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Saturday 30 December 2017
Some pictures tell the whole story of life
This is one of my favourite photos and it was taken as an afterthought as I prepared to leave a French village after a wonderful lunch. I'm not going to explain the how and the when or what the photo is meant to represent. You decide what you see.
Wissant, France. Photo copyright SvD.
Wednesday 27 December 2017
My kingdom for some proper bread!
Proper bread is hard to come by in our green and pleasant land. When I say proper bread I mean real bread. The best bread I ever tasted was in West Berlin in 1984 before the Wall came down. My very wonderful German boyfriend, Burkhard, lived on the sixth floor in an ancient building with no elevator. How we managed to climb up those stairs after trawling the bars of West Berlin until dawn drinking too much schnapps, remains one of the great adventures of my youth. Our debauched lifestyle was fuelled by enormous breakfasts German style: soft boiled eggs, ham, industrial strength freshly brewed coffee and rye bread with onions, served in thick slices and copiously buttered. The toaster is a very British obsession but both the Germans and Dutch, I have observed, prefer untoasted rye bread. I searched high and low around the world for rye bread with onions and never found it. A few years ago I ran into a Berliner and asked him about the famous bread of my dreams. He replied that it was still available but churned out by the supermarkets in a hybrid, watered down version that resembled nothing like its ancestor I had fallen in love with. I make a version of it now and then but my recipe is not authentic as I'm a lazy kneader; kneading dough is best done by men with huge, strong, hands which I don't have.
In my pursuit of easy, nutritious proper bread, I usually settle on a compromise which involves making rolls not loaves and instead of rye using a mix of one half white flour and one half spelt. These flavorsome Spinach rolls are a favourite of mine- I invented the recipe when faced with a bag of spinach and time on my hands- very unusual and only on a Sunday afternoon. I eat the rolls warm with butter, with bacon, or a sharp cheddar. Spinach and eggs are a marriage made in Heaven so try the rolls sliced in half with a poached egg and Hollandaise sauce.
one bag of spinach leaves
two cloves of garlic
splash of olive oil
knob of butter
pinch salt
grating of black pepper
grating of nutmeg
Rinse the spinach leaves in a colander. Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat and add the butter and the chopped garlic. Brown the garlic lightly then add the spinach, nutmeg, pepper and salt. Cook over high heat uncovered, stirring occasionally until the spinach has wilted and all liquid has evaporated. Set aside to cool.
3 cups of flour- 1 1/2 spelt and 1 1/2 strong white flour
one sachet yeast
one teaspoon salt
one teaspoon sugar
splash of olive oil
Mix all the ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Squeeze the spinach to remove excess liquid then chop it coarsely and add to the bowl of dry ingredients. Add 1 1/2 cups of warm water and mix with a wooden spoon until the mixtures comes together. If it is too dry, add a splash more water. Remove from the bowl and turn onto a work surface. Sprinkle a bit of flour onto your hands and knead the mixture until it it is springy and forms into a ball without any wet dough sticking to your hands. This should take around 7 minutes. Return the dough to the bowl and drizzle some olive oil over the top- this will prevent a crust forming. Cover the dough with a damp tea towel and place in a warmed oven (pre-heat the oven at 100 degrees then switch it off before placing the dough inside). Leave the dough to rise for 45 minutes until doubled in size and light and springy to touch. Knock the dough down and cut into half, then quarters and then eighths. Form into balls and place the balls in a lightly greased shallow oven dish. You should get 8-9 nine rolls altogether. Pack the rolls tightly against each other as this will help them to rise. Cover the rolls and leave them to rise for fifteen to twenty minutes. Pre-heat the oven to 250 degrees Celsius. Place the rolls in the pre-heated oven and bake for twenty minutes then cover the rolls with a piece of foil to prevent burning and return to the oven for a further thirty minutes. The finished rolls should be crispy on the outside and soft and light inside. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire tray. Serve warm with butter. The rolls will keep for up to three days in an airtight container.
