Saturday, June 20, 2009

Wordsworth Country

I am really a busy bee on these blog entries but fabulous days and events are flying by so fast that I’m sure that we aren’t going to remember where we went or what we did unless I record it ASAP!

Yesterday we rented a car in Edinbough and drove through the incredible countryside to the Lake District. There just isn’t any way to capture the scope of the grandeur of the scenery, nor the depth of the green. It almost hurts your eyes!

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One of our missionaries is a farmer who became a leader in the field of agriculture. He can sheer sheep like nobody’s business and told us that there are 44 million sheep in the UK!

We drove all over the Lake District and love learning about wonderful William Wordsworth. This was erected across the street from the house he was born in Cockermouth:

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Most of his work was completed in an 8 year period in this house at Lake Grasmere where he lived until he and his wife Mary had their fourth child.

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After taking pictures at the wrong house, we finallyh found the right one!  It was closed and when we came back in the morning after a night of rain, this beautiful flower greeted us this morning.

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And after being forbidden to take an flash pictures in Wordsworth’s very dark little house, I thought I had turned off the flash but oops…I was mortified but I’m kind of glad I got this cute kitchen! No way to see it otherwise!

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Wordsworth’s back garden.  He spent many happy hours here with his family and his sister Dorothy who was quite a writer herself!

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After his time here he moved to Rydal Mount where he lost three children, written about so heart-wrenchingly in his poety.  He remained here for 37 years!

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I read poetry to Dad all the way to York. What a mind he had (Wordsworth…but Dad too)…what a love for nature and what an amazing understanding of the pre-existance and the life after death. 

We also went to Beatrix Potter’s house but it was closed. Peaking through this window at the little visitor’s center was a close as we got!

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Of course the lakes were beautiful too!2009-06-18  Scot and Lake District 084

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And the whole District was FULL of rock houses, slate roofs and rock walls:

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Such a splendid day…ending in the second most historic city in England….YORK…coming next!

1 comment:

Shawni said...

oh man alive Mom you guys have been BUSY! And having so much fun! I am so happy that you're doing so great, but will you please come home? I miss you. Love you.