HISTORY

PEERING INTO THE PAST

By Barbara Elsmore

When I was around eleven years old, it was discovered that I couldn’t read what was being chalked up on the blackboard and so off to the opticians I was taken.

In those days the choice in National Health children’s glasses was very limited and my very first pair were red with a modest up-lifted point on the outer corners at the top. I am unsure now if my parents paid something extra to save me from the round, horn-rimmed NHS specs that were common for children at the time. For a few days I loved my new glasses and being able to see properly must have been a revelation but after the novelty had worn off, I really didn’t like having to wear the same glasses day in and day out. In those days you only had to have a new pair if your lenses got broken or if the frames were damaged, and you would sometimes see wearers with some sticking plaster holding parts of the frames together. Lenses were made of glass, as plastic lenses would not become available until the 1980s.

In my early twenties I got my very first pair of contact lenses and I remember they cost me £45, which was a big outlay for me at the time, and many wearers would insure them against loss. Contact lenses were liberating. No more rain-spattered specs. No more not being able to see at the swimming pool, and being able to pop on a pair of sunglasses was best of all. Now after a lifetime of contactlens wearing, I am back into a pair of spectacles again but this time with varifocal lenses. When I take them off and peer about me, I realise just how poor my eyesight is and how restricted my life would have been had I been unable to see properly, and I thank heavens for the invention of ‘eyeglasses’.

I found some old spectacles in the back of a drawer in my grandparents’ house, and to try them on is to step back in time into another era. I have a faux tortoiseshell pair of lorgnettes, a couple of pairs of pince-nez, and a pair of round spectacles with arms that curl most uncomfortably behind the ear. The first thing that I noticed is how small they all are, with tiny cases to hold them.

I have picked up another pair at a vintage sale and these are made of rolled gold and are perhaps the oldest pair. Anyone who plays a Victorian vicar in a dramatic production would be instantly in character with the addition of some whiskers and a pair of spectacles just like these.

WONDER AND WHIMSY

By Rachel Woods

Last month I wrote about things to do with children on a walk. I’ve since been challenged on my suggestions by a friend who rightly pointed out that adults could enjoy the activities just as much.

Not could. Should.

With this in mind I set out to reconnect with my sense of wonder and awe by looking for more whimsy on my walks. I challenge you to do the same.

On a trail out near Horningsham you can come across fairy doors. It takes a while to get used to looking for them but when you find one, there’s a little frisson of excitement. What’s really lovely is where nature has done her thing, ivy and grasses have grown up around them. It really adds to their magic and they look like they’ve always been there.

Early in July, a friend and I were taking a wander around the beautiful grounds of The Newt in Somerset. There’s something new to be found there, a grotto I won’t describe in too much detail. No spoilers here.

I will share that it blends a sense of the spiritual and whimsical, a touch of the mythical with a sense of humour and fun. If you’re planning a visit, do make time to do the longer walk around to it, there are some lovely newly accessible spots and vistas to enjoy along the way.

We adventured with fully open minds and left our grown-up cynicism in the car – agreeing not to judge through adult eyes but to look at things as if we were seeing them as children. The experience was definitely different. I may have to revisit Wookey Hole and do the same.

It makes me wonder about the attitudes we choose when walking. You may recall that I’m a massive advocate of mindful walking for wellbeing, calm and stress relief. But what if we choose to walk for excitement, for creativity, for wonder and whimsy?

In the interest of experimentation, at Minterne Magna Gardens I decided to shift the intentionality of my walk, from a centred calmness which the gardens elicit immediately through to looking for curiosities and features to wonder at. Minterne made this easy, with waterfalls, stepping stones, wildlife and an ‘otter’ surprise to be found.

As we left, I noticed that through the end of July and into August they are offering a fairy trail, sadly we were too early to catch this. I’ll just have to go back.

What’s your usual intention when you head out? Is it to clear your head, to soothe and calm, or is it for a mini adventure?

I invite you to play with your sense of curiosity and wonder – what might you notice?

DRAGON AND FAIRY TRAILS

AT MINTERNE GARDENS

There’s nothing more magical than searching forests, woodlands and gardens for hidden fairy houses, and here at Minterne Gardens maybe you can hear the beat of tiny gossamer wings as our fairies land on their toadstools or a faint splash on the stream as they skim overhead.

If you believe in fairies, see if you can find them dancing under the towering oaks and acers. Or are they hidden behind a rock weaving their magic spells or are they playing tricks on the humans by hiding out of sight altogether?!

Choose a summer’s afternoon when the sun is the colour of honey (fairies love sweet things!) and search for our Minterne Fairy Trails hidden in the garden.

Minterne’s Fairy Trails

from 29 July to 11 September

The entry price for the duration of the event: Adults and seniors £9 Children £6.50 (includes the trail pack in the price) Family (up to 3 children) £26 Under 2s free www.minterne.co.uk. enquiries@minterne.co.uk