Today I walked the dog...but before I went, whilst I was meditating on peacock butterflies and eyes of wisdom, Alistair had ascertained that, yes, we had caught the mouse - and had carefully placed the trap on the seaward wall, so I could take it with me to release.
Only a huge gust of wind blew the trapped mouse down into the lane below, from whence Alistair had to retrieve it...much to the amusement of the BT workmen, testing the line...
It was colder this morning, so I was togged up when Kitty and I set off, and with the mouse trap and plastic glove in my coat pocket. Up to Kitty's Field, where we strolled along to the radar-station to give the mouse at least a sporting chance of some shelter.
Crouching down at the edge of the path I donned the plastic glove and upended the trap...a little shake and then another. And then, somewhat shell-shocked, out fell the tiniest little body, with a very long tail and enormous eyes.
She looked at me, I looked back...with a whisk of the tail and a backward glance of acknowledgment over her shoulder, she slipped between a fence-post and the pages of myth, and disappeared.
Her name was Lila, by the way...
Pondering fragility, resilience, impermanence and stories, we continued our walk and returned to a brunch of sourdough with peanut butter and mango chutney. And then baked beans...yes, I know!
Lila was the highlight of my day.
I have also vacuumed, made more sourdough and a bit of pottery.
And found a yellowing newspaper cutting in a paperback copy of Testament of Youth, where I was looking for a quote. From my Dad, who would often send cuttings from the Times, it was dated June 1999 and annotated by him:
"You may well have missed this in today's Times'...
That raised a wry chuckle today as it probably did then...my life at the time was full of chaos and little more kept me 'sane' than those moments and kindnesses - I certainly wouldn't have been idly browsing the obituaries over my morning toast and coffee!
Ho hum, I miss my Dad, with his wit and wisdom. I wonder what he would have made of today's madnesses...
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