Charlbury Paradise

A couple of weekends ago, we tripped back to the Cotswolds for the day, a beautiful Sunday in Charlbury, five miles from Chipping Norton where I grew up. The air tasted fresh and clear, while the sprawling fields reminded me of the paradise I took for granted as a kid!

On the way, the train floated through the countryside fog. It was a cold, cold day, but George met me at the train station and before I knew it, I was back at the Hadley residence to eat some boiling hot curry (I think I had 3 portions in the end..!) and to see off George’s brother, who is going traveling in the next few weeks!














To try and use up the energy consumed around the dinner table (where some excellent conversation topics had been digested too!) we went and played an impromptu game of basketball – George reminding us all that he didn’t have posters of Shaquille O’Neil on his wall as a kid for nothing! After that, it was cricket, until the light was offered, and taken. We then trooped back through the frosty winter air.














There’s something pure about the countryside, something you don’t recognize properly until you’ve gone. It’s still, calm, and exceptionally beautiful. I miss it, I do, although I love the city and all it’s joys too. It’s great to go back once in a while, with friends, to shoot some hoops. It’s better than that. It’s a real joy. Maybe someday I'll return, who knows!

Before we knew it, it was time to trip out back to the train station, for another Sunday evening train back to London. The nightime sky was black, not orange, and the stars were like glitterdust in the sky. A tear comes to my eye even now to think of it..!














All that's left is to say have a great weekend, thanks for reading! If you can, get out into the rugged land, the pure land where it's all real, where time began.