Friday, May 23, 2014

For my brother in law....

At some point, I'll post a more complete post on our adventures in Dover eventually, but my dear sister-in-law Emily wanted to send something to her hubby to let him know we were thinking of him. But it's a pretty exciting adventure just the same.

Dear Yoshi,

You are far away off in a distant land, doing brave things. Your wife is here in jolly old England, enjoying our coastline today. She said you'd asked for some rocks from the White Cliffs, but all of the hiking paths were on top of the cliffs, not below by the water. We searched for a path down to the sea, and at one point, saw a spot that looked promising. We climbed through the fencing they'd put up with red tape (part was knocked down by someone else already anyway), and scurried our way down the steep hairpin path to the bottom of the cliffs. It was less of a path, and more run-off ditches, but we were so excited.... till we got to the last 30 feet... and saw this:

Is hard to tell from this picture, but the path along the rock face narrow from about 24 inches to about 8 inches, just before the wooden bridge that they'd built across the gap gives way. There's a small section connected by dirt, but if you look close, you'll see that its already cracking, about to give way.

We took a video for you. Click here to see it. (Sorry its on Vimeo, I had a hard time loading it properly.)

Just wanted to let you know we were thinking of you. Your wife misses you greatly. Be safe, love you!

Kate

Thursday, May 15, 2014

I'd Forgotten What Silence Sounds Like

I woke up in the middle of the night (around 3:45), and realised something was different. It was silent. Completely silent. No footsteps on the pavement, cars in the street, planes in the air, or sirens in the distance.... just the quiet rhythm of my husband breathing next to me. I honestly can't remember the last time I heard nothing.

The silence was deafening.

When people ask me what I miss most about the States, its not a shop or restaurant, not an accent or a food (though I do miss my Lucky Charms and Peter Pan peanut butter!), it's the stillness. It's the fact that wherever I was, I could be close to doing nothing. Even living in town- I could hop in the car, drive out to the country, and see an empty field with a handfuls of hay bales drying in the sun. I could walk into a forest, where the only bustle is the squirrels and the only twitter is the birds.

I miss the breathing space.