Schooldays.

Schooldays.

Hi there.
Thanks for being so patient.
I really do want to start blogging in the early mornings. 
I am always much happier first thing.
How about you? 
I’m a pretty chirpy riser. 
Ooh, got to go. Somebody at the door…
Well, there you go go!
Three hours later, I’m back.
My dear old friend from school days pitched up with the biggest, 
most beautiful bunch of sunflowers for Dave!
So we had a catch up, then some supper,
and before you know it, the clock has advanced by 3 hours!
Ironically, Jenny Day, our dear art teacher from way back when,
 sent me a pic of the two of us only yesterday.
It was taken back in 2006, 
when we were visiting our old English lit teacher,
Ingrid Hurren. Darling woman passed away last week, 
so Jenny was letting me know.  
Ingrid. Phenomenal woman. Fascinating intellectual. 
She was German, married to an English artist, named Eric Hurren.
(Yep. She was our English teacher!)
He was Head of the Art Faculty in Canterbury, where they lived. 
You know how you have a favourite teacher, the one you adored, the one you would do somersaults to please? Well Ingrid was that teacher for me. I used to hang on to every word she spoke, because it was always so meaningful.
She always used to come into the classroom and sit on her desk.
Not behind it.
On it. 
And there she would sit, swinging her legs,
asking searching questions, stretching us, expanding our minds. 
She really was brilliant.
I remember that she always made me feel good. 
Intelligent. 
Worth listening to.
I understood through her very early on
that the highest form of wisdom is kindness. 
She handed it out in spadefuls.
As Maya Angelou once said,
‘I’ve learned that people may forget what you said,
people may forget what you did,
but people will never forget how you made them feel.’
  
But I ramble. 
It was good to see Anita this evening. 
For a split second, I thought, damn! The blog.
But no sooner had I thunk the thought, than I let it go and enjoyed spending time with my old friend.
I had wanted to write about Life, and how it must go on regardless.
And then Anita pitched up, and today’s lesson was learned. 
love and hugs,
xxx

59 thoughts on “Schooldays.

  1. Hi Barbara
    Hope Dave is feeling cheered by the lovely flowers. Three hours spent with an old friend is the best way to de stress, remembering someone who inspired us is another, and gave really friendly feeling to the blog. Thanks for sharing your thoughts

  2. Yep life does go on, sounds like it has today for you and good to remember the past, but not to live in it necessarily. I was worried as it is so late, but glad all is well. gorgeous sunflowers!!
    lots of love.

  3. What a good note to go to bed on, the warm glow from speaking with a friend about someone who inspired us to be who we are. Still thinking about you both and hoping with all your other followers that this day and those following are getting better day by day. Impossible not to just smile when you see sunflowers whatever the weather (we do seem to have moved to Autumn rather quickly this year). Hope your day ended on the same warm glow your post inspired. Karen

  4. Hi Barbara what a beautiful thought the lovely flowers for Dave and spending time with a dear friend and yet you still find time to blog your amazing hope it helped Dave too mindless Wednesday wonderful to spend it as you did ,
    I went to my Drs today I was telling her how fantastic the groovi is for me a craft I can do a little and put it down to pick up again when I feel well enough she was impressed how much it has helped me cope with each day big crafting hugs & a big thank you xxx

  5. Oh what beautiful flowers. Hope they brightened the day for you and Dave. I'm also sorry to hear of your loss.
    It's definitely amazing how time flies when you are busy catching up with friends. Today, I caught up with a work colleague who has recently moved from Carlisle city centre to a beautiful Georgian mansion house on the Solway Firth with fantastic views out over the marshes and wildlife. The house had bags of historical character, orchard, polytunnel and an amazing crock barn with the most beautiful wooden beams. Somehow we spent five hours looking around and at the same time letting other worries flitter away as I shared in her pleasure at showing me around. I saw heron, a family of woodpeckers and they even have a resident Tawny owl. Such a beautiful place that they have chosen to live in or to caretaker for future generations.
    Glad you also had a lovely time with your friend. Love and hugs, Jeanette xx

  6. Beautiful sunflowers, hope they cheered Dave.What lovely thoughts and really strike a cord with me as I met with an old friend at the weekend. We had not picked up the phone to each other for several years, awful really. Anyway we went to their house for a barbecue and how we talked. Amazing and wonderful and still got a lot to say to each other. I can't wait to have them back here. So blog at whatever time you like, especially if you need to spend quality time with someone. xx

  7. sending hugs on the loss of your fave teacher – what a lovely lady that came to visit – life does all run to its own pattern – going with the flow seems to work well! Big hugs rachel x

  8. Love tonight's blog. It's real and you are letting real life take centre stage. Very in the Mindfulness vain. Keep up the good work.

    You could delegate the odd day and you can schedule posts so you could do a lot in advance and then take a weekend off and take time out to chill with Dave, and he with you. How about some blog posts from the team about what they all do, in their words? Let's see some of the machinery in action!

