Starting fresh in a new place, a new job and with new people has made me nostalgic for that instinctual routine which only really comes from familiarity. Whilst I know these habitual patterns will develop themselves, it feels as though the absence of regular practice leaves a greater gap than the patterns themselves fill. Although, I figure that is the way of one's “second nature” and comfort exists in the routine and normality that we don’t even notice.Â
I started writing this when it felt as if summer had truly said goodbye, but looking through my camera roll I am finding plenty of evidence of sun, warmth and life. As I am sure I will say time and time again, autumn brings with it the most wonderful sunsets and it’s well worth heading out just before 7pm to at least catch a glimpse of the bright hues painting our sky. I am grateful to be reminded that as the flora becomes less abundant (and I begin to mourn summer, shorts and sandals), there remains so much beauty, provided we can face up to the wind! It is worth the conscious effort to continue to see our everyday earth as remarkable - how lucky we are to live in a world where some days the sky turns pink!
In my continued search for comfort, I spent my weekend attempting to familiarise myself with tree species. My working hypothesis is the better I am at identifying plant life, then the more comfortable I will feel in the wild. Trees always seem to best me, and I remain ever grateful to the chestnut trees, symbolic of autumn, with their wonderfully recognisable spiked fruit casing. I can’t help but feel 10 years old around a horse chestnut, primed for conker wars and ready to ward off spiders at a moment's notice.
For my own learning (and now perhaps yours - what can I say except you’re welcome), sweet chestnuts and horse chestnuts are incredibly different trees, introduced to the UK around 400 years apart from each other. Horse chestnuts belong to the Hippocastanaceae family, whilst sweet chestnuts belong to the Fagaceae family, which is the same family as Beeches and Oaks, but let's not run before we can walk and save those for another day.Â
I truly hope that recognising trees will become second nature, and long gone will be the days of my rudimentary guesswork. However, there is a definite privilege in learning, and a freedom to not knowing which I will do my best to continue to enjoy!