I went on my walk this morning all prepared to listen to music. I had my headphones on all ready. And then I forgot. I was outside before I remembered and by then both coats had been zipped up tight and there was no way I was going to unzip them and then remove my gloves to find where my iPad rested in that inner pocket. So I walked in silence. Well, it wasn’t strictly silent. How could it be? This is an urban space. I listened as I walked. I heard birdsong. A blackbird and then a robin, perhaps. I heard an occasional car and a low continuous hum. What was that? Generators? Electricity cables? Drains? I don’t mind it. And besides the countryside as we know it here in the UK is certainly never really quiet – there are birds there too, and foxes barking and maybe even the grunt of badgers. I like being part of the noise with my footsteps, the click of my stick and the swoosh of my waterproofs. Its a vocalising of animation, of life. And I’m glad that I can still participate in it.
I dreamt of messages and of phone calls I had to make and receive. One was from Aberdeenshire, I think. I couldn’t work my mobile, it’s screen was full of arcane images. But there was a sense of optimism, of hope for for all the chaos of misunderstandings, there were opportunities coming. I knew this even when I woke.
