Spots of time

When I studied for my 'A' Levels - rather a long time ago now - one of our set texts was William Wordsworth's 'The Prelude'. And oh, how I loved his poetry at that time in my life! It reached out and grabbed me as it moved from lofty sentiment to intimate description and personal observation. I know it's not to everyone's taste - indeed, there are lines in his work that no poet should ever have written - the most famous being from 'The Thorn' where he actually published the following two lines:

"I've measured it from side to side

'Tis three feet long, and two feet wide"

Though apparently he did revise the lines at a later date - too late though, if a schoolboy (or girl) was going to remember anything, it was this!

But not to dwell on some of the lesser stuff from his copious outpourings, what did impress me so much (so long ago) was his description of one of those moments when your world lights up; when an image, idea, occasion or vision presents itself to you when you are feeling rather down - he called them a 'spot of time' - they give our lives a special something; an indefinable improvement; a little moment when the edges of the rest of the world softens to a blur as the thing you feel or perceive is brought to a sudden, sharper focus. And it can be anything that does it - you can't know beforehand what it will be.

And although yesterday I was not feeling in the slightest bit 'down', I had a spot of time myself that I will treasure forever. I was in the apartment, probably trying to tidy up a bit before going off to the English centre to my Spanish group, and I heard a group of children outside in the street below. Out of curiosity, I went onto the balcony to look - and there I saw my Ruy walking up along - looking up and waving at me along with half his classmates. I waved back til they went past then grabbed my camera - and captured the moment that makes me so happy.

My lovely middle son (in red and blue with the beige cap) chatting away and 'at home' with his new classmates here in Spain. I can tell from the back that he is smiling.

A real 'spot of time' for me. We all have them, don't we.

Frozen north

Yes, we've been to northern Spain today - to a place just west of Leon. I know you don't believe me when I say it's cold here - and I know it's really bad in the UK at the moment - but I'm not trying to compete, just to say, when I say it's cold here, I really do mean it! There has been no snow this week but the temperatures are well below zero and all the way from Valladolid, the scenery was white, icy and frozen. I kept thinking of Wordsworth and 'The Prelude' which I studies at 'A' Level, several passages of which have stuck firm in my memory; there is a lovely section when he goes skating with friends:

                    

          And in the frosty season, when the sun

          Was set, and visible for many a mile
          The cottage windows blazed through twilight gloom,
          I heeded not their summons: happy time
          It was indeed for all of us--for me
          It was a time of rapture! Clear and loud 

          The village clock tolled six,--I wheeled about,
          Proud and exulting like an untired horse
          That cares not for his home. All shod with steel,
          We hissed along the polished ice in games
          Confederate, imitative of the chase
          And woodland pleasures,--the resounding horn,
          The pack loud chiming, and the hunted hare.
          So through the darkness and the cold we flew,
          And not a voice was idle; with the din
          Smitten, the precipices rang aloud; 

          The leafless trees and every icy crag
          Tinkled like iron;

I love the alliteration of  'all shod with steel, we hissed along the polished ice..'  and the last two lines have always been favourites - and they come to my mind whenever I see a frozen landscape - and so it was today. Everything was tinkling like iron today.

Yes, this really is Spain!

 

We were going to Leon to haul out those boxes that we think we will need - or want - once we move down to Alcala la Real. Not necessarily to take with us the first day or so, but to pile up a bit of our 'home' so that Cesar can come back and get it once we've got ourselves settled. It's surprising what we have missed and what we haven't! I positively hugged my ironing board.... and Ruy was delighted that we found his wind-up bat torch.

Finding anything was a bit of a challenge:

Sofas and wardrobe?

More sofas

Looks like mainly chairs..

Upstairs in the barn..alsorts of things

Chairs and mattresses..

A few of the 100+ boxes

Definitely some pictures here

Some more boxes and more chairs!

But soon we'll be able to take it all out of the barn and put it in its new place, our new home..soon..well, hopefully in 2011.

For now, it's just sort of nice to see it again!