Tree Leaf...

Another day packed with stuff to get done.

Don't know why, but the early start left me thinking about an old guy who visited once. He owned our house years ago and was making some kind of pilgrimage back to his roots. I remember him standing at the front door asking me if it was OK if he took a minute. He didn't want to come in and he had just had a cup of tea, so I gave him permission just to be there. He stood quietly for a bit then rested his hand on the door frame before shutting his eyes. With one foot on the doorstep he bowed his head. I didn't really understand at the time and just thought it was all a bit odd, but there is something very, very special about making contact with the past through touch. I guess he was imagining all sorts from days gone by, the people who had visited him, the sunny days where he would have walked out into the garden, maybe even the people that he once knew.

This tree, the one that the cat got stuck up AGAIN, is a bit like that for me. When we moved into the house there was a swing hanging from one of the branches. The ropes are still there but the swing had to come down as a result of abuse by child (I won't say which one in case it gets me into trouble). Not that they were bad kids, but they did get up to high jinks from time to time. I remember on one occasion they were driving me daft. It was about this time of year (tattie holidays), it was pouring rain and they just wouldn't listen to a thing. So I sent them outside to the tree. They thought it was really funny and ran outside without their shoes on. So I locked the door thinking that they could shelter under the tree and that they would soon get fed up in the rain. WRONG. Funny just became funnier and the white ankle socks were ruined as they skipped through the soaking grass and wet soil. So that particular attempt at discipline backfired.

A bit like trying to persuade this cat that she shouldn't climb trees I guess.