Yesterday I came close to death

THURSDAY 2nd JULY 2020 – Day Ninety-Four

At the time it did not trouble me and I did not consider just how close an escape I had. Now, as I write this page a day later I realise just how close I came to being killed, not being able to write today's page and finish my book.

Maureen and I, together, with little Doggie Jake had been to Stowe National Trust near Buckingham. I was driving home along Stowe Avenue at the point where the road descends a hill. Coming up the hill on the other side of the road was a car driving perhaps a little too fast but overtaking it was an idiot who must have been touching seventy, perhaps eighty miles an hour. He hit his brakes, the wheels locked and smoke billowed from the tyres. Without considering the vehicle he was overtaking the idiot swerved to miss me. I thought the two cars would collide and crash into the grass area. Fortunately the driver of the car who was being overtaken had more road sense and driving ability than the one doing the overtaking. There was no collision and the whole mess missed me by a couple of yards, no more.  If we had been hit then certainly all three of use would have died.

Before my close encounter of the death kind I had while we were at Stowe some beautiful close encounters of a real kind. Sitting on a path was a Red Admiral, oh how I wish I had my camera with me. It was just there in all its beauty and quite unafraid as I looked at it. How many people in 2020 know what a Red Admiral is let alone have seen one ?

In a different area of the park a young child was crouched looking at a group of grasshoppers. he had no idea what they were. By his side was his Dad with his silly smart phone taking pictures. They were both fascinated with the grasshoppers but I doubt they knew what they were. How long since I last saw a grasshopper ?  Fifty years at least.

Are you old enough to remember when Lady Birds would live in your garden ?  I have not seen one in my garden for a very long time. You can buy them on Amazon you know, buy them to put in your garden and replace those who twenty-first Britain have eradicated.

Walking along in the beautiful park Maureen said to me she could not remember the last time she heard a cuckoo sing. As a child they were common but no child today will have heard one.

Adjacent to the park are fields where sheep graze ?  Where are all the spring lambs ?  Not a single one to be seen yesterday. Well July is not spring is it. Yes the lambs were born as they are every season but they were murdered several weeks ago to provide food for meat eating humans.

I came closer to death yesterday than I ever have. I escaped but those lambs did not. Cuckoos, lady birds, grass hoppers, butterflies nearing extinction because we humans have built a world where they can not exist any longer.

Stowe National Trust Gardens is a beautiful place but it is a place of sadness as it reminded me yesterday of what we are doing to our planet !