A Long Twilight and a Wet Night

It was, as it had been in the south yesterday, a grey-yellow light which defined nothing and dulled the mind of the photographer. The day, in the course of which we moved back south again, would see changing light and changing weather. Dressed soberly we drove to Kilwinning. Funerals are no longer shocking. At my age, death becomes part of life; truly the humanist view as reflected in the service which saw Ruth to her rest. Far more uncomfortable though was the foray with the family into the now abandoned home. The image of a life frozen at the moment of death, of possessions no longer possessed, was striking. We are all transient. It was evident that the family had spoken well to the humanist speaker as the service captured perfectly a life lived quietly but which added value to the existence of others including those of us who remain - until our time. The view from the crematorium chapel was one of stunning beauty and, as much as anything else, caused me to choke up. The brief family wake was in the dourly Scottish Taylor's in Kilwinning. Their entrance is a time portal. Before we left for the funeral, a steam locomotive in LMS colours had rattled south, symbolising how time wraps round on itself.

The weather offered hope for the camera as we headed for Dumfries to investigate further things we had seen on the way to Irvine but not stopped for. Far away though England was we spent time in several locations all with very happy results. All are now on my Facebook page and at Flickr www.flickr.com/photos/johnoram .
The rhinos at Lincluden are totally incongruous but charming. The Dumfries & Galloway Aviation Museum is magnificent. Thanks to the kindness of John Hilsley, I had access on a non-public day and got some wonderful photographs. I was very emotional to be allowed into Trident G-AWZJ, withdrawn in 1985 but still partially extant. My photographs of it today add a dimension to my Flickr set 'Demise of the Tridents'. We had not finished in Dumfries and stopped again at Dalscone Farm. A lot of effort and investment has gone into providing a low-priced but very worthwhile attraction. We went to see alpaca and llama and were relieved that the hoards of children were apparently satisfied with the indoor play area. Perhaps they had seen the animals earlier on. As with Blooms in Wroughton the animals were difficult to photograph. Most were eating and therefore with heads to the ground. In the case of the goats, when they are not eating, they are planning to and the approach of any potential source of food excites them.





We maintained variety by taking the Lockerbie road to regain the A74(M) . There was so much we could have photographed but we stopped only for food and fuel. In the North West and Midlands it rained heavily as forecast and driving conditions became difficult. At Norton Canes I recouped my earlier losses and went into profit. It was near midnight when we reached home and I sat up to do my initial processing. Life had continued for the living.