Recipe and photo copyright SvD.
In my pursuit of easy, nutritious proper bread, I usually settle on a compromise which involves making rolls not loaves and instead of rye using a mix of one half white flour and one half spelt. These flavorsome Spinach rolls are a favourite of mine- I invented the recipe when faced with a bag of spinach and time on my hands- very unusual and only on a Sunday afternoon. I eat the rolls warm with butter, with bacon, or a sharp cheddar. Spinach and eggs are a marriage made in Heaven so try the rolls sliced in half with a poached egg and Hollandaise sauce.
one bag of spinach leaves
two cloves of garlic
splash of olive oil
knob of butter
pinch salt
grating of black pepper
grating of nutmeg
Rinse the spinach leaves in a colander. Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat and add the butter and the chopped garlic. Brown the garlic lightly then add the spinach, nutmeg, pepper and salt. Cook over high heat uncovered, stirring occasionally until the spinach has wilted and all liquid has evaporated. Set aside to cool.
3 cups of flour- 1 1/2 spelt and 1 1/2 strong white flour
one sachet yeast
one teaspoon salt
one teaspoon sugar
splash of olive oil
Mix all the ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Squeeze the spinach to remove excess liquid then chop it coarsely and add to the bowl of dry ingredients. Add 1 1/2 cups of warm water and mix with a wooden spoon until the mixtures comes together. If it is too dry, add a splash more water. Remove from the bowl and turn onto a work surface. Sprinkle a bit of flour onto your hands and knead the mixture until it it is springy and forms into a ball without any wet dough sticking to your hands. This should take around 7 minutes. Return the dough to the bowl and drizzle some olive oil over the top- this will prevent a crust forming. Cover the dough with a damp tea towel and place in a warmed oven (pre-heat the oven at 100 degrees then switch it off before placing the dough inside). Leave the dough to rise for 45 minutes until doubled in size and light and springy to touch. Knock the dough down and cut into half, then quarters and then eighths. Form into balls and place the balls in a lightly greased shallow oven dish. You should get 8-9 nine rolls altogether. Pack the rolls tightly against each other as this will help them to rise. Cover the rolls and leave them to rise for fifteen to twenty minutes. Pre-heat the oven to 250 degrees Celsius. Place the rolls in the pre-heated oven and bake for twenty minutes then cover the rolls with a piece of foil to prevent burning and return to the oven for a further thirty minutes. The finished rolls should be crispy on the outside and soft and light inside. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire tray. Serve warm with butter. The rolls will keep for up to three days in an airtight container.
Monday 25 December 2017
Beginnings...
I began my daily walk through the fields this blustery and grey Christmas morning when the village church bells suddenly rang out loudly, enticing anyone willing to join in the celebration of the birth of Christ. The bell ringer sounded as if he was jumping up and down pulling on the cords and the image of him being catapulted into the top of the bell tower made me laugh out loud. The fields were empty as usual and there I was beneath an expanse of never ending sky. The sensation of being rather minute and irrelevant in the world is best felt under a country sky in an endless, treeless landscape. Nature has always been my inspiration and this morning the grey sky, the passing flock of starlings, the chiming bells felt like a new beginning. Soon the sky will clear, the birds will roost, and the stark landscape will burst into riotous life when spring returns. We unconsciously start anew every single day. When bad things happen to us, we resolve to never let them happen again. And the best proof of the resilience of the human heart is to continue to love in spite of everything. I have metamorphosed several times in my life even as an artist- this is the first painting I ever sold. I found this photo of the painting and wondered how I managed to do something I had never imagined I was capable of. Perhaps that's the secret- start afresh, keep going, keep trying, keep reaching for the impossible which will happen if you want it to.
Merry Christmas. May your hearts be at peace and your eyes full of wonder at this blessed gift of life.
