While many people think that black cats bring bad luck, for some reason as a child I was always taught the opposite. If a black cat crossed my path it would bring good luck. So sure of this was I that I would sometimes alter my route to try to ensure that the cat’s trajectory and my own would definitely intersect!
-
-
There is something very intriguing about ferns. Almost prehistoric in nature, it is easy when among them to imagine dinosaurs walking the earth. Unsurprising perhaps, as these often-beautiful plants actually predate those dinosaurs!
-
Cacti are hard to ignore. They grow where little else will and if you happen to touch one you’ll probably find it even harder to ignore!
-
I wonder how many hours I have spent in total, my camera at the ready, hovering over a flower as a bee does and waiting to be able to capture said bee in a half-decent shot? More times than not I fail, but whenever I succeed I get a thrill. Or, dare I say, a buzz?!
-
I live in a busy London suburb and even though we have a nearby park which I love, it can’t really be described as peaceful. So when asked where I find peace and calm in nature, my answer has to be, that I find it most easily when I travel.
-
Like many Londoners (and indeed town dwellers worldwide) I discovered the pleasures of our local park during the pandemic lockdowns. Whether on our permitted visits to the shops or on the also permitted daily walks close to home, Walpole Park was our refuge and our delight.
-
Butterflies are delicately beautiful. Their colours brighten our gardens, our parks and our wilder spaces. They live for only a few days, yet in that time they pollinate our flowers and lift our spirits.
-
Whatever their mood, and whatever the time of year, it’s hard not to be moved when among trees. And recently it seems we humans have started to realise this more and more. Forest bathing and tree hugging have both been shown to have benefits for our mental health, reducing stress and helping us to unwind.
-
All over the world the colour yellow is associated with the sun and its life-giving warmth. It’s the colour of optimism and the coming of spring sunshine. But it’s also an attention-getter. We humans use it for warnings, while the animal world does much the same.
-
While I love to see dragonflies and damselflies I often confuse one with the other. But I hope I have captioned my selection of these delicate insects properly!
