October
A season of life, death and spooky chills
Happy Halloween! October is my favourite month. I do believe that it is the richest month of the year. It is a swirl of colours, returning cold weather, frosted plant stalks and geese. It is also a time of gathering great armfuls of leaves and conkers and revelling in the starry nights and dark mornings. It's a time of fun and games, with my birthday and Halloween at either end of the month. It is also a time of remembrance and loss with anniversaries of loved ones passing. It harbours every aspect of life. But Halloween is the pinnacle of the month.
The spooky season has always been high on my list of all time favourite things. Books about ghost stories and dark, mysterious things were eagerly nabbed from the library shelves and TV shows that had anything about ghosts could not be missed. So it will come as no surprise to anyone that this evening will involve a creepy walk around my local churchyard.
Linton Kirk has been a place of Christian worship since the 12th century, with some saying it was the second church built in Scotland - although I know of a couple of other churches that claim the same thing. Nearby are the remains of prehistoric and medieval buildings and it was said to be a place of worship before the church was built.
Built on a hill of sand, it is rich in wildlife of all sorts. Of course, you have the usual mammals and birds - squirrels, rabbits, hares and foxes or robins, kestrels and house martins. Bats roost in the eaves of the roof and mice live in the fabric of the building. But the old gravestones also give life to many species, especially insects and lichen, and the grass hosts fungi of every kind. On a bright autumn morning you will find 20 different fungi species basking in the morning sun. There are butterflies and moths, such as commas and elephant hawk moths, that are not found in the surrounding area. It is a unique space.
Often I will walk to the church and sit watching the life and sketching things that inspire me. Using the church as a base for my observations, I survey the local bat population in the summer and search the snow covered graves for the sign of any creatures in winter. So it is like a second home to me. Recently I discovered that there is talk of the church authorities closing the kirk once the current minister retires. What a tragedy that will be. As a historic and religious site, it was given new life several times over, in 1616, 1774, 1813 and 1912. If it was closed it would either evolve into a ruin or be sold, possibly as a private house. As a place rich in life and mythology (perhaps I will write more about that one day) it should be nurtured and protected. Only time will tell if the horror of closure comes to pass.
In the meantime, I can be seen this evening floating through the ancient tombstones, waiting for a spooky encounter. Maybe that will be with the local barn owl - or maybe a ghost.
Elsewhere in the month, we had a massive influx of starlings, as well as the usual redwings and fieldfares. I have two beautiful yew trees in my garden but one of them produces an abundance of berries every year - the ubiquitous gummy yew berries that look like drops of blood nestling in the deep green needles. Unfortunately they also stick to footwear and make a mess. However this year the starlings have been nesting in the tree and cleaning up the fallen berries. It has been wonderful to go to the rubbish bins and not end up having to deal with the nightmare of nature’s detritus stuck to my shoes by scarlet yew glue.
As the month wore on, the fields took on a palette of gold from the leftover barren wheat fields, brown from the ploughed ones and green from the seeded ones. It always amazes me how quickly the fields turn green after new seeds have been planted. This month we also had sightings of the aurora borealis and the hunter's moon hanging massive in the sky. It was beautiful. Although I have seen the aurora borealis about a half dozen times over the last 30 years, it never get any less awe inspiring. It truly is an experience where magic and science come together.
Having experienced all that, you would think that there was plenty of inspiration for painting. Unfortunately, October, in all its richness, brought some health issues for my Dad. It has been difficult for all of us, but it’s part of life these days. It left less time for experimenting and painting. Other than a couple of sketches and a few painted rose hips my creativity took a back seat. My next artist study will also be published next month. In fact, going forward, I will probably publish my artist studies every other month. Not only do they take a lot of time, there has been an increase in the time my family need from me. With Christmas round the corner that time will get less too. So it’s all about fitting in with the new rhythm of life. I hope your month has been a little more creative.
Thank you for reading if you got this far. I hope you have a wonderfully spooky evening if you partake of the Halloween spirit - and a peaceful evening if you don’t.
I am so sorry I missed this earlier. I love October, and indeed November and December, and find it far more inspiring than summer. Your kirk sounds a rich and special place and I sincerely hope that it remains as a church to allow such a habitat to continue. I love ghost stories too, especially Mr James, who lived just a few miles away. It is a very spooky place, especially at this time of year, and I must revisit. I look forward to your next artist's post!
I absolutely love October too. It's the most beautiful and awe-inspiring season and, like you, I live under a migratory goose flight-path. I hope your dad is on the mend.