Look up, not down

I had my first proper walk yesterday after being struck down with a bug that just would not go away. A few days ago it was -5 and the fire was continually lit. Yesterday it was positively balmy out of the wind - a glorious winters day with no need for the extra layers.

We live nestled near the top of one hill that forms a pair to the north of the town. Like a glorious pair of breasts they are a delight that guide me back home. There are many like that round here. I have been trying to walk each and every path within a few miles of home and this one came as a complete surprise to the west of the pair.  

It isn't marked or signed it is just there - worn down by years of footfalls. A locals route. Those walking to town or school and in recent times neglected as the pavement offers a more convenient route. Yesterday though, the wind sounded just right as it whispered through the trees. 

I thought of BB's book Brendon Chase (1944) about some small boys who run away to live in the woods. Some of the trees here would have appealed to them. The first bumblebee of the year crossed my path and the bird song was the loudest it has been for weeks. Is something afoot? As a boy when I first met BB he did say on more than one occasion to me - look up not down when out and about. I think of that often. Yesterday was just one of those days.