Wilf and I got toTipton near Sidmouth late last night, a stopover on our way to Falmouth to see an art exhibition. It's the BA Degree Finals Show of our niece, Megan. (Daughter of our brother Patrick who died of a brain tumour in his early 40's. I often think of him when I swim, or walk or climb. He was up for any outdoor adventures. I think he would have approved of my challenge)
We leave Tipton, after breakfast with the friends who have put us up, and after 4 hours driving round the top of Dartmoor, taking various diversions, get to Falmouth. We grab a quick lunch at a beach cafe with Megan and her mum who is over from the States for the exhibition. The sea looks beautiful but there's no time to swim, sadly. Another time! We walk up through exotic gardens to the exhibition site, spying tiny clay sculptures in the tree branches and roots.
Megan's main piece is a cave-like structure that she has sculpted from clay and branches, a copy of one she constructed on an eco site in the wilds of Cornwall - eco art in a Green landscape. We have fun exploring it, inside and out.
Another exhibit - by Clare Thomas, one of Megan's friends - is a floor sculpture of a sea creature made of brightly coloured rubbish, Clare has been cleaning beaches - recycling junk and making the sculpture out of selected debris. Her words spoke to me:
You, who live by the sea, it is
a small thing to close your gate behind you and head to the beach. and once there, it is
a small thing to walk into the cold water or
lie on the beach, feeling the press of pebbles.
And once you have sunned yourself enough, and
let your body float in the sea enough, and
sunk your feet into the sand enough, it is
a small thing to pick up a few pieces of plastic, or foam
and take them away with you.
If we have souls, surely your soul will remember
the touch of air and water and pebble and
hold them for dark days later.
And if there are spirits, surely they will see you and remember
that you took care of something greater than yourself.
And if there are gods of small things, surely what you have done
will sustain them for just a little longer.
I leave the sea of Falmouth, glittering turquoise in today's bright sunshine, reluctantly. But we have a long drive back to Sidmouth. It's a quick journey and we have time for a swim in the river Otter before dinner! We walk past the local cricket pitch and along the riverbank upstream of the weir where it's deep enough to swim. I've learnt some tips - I remember to check I'lll be able to get out of the water further downstream. It's almost impossible(for me) to swim upstream, however slowly the river seems to be flowing, so you've got to be sure that you have an exit point from where you can walk back up stream to retrieve your clothes! I only went about 100m - a very easy swim - and stayed in quite a lot longer working hard to keep my place against the current, enjoying the late evening sunshine through trees across the fields.
Dinner with our friends at The Pea Green Boat on the seafront in Sidmouth. Fabulous.
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