SUMMER SOLSTICE UPDATE 2009.
In Feb, at the end of all pruning except
the citrus, I went to Hospital in
Misel fed the hens in my absence, brought
me home from the ferry and ran errands for me for as long as necessary.
His mother visited me with fruit. What would I do without that family!
The next month a young hunting dog came in
and killed Snowy, the white hen and Misel came with me to see the owner.
He warned me that the man was mad and mostly drunk so we would get
nowhere. This proved the case but at least the dog has not been in
again. Honey and Brownie had vanished, reappearing in a state of shock
the next day. It was a week before they laid again and
they stopped roosting in the trees, reverting to their house.
I made my visit to the
For the first time I booked car-hire with
my flight and had a puncture within 10 miles of Gatwick! There were no
further problems, however, and I relished the freedom and, indeed, the driving
practice which the car gave me. My rare, 3km car- jaunts to Supetar do
little for my proficiency on British roads!
I spent two nights with wonderful friends
at Mere, Wilts, Jane Sharp and her family, in their beautiful and very
atmospheric country house. Jane is a former Soil Association award-winner
and author of FOOTLOOSE IN SOUTH-WEST WILTS, a war-time nature diary which is
at last the receiving some of the praise and publicity it deserves. I think I have
spent at least one night a year with them since I moved from Mere in 1986!
I then continued to George and Shirley who
provide me with a 'second home' in
On my way back to Gatwick I visited their
daughter Heather in prison at Ashford, Middlesex. Heather’s Anti-Social
Behaviour Order prohibits my going into the details of the case but it is
another in the long chronicle of those which shatter ones faith in the
integrity of both the Jury System and of the Press. It is ironic that the
Prison is so close to Runnymeade where I stopped for a walk on route, reflecting
that many of the rights it stands for are now eroded, particularly those of the
Penal System.
Worse, if anything, than her 11-year
sentence is the fact that unless the law is changed, she will never be allowed
to live a normal life. She may not own anything nor campaign on behalf of
laboratory animals. Gone are the days when those who had served their
sentences were encouraged to make a fresh start! It is high time that the
anachronistic Legal System began to be replaced by a more human process.
However, instead of being torn apart by
the injustice she has suffered, Heather is leading an exemplary life, helping
troubled people as a Samaritan, working in the garden, showing visitors round,
reading, doing yoga, ‘trying to meditate’ and answering her continuous flow of
‘fan-mail’. She has thousands of supporters all over the world.
Even while on remand, Heather managed to get the birds in the Prison aviary
transferred to a Sanctuary.
In the words of an old folk song, the
path of righteousness is thick with briars. Heather will surely be
greatly blest for having taken it up so bravely.
I was pleased to find that the members of
the Prison staff with whom I came into contact were all pleasant people.
This impression was endorsed by the display of THANK-YOU cards from
ex-residents at reception.
Certainly, whether one is sent to prison
for being over-conscientious or under, there are opportunities there for
self-development, as is shown by the high quality of work in the Prison Phoenix
Trust Newsletter. In the current issue, Reg Wilson, HMP Wakefield, makes
the magnificent affirmation: “Once you are mentally free, it doesn’t matter
where you may find yourself physically”. At this level of consciousness
one is steeped in bliss and even the most intractable of problems become
illusions. What an incentive for us to persevere in our spiritual
practices! Clearly the amount of spiritual work done in prisons is
immense and puts many of us to shame.
Stranded at Potok, I try to think of my
sentence as a prolonged Retreat. An astrologer once told me I had the right
qualities for a monastic life. This must be it! I have to
trust that I will be released before I am forced to spend my old-age watching
the place go downhill.
Since my return, Marijo, a young man who
helped me prune, has been twice to cut hedges and
thorny-boundary-invaders. I hope he remains available. To have
someone I can call on when I feel swamped would greatly ease the strain of
coping alone here. (Misel will not take any payment from me and is always
heavily in demand by his family so I call on him for help only in emergencies.)
The strimmer is a boon but hard on my back, especially in April and May when I
am so busy I have to cut my yoga practice.
Trust, of course, is the main lesson for
the Taurean. We have to learn that the universe will not fall apart if we
release control!
Anyway, to the extent that I remain
dedicated to the Highest Good, the right path will surely unfold, whether it is
for Potok and I separately or together. Its
transformation from a wilderness to the “best-kept smallholding on Brac” will
surely be of more than material value.
My previous Updates have been mostly Potok
news but I feel the issues around Heather’s situation are so important I have
let my
The walnuts are already huge.
I look forward to Summer visitors. Jenny