- - On a cold & frosty morning --

Such a lovely comment posted to my blog from Scrapdolly – to be a highlight of someone’s day is truly the greatest complement I have ever received on my scribbles and today I am walking on air! To think that my jottings have given such pleasure is the most enormous boost to my confidence, particularly as Scrapdolly herself is such a talented lady. Her pages inspire me as she has such lovely designs, I love the classes she posted to UKS and I know I am not alone admiring her work, as she is on Design Teams all over the scrapping world. I only write the descriptions of how I see it, and I see beauty wherever I look, (though will admit to probably seeing everything through rose coloured spectacles) and still cannot quite believe my good fortune in now living on such a beautiful island – even after 6 years here. I would use a canvas, paint and brush if I could – but I am useless at art! So thank you Karen – and also to Jamie for her so kind words about my letter.
A cold night last night, and Jack Frost was out with his paintbrush in earnest as all the fields are coated with hoar frost and the sheep are all sitting down, huddled together for warmth. They look like fat, round, cotton wool balls, just the way children draw them. Gansey Bay is a still glass lake this morning – the sea looks like a sheet of hammered silver or art glass it is so motionless, and the thin fingers of sunlight on the horizon do nothing to lessen this impression, whilst the heron is here today, standing stiffly like a solitary guardsman on a large boulder on the shore. Only a fleeting glimpse of this beauty as we drive past – but such a joy it is to me.
On the other side of the road the hills are still in shadow, outlined against the sky like cardboard cutouts. Here what colours are visible are all muted purple and grey, even the bracken and grass have lost their bright hues, and only the cairn on top of Cronk-ny-Eary-Laa is edged in light, like small coronet on its head. The hills sit here brooding, waiting for the day to lift them into the light and bring life back to the fields. To steal an idea from the Aborigine -this is my Dreamtime, I find my island home so beautiful I have to write about how I see it.
I know I probably look at my world through Rose Coloured Spectacles, my glass is always half FULL and I am the eternal optimist – but so what – my life is what I make it. And I love beauty I firmly believe that it is in” the eye of the beholder” – and I make conscious efforts every day to make my life beautiful, to be pleasant to all I meet, to listen, to smile, be helpful and kind, and try to be happy. I don’t always succeed, I am only human after all – but at least I try. A favourite saying of mine sums it up for me – If you see someone without a SMILE – give him one of yours! I have found that this simple movement of my face makes such a difference to how people respond to me. No matter what I do!
Only a very quick look in tonight as am off out shortly. Have a great evening.

Manannan's Cloak again - -

Manannan Mac Lir spread his cloak thick over the island last night with a covering of thick fog! Doug and I went out last night to Erin Arts Centre to a PTA event. They were having a Cheese & Wine Evening with a showing of the film Stormbreaker, a lot of which had been filmed on the island and lots actually in Port Erin on our beach!! After the glory that had been ours in the day, it was quite a shock to step outside our door to find thick mist surrounding us. As we moved out of the lamplight at the top of our steps it became clear that this was really thick fog! We couldn’t see across the road! And it is always so silent – what is it about mist and fog that muffles sound? I did notice though that the sound of the foghorn was missing. Doug says it is because all boats are now fitted with GPS that it isn’t needed any longer so has ceased to be used (he’s probably right as he has lots of dealings with the
skippers in his work) – anyway I missed it – being a real traditionalist kind of girl I think it should still blow its warning!! It was actually quite spooky walking into the village, hearing the sea on the shore and being unable to see it! It is the first time since we moved here that I have been unable to see the lights across the harbour as I walked to the village! And it was so COLD.


Manannan’s Cloak is still wrapped around us this morning and the bare branches of the fuschia bushes are shimmering with droplets of water hanging from them like soft silver beads. And a cobweb necklace of the same soft silver beads, hanging from a rusty lantern - such a lovely combination of colours - another MUST scrap photo!! So glad that I spent yesterday in the garden - I tidied the pots and cleared the border, moved all the dead leaves that get blown down our steps and as a reward for all my hard work – I had a visit today from Jenny Wren! So tiny she is and so busy, she has bustled all over the cleared border this morning from one end to the other – catching garden pests I hope – and has given us a lot of pleasure watching her. I love having the little birds in the garden and we do have bird feeders hanging in our tree to encourage them, and am fortunate to have blue tits, coal tits, great tits, chaffinches, green finches, sparrows, a robin and of course the wren visiting us throughout the year. Living so near the Glen means we are very close to hundreds of nesting places, so the whirr & flutter of little wings is one of the sounds of my home – the Manx Glens are steep wooded valleys dropping down to the sea, usually with a stream tumbling down and are havens for wild life – very beautiful and each one unique in its character.Sometimes I feel as if my garden is just a small clearing within the glen, and am sure that the little birds feel that way as so many visit us. The small hamlet that makes up my bit of the village consists of just 4 homes, and we are the only inhabited building at the moment, making the area a real sanctuary for wildlife.

My winter garden has more colours in it than I thought and I love the shape and form plants create when all you can see are their skeletons.

I have blossoms beginning to appear - my primulas are showing some colour, my snowdrops of course, and the forsythia, so there is a feeling of new life everywhere. My big girl is visiting today as well, so what more can I ask for!!I even think the sun is trying to break through.

Sunny Saturday

I woke today to the most beautiful day. The sky was really blue with no cloud to be seen anywhere and the sun shone in all his glory. The sea turns to turquoise in days like these, (not Caribbean Turquoise – more peacock colour), the hills are green and russet, the cottages white and the sky blue so that it is easy for me to see where they got the inspiration for the Manx Tartan. I had a lovely walk this morning round the glen and down to the village and the snowdrops were out in earnest. Foolishly I didn’t take my camera with me so here are the snowdrops in Lonan Churchyard.

They nestle at the foot of the most beautiful (in my opinion, anyway) of the Manx Crosses and the only one which is still in its original setting. There are some very ancient carved crosses which were scattered in churches and keeils all over the island, which were removed from their original setting to Maughold Churchyard. To be fair, many of the keeils where they were standing were derelict so it was seen as a way of preserving them for future generations – and it is great to be able to see them all in one place, but I have to admire the parishioners of Lonan who fought to keep their cross where it has always stood!! Particularly as the chapel is TINY and only used occasionally – probably like many small churches in rural areas; and here on the island the community it served for centuries has moved and now the chapel is at the end of an empty lane, as all the buildings have gone! A lovely tranquil place to visit – I do love these hidden treasures we have scattered round the island countryside! One day I will do a scrapbook page about the Crosses.