    Love and Hugs
    Kelly xx
    Chemo number 4 tomorrow and there will then be a week when I have to rest, no energy to do anything else, even venture out of the house. Not much fun but sometimes you just have to listen to what your body is saying and what it needs!!

    1. Unfortunately it isn't but I'm still here and the rubbish is only for the short term. And it is helping me to remember what is important and what isn't. And my cats are loving having so much more time with me to sit on 🙂

  9. Hello Barbara

    What a loverly bunch of coconuts…oops….flowers. lol. It is great to catch up with old friends and reminisce about old times.

    Me…I hated secondary school with a passion and couldn't wait to leave, although, like you I had a favourite teacher. Her name was Mrs Acton and she taught French.

    Love
    Roz.x

  10. Interesting to see how your craft blog has shifted to being more personal – even more so than the private peeks in the past. And how we are all so keen to read the latest instalment and get worried when it's later in the day than we had hoped! Such is the power of the clarity crafting family. Sad to hear your news but glad to hear you spent the evening as you should! Hope things are getting less fraught for you.

  11. Hello Barbara

    What a loverly bunch of coconuts…oops….flowers. lol. It is great to catch up with old friends and reminisce about old times.

    Me…I hated secondary school with a passion and couldn't wait to leave, although, like you I had a favourite teacher. Her name was Mrs Acton and she taught French.

    Love
    Roz.x

  12. What lovely sunflowers and they make you smile with their bright and beautiful faces. Of course it was better for you to spend some time with an old friend and laugh and chat and forget about everything else for a while. I had a music teacher that always inspired me and she always bought out the best in her pupils. She even took a few of us sixth formers to Covent Garden to the Opera which I will never forget, sitting way up in the gods in the cheapest seats, but what an experience! I'm sure we would all like to send you and Dave if not sunflowers then our sunniest thoughts for better times soon. x

  13. Those are so beautiful I'm sure they would have cheered Dave up. Never mind about blogging late, like you said life is about living now. Sorry to hear about your teacher. Xx

    1. Hi there boomin laptop going doo lally again don't know whats up with it keep going to stupid ads when hit buttons so on phone will get son to have look at when he can so Hi for now Donna Brenda Sheila and all owlets. xxxx

  14. Lovely, lovely post today – sad to hear your inspirational teacher has died though. I am sure Dave loved the sunflowers and I am so glad you had a lovely catchup with your friend xxx

  15. If anyone wants to be amazed and inspired they need only look to you . I wouldn't have written such a beautiful blog , I would have gone to bed . Wonderful,women you speak of and there you are in the midst of them —- no coincidence there . !!!!!!

  16. Sorry to hear about your teacher, Barbara. But please make us a stamp with that wonderful quote from her: 'the highest form of wisdom is kindness'. What a great thing to say!

    It made me think about the times when I know I could have been kinder to people — I'll bear it in mind next time I feel my blood pressure rising… 🙂

    Hope those beautiful sunflowers cheered Dave up.

  17. Lovely to hear from you at any time Barbara…. And those flowers are beautiful! They always remind me of my grandad who used to throw a few seeds in the ground and see how tall he could get them! One grew right up past my bedroom window!
    My favourite teacher was my science teacher…miss Goldberg! She was quite passionate about science! I was always a bit scared of my PE teachers….they had a habit of making me feel quite inferior and useless…mind you so did my art teacher….but miss Goldberg was always encouraging and made you feel successful!
    It's good that you took time to chat and reminisce with your friend and I'm sorry to hear about your loss!
    Love and hugs to you and Dave! Xxx

  18. Gorgeous flowers. I hope Dave's feeling better. I bet you'd have relaxed with your friend rather less if you'd had to prepare for the TV show. Amazing how things work out.
    My favourite teacher taught us French, which led me in to German and beyond. It all had such an influence on my view if the world and to quote Kate Adie 'The Kindness of Strangers'

  19. We had an English teacher that always sat on her desk too!

    Love those sunflowers, but am not too jealous as I had a lovely bunch of roses, agapanthus etc from one side of the family for my birthday. I also got to see my children and all the granddaughters this evening, which was just what I needed as IMindoors had a fall whilst we were at docs surgery this afternoon having a dressing done, which resulted in a little ride in the "yellow van" (as the doc put it) to our little local hospital where he had 9 stitches put in his arm. He is ok – a little shaken and not stirred as they say, but it was not quite how I had planned to celebrate my birthday – looks as though I shall have to make him pay and go on a crafty spend to make up for it!

    Hope Dave is feeling much better.