Wednesday 20 December 2017
Surviving Christmas On Your Own
This Christmas marriages will break up, old lovers will commit to one another, new lovers will find each other, families will argue, children will hate their presents, vegetarian guests will stick to spuds and sprouts, and granny will overdose on sherry. These people will all have something in common: each other. There is another side to Christmas that is overlooked: those who are alone. The elderly who have passed their use-by date, the divorced singletons who are persona non grata by virtue of being solo, the homeless, and those too impoverished to celebrate Christmas at all. Each of these people will feel desolate and unhappy on Christmas Day - please think of them.
For those who are alone on Christmas Day here's my advice:
Volunteer: Get in touch with a local charity and offer your services over Christmas. This is easier said than done from personal experience as you will have to pass a CRB check and this can take up to two weeks to process. But there's still time if you make contact asap.
Go for a walk: London is eerily silent and deserted on Christmas Day as everyone is indoors or away so why not grab a map and head off at your own pace? You may discover a few new things and perhaps even something about yourself. Walking has always provided me with a period of meditation which in turn lifts my spirits. My preference is the countryside with my beloved hound but if muddy wellies and wet dogs are not your thing, any leisurely stroll in the fresh air is better than none.
Go to church: attending church is free and even if you're not a believer, you might find the experience of reverence inspiring and comforting. Both Church of England vicars and Catholic priests will allow non-believers to take communion and receive a blessing on Christmas Day. My advice is to go to the morning service in order to avoid screaming toddlers. Your day will also be more structured if you get up early and go to church rather than lying around in your pyjamas feeling sorry for yourself. You'll see other people too- some worse off than you and you might start feeling more positive about life. No matter how bad things may seem, remember, there is always darkness before dawn.
Unclutter: Use the opportunity to sift through clutter or to create order in your living environment. It is amazing how much we accumulate in life and how little we actually need. If you haven't used an item in the last twelve months why not box it up to donate to charity, flog it on ebay/amazon or bin it? I have done this three times in the last five years and the effect has been a strangely cathartic. Don't wallow in nostalgia on Christmas Day- be ruthless! Old lovers are not exactly spending Christmas with you so make a bonfire and burn all their silly love letters! Holding onto 'stuff' is refusing to let go of the past and is also stopping the future from finding you.
Someone recently described me as the 'cleanest person they ever met'. I just can't think, relax or feel happy in a messy, chaotic, filthy home. Christmas Day is a good opportunity to take stock, clean up your living environment and also your head. A clean and tidy home will allow you to structure your thoughts and your life and prepare to welcome the New Year.
Read a very old book: make a plan to spend Christmas Day reading something interesting, erudite and thought-provoking. Find an antique book store and start browsing now (your intuition will lead you to the book you need). My favourite antique book store is at the very end of the Kings Road in London. I bought a book on Roman thinkers (£4.99) there that literally transformed my life. I found it uplifting to discover that all the same problems we encounter today were being mulled over by Seneca, Horace, Ovid and the likes more than two thousand years ago and even before Christ! Old books teach us that life is temporary as are our 'problems'.
And finally: we live in an age that is facile, precarious and uncertain. What we see on television is not reflected in our own lives- we can't all be rich, attractive, successful and living a perfect existence. I despair at the frivolity and stupidity that constitutes the mainstream and which we are meant to aspire to. Please consider this: don't buy into an unreality or a fantasy that will never happen because if you really think about it, you probably have that single thing you truly need: the chance to create your own happiness.
May I wish you a Peaceful Christmas.
Photo copyright SvD.
For those who are alone on Christmas Day here's my advice:
Volunteer: Get in touch with a local charity and offer your services over Christmas. This is easier said than done from personal experience as you will have to pass a CRB check and this can take up to two weeks to process. But there's still time if you make contact asap.
