The Magical Morning Of Mist

You never know when magic‘s about to occur.

Yesterday Joss and I set off for the moor in thickest fog (yet again)….only to arrive there and find ourselves in an extraordinary sort of fairyland. 

Great, huge clouds had come down to earth.  Dense, white pillows were nestled in the valleys while strands of cotton candy drifted about the moor like shape-shifting ghosts. 

It meant I could face in one direction and see a vista stretching for miles under a sky of clearest blue.  But, turn forty-five degrees, and the fog was so thick I could barely see the dog in front of me.  Forty-five degrees more and the aspect opened out again, with ribbons of mist lying across the landscape in the most beguiling way.

Joss and I moved in and out of the cloud as we wandered about the fell.  Things visible one minute had disappeared the next.  People loomed suddenly into view then vanished.  Faint wreaths of mist, wide-open skies and all-enveloping greyness swapped and changed constantly.

Seasoned dog walkers were going into raptures; tourists running about with cameras and binoculars. 

It was far and away the most spectacularly beautiful morning I’ve ever known on the moors.  It was true magic.

(I'm taking part in Mosaic Monday over at Little Red House today.  If you have a few moments, take a look at some of the other lovely collages posted there...)

November Rose

There are still roses growing about the gate of the house next door. In November.

Makes me happy.

I’ll Live On The Moors…

‘Well, if you will live up on the moors…’

I get that reaction a lot.  When I’m moaning about the weather, that is.  Because the plain fact is that we do get grottier weather here than in other parts of the country.

Take the last ten days or so.  With the exception of Saturday - which was a gorgeous day - we’ve had thick fog most of the time (despite weather forecasts predicting sunshine).  And, when the fog has cleared briefly, it’s revealed a world drained of colour.  It’s been bitterly cold at times.  And damp.  And generally exceedingly gloomy.

Meanwhile, when I’ve spoken to friends and family who live elsewhere, I’ve been greeted with, ‘Isn’t it a lovely day?!’  No, actually.  It’s not.  But when I say so, there comes back the usual and predictable refrain, ‘Well, if you will live up on the moors…’

I’m not really moaning about the weather.  Well, okay, I am.  But it’s not habitual.  Yes, it makes me grumpy at times and I dream of moving to sunnier climes.  To somewhere where it doesn’t rain quite so much.  Where it’s a few degrees warmer.

But the truth is that the moors still charm – even when shrouded in mist.  I love the muffled quietness that descends then – something akin to the silence of snow.  And when the fog rolls back, I marvel at how a world can become so devoid of colour as to be almost entirely grey.  Knowing, of course, that the grey won’t last forever.

Besides, when the sun does come out (and once in a while it does), there are few places on earth so beautiful. 

So, yes.  Yes, I will live up on the moors.

Feedback!

Okay, so I’m blowing my own trumpet here, but I just wanted to let you in on some of the lovely things people have been saying about the Dixon Hill e-course, Falling Into Place, which finished its first run on Friday.

‘Exquisite’

‘Truly breathtaking’

‘It’s like I’ve found someone who is thinking and looking as I do’

‘I really need to mail you right away to tell you how absolutely happy I am with your course!!!!!’

‘You should be very proud. It is a feat to create something that is both simple and profound, and that's what you've done.’

‘It’s as if you’ve given me back some of the magic of my childhood, to discover and explore even further.’

‘I really love love love it!’

As you can see, it went down well! 

I’m currently doing some behind-the-scenes jiggery-pokery which means that, from the new year (maybe sooner), Falling Into Place can be undertaken at the time of your choice.  So, if you’re looking for something to get you through the dark days of January and February, bear it in mind!

More From Salzburg…

I promised you more photos from my trip to Salzburg a couple of weeks ago….so here you are!

Gorgeous, gorgeous city.  If ever you get the chance to go, seize it!