The afternoon meeting was long and interesting as three of us planned part of the Deanery Day in October on welcoming visitors to our area, as part of our "Tourists > Pilgrims" programme.  (See Events page.)  The evening meeting was shorter and less interesting, but a very important one relating to rural healthcare.  The local medical practice covers humdreds of square miles.  Some patients live twenty miles from their (local) practice.  Imagine what that involves in home visits, district nurses and patient transport!

31st August 2011

Wednesday 31st August     According to the diary this should be a fairly easy day.  We were in church at 8.00 a.m. for Morning Prayer.  Afterwards I took Molly the horse and Zebedee the dog out together for three-quarters of an hour's exercise.  A cool, cloudy, dry morning: good riding weather.  Molly enjoyed cantering along with ears pricked.  Zeb enjoyed his role of Molly's devoted courtier following at a respectful distance.  I enjoyed the late summer flowers on the forest verges: harebells, devil's bit scabious, cow wheat (I think, but a bit small to see clearly from horseback), St John's wort, knapweed, a small variety of willowherb (also difficult to identify at trot or canter), meadowsweet, unfortunately some bright yellow ragwort (highly poisonous to horses and other stock), lots of what I think is yellow loosestrife (of which I took a picture nearer to home the other day), thistles (don't know what kind) and various other plants which I've now forgotten.  Home again in time for a normal 12-hour day.

Molly the horse

Molly is having a more restful day than I am.