Tuesday, January 3, 2023

Accomplishment.

Sophie's out of the back of the car, onto the beach and straight into action. The skittish oyster catchers take one look at this bundle of howling fur hurtling towards them and take wing. Having chased them Sophie wears an air of supreme accomplishment. She has proved, to her satisfaction, that she's a finely honed hunting machine. I say nothing. 


The family diva notes that her paws leave marks in the wet sand. How cool is that ? This is a cause for silent reflection. Everything stops while the paw prints are examined. For a soon to be 10 years old PONette life is full of excitement and surprise.


We leave the beach is as it was when we arrived half an hour earlier -deserted bar one person at the far end. The holiday makers are leaving and the students haven't yet returned en masse. Parking spots and dinner reservations are once again easy to find.


Time for a coffee and a shared pain au raisin. We were going to take a short cut to the cafe through the cathedral grounds but the gates into the precincts are firmly locked. Strange to think that this old ruin was once one of the largest buildings in Europe.  20 metres longer than the other great pilgrimage cathedral site at Santiago. It was the biggest structure ever built in Scotland until Waverley Station in Edinburgh in the mid-19th century. Robert the Bruce, the hero of Bannockburn,  rode his horse down the nave to the altar at its consecration in 1318. What a sight that must have been . If he'd lost that battle history would have been very different. History would also have been very different if Zelensky had left Kyiv when the invasion started as everyone ( Brits and Americans included )  told him to do. Individual choices can, and do, shape history. 


Back at the car there's time for a quick drink from the non-slip water bowl.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Happy new year from Canada! Best wishes for 2023 to Angus, the Font and Sophie from a Westie named Phoebe and the human reader of your blog 🧘‍♀️

Travel said...

Happy Tuesday, leave more footprints in the sand.

Yamini MacLean said...

Hari OM
I have been pondering of late how history will reflect upon the early 21st century... indeed I was reflecting on how Y2K was such a big thing - and then wasn't and that a whole generation has arisen since then without any knowledge of it. Loved that station clip. YAM xx

Bailey Bob Southern Dog said...

I love the photo of Sophie looking at her paw prints in the sand.

Taste of France said...

Getting the keys to this church might be harder than in the tiny village of 60 souls.

Jake of Florida said...

Enjoyed Waterloo Station clip. Couldn't help but picture tee shirt-, shorts-, sneaker-clad, and backward baseball hat- patrons of today.

Coppa's girl said...

Looking at the vast expanse of beach and endless sea, I can almost imagine that you're right on the edge of the world, so don't let Sophie stray too far!
I enjoyed the film too - such clarity and the muted colours look so natural. A surprise after being used to seeing fuzzy black and white juddering film from that era. How elegant the ladies were, and almost everyone wore a hat. Couldn't help but notice all the porters run as the train came in!

Anonymous said...

Sophie and her paw prints!
The film was fascinating. Everyone so beautifully dressed. No extra large tshirts or ripped jeans seen.

rottrover said...

And not one yellow hat at Waterloo Station!

Diaday said...

Footprints on the beach...one of those little things that makes life so very wonderful.

Linda said...

Loved the film of Waterloo station. I read a fascinating book recently - "Keeping up Appearances: Fashion and Class between the Wars" by Catherine Horwood. Hats, gloves, shoes and more - what they said about the wearer in the codes of society at that time. Highly recommended.