    Mags x

  20. Yep.. Poor Barb ! A load of her work for today got deleted ( permanently !) and so the day just got longer and longer for her ..But then Anita turned up , out of the blue , and without even knowing it turned things around .And as for the Smilimg Sunflowers , fantastic.. Just the job to lift the spirits. Thank you all for your kind comments… Much apreciated . Slowly getting back to normal…. Whatever normal is !,, x

  21. At last haven't been able to speak on here for days for some reason could get signed in so imback what a beautiful bunch of sunflowers and lovely surprise to see a old friend not so good the bad news but lovely catching up how's Dave doing up he is feeling a bit better lots love Joy xxx

  22. I agree with Amanda Branston, lovely to hear from you any time … Lovely to catch up with friends, wind down and natter. Beautiful flowers too. Hope Dave is starting to feel a little better xx
    Much love
    Kim x

  23. Hello Barb, there are always people that have had a profound influence on our lives, whether it be teachers, friends, family. And it goes without saying that it is good to reminisce about them. Glad you had a good catch up. Love the sunflowers, bet they brightened Dave's day. Hope he is feeling better. Thank you for every bit of wisdom and inspiration you bring us. Bx

  24. Hi Barb,
    A lovely post today although tinged with sadness with the loss of your favourite teacher. She must have been inspirational for you to talk so fondly about her. Lovely that you have had time with a good friend as well to relax with and take your mind off everything else that's going on around you. Beautiful flowers for Dave too, who I hope is making progress. When I was teaching I always wanted to be inspirational ( not sure if I succeeded!) and I know the pleasure when parents and ex students I see from years ago who say I made a difference to them. I agree with Kay as well the quote would make a lovely stamp. Love Alison xxx

  25. Beautiful sunflowers my favourite flowers hope they cheered you both up what a lovely friend even if she was bringing some sad news.
    As for the blog please don't let it get in the way of you having some lovely time with friends and family. take care and enjoy life ….xx

  26. What a nice visit although tinged with sad news. Where does time go when you're relaxing and enjoying it – there's always next Weds to write what you were going to write this Weds! Life just goes on in it's own way, interrupting all our best laid plans 🙂 I've got to make two cards today for tomorrow so I hope my plans don't get interrupted or I'm in trouble! Hubby off to golf, my first day at home on my own since I retired at the end of April …….

  27. Hi Barbara,

    that reminds me on my english teacher. She was my favourite one.
    In school we thought: OMG new words writing on the black board again…
    Everybody had to write one word on the board. Who made a mistake had to write all new words in his exercise book during the lesson and the most horrible: You have to write all of them six times as an additional homework… At this time we thought how stupid is that.
    Years later I found out that it was a good way learning english.

    I hope Dave is better. Thank god my mother is fine again and left hospital yesterday.
    Rolf xxx

  28. Oh Barbara, my condolences on the passing of Ingrid. I def. had a favourite teacher (of geography). We shared the same dentist, and he always commiserated with me if I had to go. As I was at the dentist yesterday morning, I still remembered him after over 50 years.

    Love the sunflowers, and thank Dave for sharing with us, his really sunny present. Enought to brighten anyone's day!

  29. Hi Barbara
    What beautiful sunflowers, they really do make you smile don't they. How lovely to catch up with an old friend, I must do that too. Sorry to hear the sad news of your teacher she sounds an inspirational woman. My cookery teachers over the years , mrs Eyres and Miss Alley were my inspiration because they gave mdf the courage to try things and I love cooking. It's lovely to see Dave commenting too, keep resting Dave and we hope to have you back to normal soon. It's a small world Barbara my husbands grandad taught art at Canterbury but probably many moons before you were there!
    Take care
    Love Diane xxx

  30. Very wise words Barb, it was just one of those days here too. Had to take Den to the Drs as his bad sprain (week old) was looking very angry, hot and swelling. Really worried about him. Fortunately got to see Dr and he is now on very strong antibiotics, got a bad infection on top of everything.

    For a very active man he is finding it very difficult, just sitting with his leg up. I am very surprised its not broken, but I suppose that's a blessing.

    Not good when one gets old (er)

    Have to grab life on lifes terms and live it to the full as one never knows whats around the corner.

    God bless and take care.
    Pen x

  31. What a lovely post, and I'm glad seeing your friend turned your day around, even if she did come bearing sad news. You've brought back memories of some wonderful people who taught me over the years – hard to pick a favourite, but there were many inspiring and motivating men and women amongst them! Even better for a mindfulness lesson, you lived in the moment and embraced the opportunity to spend time with your pal and Dave – made me smile even more than those sunflowers!!! Susan x

  32. Lovely blog Barbara. One of my favourite teachers used to sit just the same. She taught history and and used to make it come alive. My other favourite was a lovely lady named Mrs Ingley who taught us English. She was brilliant at explaining Shakesphere. The sunflowers are gorgeous.

  33. Hi Barbara – Time with special people is so important………we'll always be here……………..
    Have a lovely evening….
    Take care of yourself……and Dave too….Lots of TLC required, Carole xxx

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