HAIR BUNS AND PHOTO OPPORTUNITIES
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This morning the air carries the scent of warmed green leaves. It is both comforting and fresh.
Alt text offers no spontaneous suggestions for this week’s photo. I say it is a four-picture montage of my time at Wonderwool Wales. The selfie picture top left makes it look like I have a hair bun which we didn’t notice at the time of taking it and sharing it on Kath’s social media, but we are happy and ready for showtime and I sort of know what that hairstyle might look like for future consideration! Top right shows Ronnie taking the opportunity to have his photograph with the lovely Bridie who delighted me by asking to meet him. She said he wasn’t as big as she had thought he would be from seeing his other photos on social media which made us laugh. The bottom left photo shows me feeling delighted and proud when some visitors who came to say hello to Kath asked for a photo of me at the stand. And the final photo was taken when show ended with giggle time with Liz – a joyful photo of Kath and I as we all celebrated a successful show.
This was the second year of exhibiting at Wonderwool Wales, and it was lovely to arrive and set up the stand in the same spot as last time. The familiarity and routine of this helped me settle in quickly and begin to prepare for the busy weekend ahead. Having my bearings from the outset felt good and meant that I could focus on showcasing all the designs with Kath.
As you may know I sometimes like to take a look back before looking forward when there are particular milestones, so I spent a little time reflecting on last year’s event before heading off this time. Last year I did not leave Hall 3 because it was the biggest show I had been to, and I wanted to keep all my energy and focus on the sorting and selling.
This year I was looking forward to meeting new people as well as catching up with people I know. I wanted to say hello to people I knew before each day began rather than just stay in my space. I also wanted to visit the show sheep like I used to when I was a visitor to the show. In those days I spent quite a bit of time looking at and talking to the sheep because I would have completed my looking at yarn and yarn related things more quickly than Kath. I love the colours, the stories behind the yarn and the other goodies on display, but I don’t spend as long as Kath exploring each stand.
This year Ali, who I chatted to about poetry last time, was there again and I was delighted when she came over to say hello and let me know that she was still enjoying dipping into my poetry book. Other conversations from new people I met included the joy of dawn chorus, the wonderful Dolly Parton, and finding time to treat yourself as kindly as you do others. I love all these things and it was good to converse with so many like-minded people.
The lodge we stayed in was in a wooded area and I was able to practice using my new head torch (perfect for watching the rabbits in the fields) as well as being immersed in the sound of dawn chorus each morning. I have been thinking about dawn chorus a lot lately. The beauty of this moment in each day, the way it becomes so magnificent at this time of year, how wonderful it feels to stand in the start of a new day or a new venture, and how it feels when darkness breaks. In celebration of all of that I will share ‘It is Not About Dawn’ from my first collection Magnifying Glass.
IT IS NOT ABOUT DAWN
It is about that moment
before the dark time breaks,
being present in the silence,
standing still in an exact moment.
It is all about when that first bird sings,
first light,
the fact that there is an order
that layer upon layer
sculpts the day’s beginning.
It is about discovering how long it takes
before the crow starts to echo back
with his rough
cruck, cruck.
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