Go for a walk: London is eerily silent and deserted on Christmas Day as everyone is indoors or away so why not grab a map and head off at your own pace? You may discover a few new things and perhaps even something about yourself. Walking has always provided me with a period of meditation which in turn lifts my spirits. My preference is the countryside with my beloved hound but if muddy wellies and wet dogs are not your thing, any leisurely stroll in the fresh air is better than none.
Go to church: attending church is free and even if you're not a believer, you might find the experience of reverence inspiring and comforting. Both Church of England vicars and Catholic priests will allow non-believers to take communion and receive a blessing on Christmas Day. My advice is to go to the morning service in order to avoid screaming toddlers. Your day will also be more structured if you get up early and go to church rather than lying around in your pyjamas feeling sorry for yourself. You'll see other people too- some worse off than you and you might start feeling more positive about life. No matter how bad things may seem, remember, there is always darkness before dawn.
Unclutter: Use the opportunity to sift through clutter or to create order in your living environment. It is amazing how much we accumulate in life and how little we actually need. If you haven't used an item in the last twelve months why not box it up to donate to charity, flog it on ebay/amazon or bin it? I have done this three times in the last five years and the effect has been a strangely cathartic. Don't wallow in nostalgia on Christmas Day- be ruthless! Old lovers are not exactly spending Christmas with you so make a bonfire and burn all their silly love letters! Holding onto 'stuff' is refusing to let go of the past and is also stopping the future from finding you.
Someone recently described me as the 'cleanest person they ever met'. I just can't think, relax or feel happy in a messy, chaotic, filthy home. Christmas Day is a good opportunity to take stock, clean up your living environment and also your head. A clean and tidy home will allow you to structure your thoughts and your life and prepare to welcome the New Year.
Read a very old book: make a plan to spend Christmas Day reading something interesting, erudite and thought-provoking. Find an antique book store and start browsing now (your intuition will lead you to the book you need). My favourite antique book store is at the very end of the Kings Road in London. I bought a book on Roman thinkers (£4.99) there that literally transformed my life. I found it uplifting to discover that all the same problems we encounter today were being mulled over by Seneca, Horace, Ovid and the likes more than two thousand years ago and even before Christ! Old books teach us that life is temporary as are our 'problems'.
And finally: we live in an age that is facile, precarious and uncertain. What we see on television is not reflected in our own lives- we can't all be rich, attractive, successful and living a perfect existence. I despair at the frivolity and stupidity that constitutes the mainstream and which we are meant to aspire to. Please consider this: don't buy into an unreality or a fantasy that will never happen because if you really think about it, you probably have that single thing you truly need: the chance to create your own happiness.
May I wish you a Peaceful Christmas.
Monday 18 December 2017
Be inspired
As I walked along the field while the sunset broke, it dawned on me that all the great artists were made great by the inspiration they received. This sunrise evokes Monet and van Gogh for me. I can just imagine them sipping a dark, bitter coffee and gazing towards the rising sun and almost immediately reaching for their brushes. Those dramatic grey strokes in the sky are clouds. The square shadow is the village church. Slumber, awakening, promise of a new day and especially, wonder at the privilege to behold the stirring of the birds, the retreat of the badgers and foxes. Beginnings. And endings.
Be inspired today to observe, to be grateful, to reach for the paintbrush which will define your life.
This morning at 6.45am. Photo copyright SvD.
Be inspired today to observe, to be grateful, to reach for the paintbrush which will define your life.
This morning at 6.45am. Photo copyright SvD.
Friday 15 December 2017
God is dead
I was quite surprised to learn that the Archbishop of Canterbury will marry Prince Harry and his divorcée fiancé in a house of God. As a divorced Catholic, my priest could do no such thing as there would be too much hell, fire, brimstone and damnation to deal with. Until recently as a divorced woman I was not allowed to take communion and certainly at mass on Sundays, I clearly stick out like a sore thumb when I attend on my own with no cherubic horde of offspring or husband on my arm. Yet the outward appearance is superfluous to me. You see, my relationship with God is extremely personal. There is an understanding evolving between my inner being and God every single day and I live according to the basic tenets of my faith: 'Love one another as I have loved you.'
