of character. I almost dread the day when it is all renovated, neat tidy walls, impersonal posts holding up long stretches of shiny new galvanised wire.
I shall miss meeting all these character-full posts with their unique shapes and fences too,
look closely, see how many shapes you can recognise in the above, it has quite a few.
and so I will leave you today with one final view ...
... though the singing gate was only whispering soulfully today.
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