By Caro Ness
(reblogged from her blog)
CROWCOMBE GATE
Across the cattle grid and wind uphill,
Through ancient, twisting burr oak trees,
That unfurl above your head until
You reach the gorse and honey bees.
Here the heather starts to grow
In patches on the open moor,
Amidst ivy, balls of mistletoe,
And pine cones strewn on forest floor.
Wild ponies graze here, shy and quick
To move away from passers-by,
The woods are lush and they are thick,
So dense you cannot see the sky.
Ancient paths carve through this place,
Tracks that somehow man forgot,
You sense a timelessness and space,
Leading to some unknown spot.
Slopes drop very steeply down
Into a sparkling cobalt sea,
And high up there upon the crown
Of land, buzzards spiral lazily.
From here on sun-drenched summer days,
A real tranquility prevails,
And if not for a smoky haze,
You’d see clear across to Wales.
This place is beauty at its best,
This is truly god’s own land,
This is calm and peace expressed
By Nature’s loving hand.
About Caro Ness
Caro Ness was born in Kingston, Jamaica but returned to England with her family at the age of 6 and has lived here ever since. All her working life she has been in the publishing industry as author’s agent, editor, rights director and author. Her second children’s book, THE OCEAN OF STORY, won the bi-annual Anne Izzard Award in the USA for an Outstanding Contribution to Storytelling. Her two books in Dorling Kindersley’s SECRETS OF… series have been translated into 19 languages and published in 21 countries. To date she has published, on both sides of the Atlantic, 3 adult non-fiction titles SECRETS OF ALEXANDER TECHNIQUE, SECRETS OF DREAMS and A SPACE FOR SILENCE/SPACES FOR SILENCE and four children’s books, LET’S GET A PUPPY, LET’S BE FRIENDS, THE OCEAN OF STORY and STAR SIGNS. She has also translated MOST AMAZING MAZES from Spanish for Liber Press and was instrumental in the publication of ISLAND IN THE SUN, by Harry Belafonte and Lloyd Burgess for A&C Black. She is now happily ensconced in Crystal Palace, London, in a beautiful home, with the love of her life…
You can follow Caro on Twitter
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