I admire my faith tremendously and what it stands for. Roman Catholicism does not move with the times and remains intransigent on many issues- abortion is one of them. I rediscovered my faith in later years by then too old to be ridden with guilt over sex outside of marriage. Having been married and divorced, I take a different view to the vows of marriage than would say, an adolescent with stars in her eyes. Finding God is a personal journey within the embrace of a faith. I follow Catholicism out of an instinctive pull towards the church doors. I cannot ignore the need I feel to commune with something greater than myself and frankly, had it not been for the solace of the church I might not be typing this at all. Sunday mass is an important part of my life simply because it is a calming experience- I like listening to the gospel and occasionally I feel inspired. Who does not weep at the parable of the Good Samaritan or the Prodigal Son? These stories express a goodness that must guide us at all times and to me, the opposite of goodness is an option I choose to reject in how I live my life. And therein lies the rub at why I object to Ms Markle and Prince Harry exerting their influence to bypass all that their aspiration towards God should represent.
I have never been a fan of the present Archbishop of Canterbury who seems to stand for whatever the flavour of the month is. But to give consent for a divorced woman to marry in a church of God shows the finger to many followers who take their faith seriously. No one is saying that a faith should not support those who deviate from the teachings of the Bible and to be fair, I am not a practising Catholic as it would be too hard and constraining for a strong-willed character like me. I do however like the idea of respecting the tenets of a particular faith without wanting to kill anyone- the case with misguided individuals calling themselves Muslims.
Why therefore do these two want to have the fairy tale wedding in a church? Any woman who has clearly been living with a man should ditch the white wedding dress. I married in a silk taupe suit as I felt the white dress would be a tad too hypocritical while repeating sacred vows in a house of God. I also made sure the wedding didn't cost a fortune as I was reminded by my father who whispered in my ear as he walked me down the aisle that I could always get divorced if it didn't work out. His words were indeed prescient.
The hard truth is marriage isn't a fairy tale but hard work which requires a mountain of tolerance and compromise and ultimately neither person ends up living the life they want. The previous Archbishop refused to marry Charles and Camilla in church and by doing so sent out the following message: the church does not condone divorce and adultery and never will. Unfortunately we live in an age where the misguided rabid Left want everything their way. Like strawberries in Winter, if they want it, they must have it. Out of this new extremism of entitlement will be borne an atmosphere of fear not dissimilar to Orwell's 1984. We are already seeing the witch hunt of Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey et al where finger pointing and screaming accusations destroys lives. Flirting, assault by innuendo, rape and sexual discrimination are not the same thing. Soon men will be completely emasculated to the point of preferring masturbation over sex with a woman as the consequences will be too terrifying. Cue to the sex robots which some men don't even think of as robots! The disconnect from real relationships with sentient human beings is already in progress. No doubt the Archbishop will encourage the feelings of the robots as he has done recently to assuage the transgender community.
I truly have no interest in the monarchy beyond the Queen for whom I have the greatest respect. I don't begrudge the cost of the Queen who should even be sanctified for carrying out her duties with humility and determination to serve her country. William and Harry are indeed the children of Diana who wanted to be more touchy feely and rock and roll which led to the unravelling of her own life and will be the undoing of the monarchy. There can be no doubt that the values of William and Harry are at odds with the fustiness of an ancient institution. The Left are unwittingly smashing down the relics of tradition to make way for a new world order where they must ultimately have it their way while everyone else will have to take the highway, including God.
My daily walk. Photo copyright SvD.
I admire my faith tremendously and what it stands for. Roman Catholicism does not move with the times and remains intransigent on many issues- abortion is one of them. I rediscovered my faith in later years by then too old to be ridden with guilt over sex outside of marriage. Having been married and divorced, I take a different view to the vows of marriage than would say, an adolescent with stars in her eyes. Finding God is a personal journey within the embrace of a faith. I follow Catholicism out of an instinctive pull towards the church doors. I cannot ignore the need I feel to commune with something greater than myself and frankly, had it not been for the solace of the church I might not be typing this at all. Sunday mass is an important part of my life simply because it is a calming experience- I like listening to the gospel and occasionally I feel inspired. Who does not weep at the parable of the Good Samaritan or the Prodigal Son? These stories express a goodness that must guide us at all times and to me, the opposite of goodness is an option I choose to reject in how I live my life. And therein lies the rub at why I object to Ms Markle and Prince Harry exerting their influence to bypass all that their aspiration towards God should represent.
I have never been a fan of the present Archbishop of Canterbury who seems to stand for whatever the flavour of the month is. But to give consent for a divorced woman to marry in a church of God shows the finger to many followers who take their faith seriously. No one is saying that a faith should not support those who deviate from the teachings of the Bible and to be fair, I am not a practising Catholic as it would be too hard and constraining for a strong-willed character like me. I do however like the idea of respecting the tenets of a particular faith without wanting to kill anyone- the case with misguided individuals calling themselves Muslims.
Why therefore do these two want to have the fairy tale wedding in a church? Any woman who has clearly been living with a man should ditch the white wedding dress. I married in a silk taupe suit as I felt the white dress would be a tad too hypocritical while repeating sacred vows in a house of God. I also made sure the wedding didn't cost a fortune as I was reminded by my father who whispered in my ear as he walked me down the aisle that I could always get divorced if it didn't work out. His words were indeed prescient.
The hard truth is marriage isn't a fairy tale but hard work which requires a mountain of tolerance and compromise and ultimately neither person ends up living the life they want. The previous Archbishop refused to marry Charles and Camilla in church and by doing so sent out the following message: the church does not condone divorce and adultery and never will. Unfortunately we live in an age where the misguided rabid Left want everything their way. Like strawberries in Winter, if they want it, they must have it. Out of this new extremism of entitlement will be borne an atmosphere of fear not dissimilar to Orwell's 1984. We are already seeing the witch hunt of Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey et al where finger pointing and screaming accusations destroys lives. Flirting, assault by innuendo, rape and sexual discrimination are not the same thing. Soon men will be completely emasculated to the point of preferring masturbation over sex with a woman as the consequences will be too terrifying. Cue to the sex robots which some men don't even think of as robots! The disconnect from real relationships with sentient human beings is already in progress. No doubt the Archbishop will encourage the feelings of the robots as he has done recently to assuage the transgender community.
I truly have no interest in the monarchy beyond the Queen for whom I have the greatest respect. I don't begrudge the cost of the Queen who should even be sanctified for carrying out her duties with humility and determination to serve her country. William and Harry are indeed the children of Diana who wanted to be more touchy feely and rock and roll which led to the unravelling of her own life and will be the undoing of the monarchy. There can be no doubt that the values of William and Harry are at odds with the fustiness of an ancient institution. The Left are unwittingly smashing down the relics of tradition to make way for a new world order where they must ultimately have it their way while everyone else will have to take the highway, including God.
My daily walk. Photo copyright SvD.
Thursday 7 December 2017
Our dark winters feed the soul
My daily walk in a vast open field with nothing but the sky for company. This is what I see morning and night while our winter has forced the sun into hiding. The short, dark days where our eyes are dazzled by the faintest ray of sunlight, are the perfect time to commune with our inner being- that true self which is concealed beneath the façade we present to the world. I LOVE my solitary walks where I can distinguish the crows, finches and wrens from the sparrows in the dark as they rustle branches on their return to roost. I feel safe despite being alone or perhaps my age means that I am prepared for anything. A lack of fear is not courage but a knowledge that the universe is more in control than I will ever be.
Photo copyright SvD.
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