Life is a Minestrone !!

By bererunner

The Church of St Mary Magdalene.

The Church of St Mary Magdalene was built in the early Norman period and dates back to the early 11th Century. It's a single cell building comprising flint walls and a tiled roof. It's situated in the small Hampshire village of West Tisted, the church alone is a reminder of lives lived a thousand years ago but in the church yard stands the living reminder of that time, the yew tree standing alongside the church.
Not being an expert on yew tree aging, except to presume the greater the girth the older the tree, since the tree cells need to divide to survive, it seems fair to adopt the John White formula: Age = girth² ÷ 300cm. Since we are only trying to guess at an age let’s apply the formula; 700 x 700 / 300 = 1633 years Well that seems very old but allowing for large errors surely gives a tree at least a thousand years old.
When I visited earlier today, the frost still gripped hard to the ground, even resisting the warmth offered by the rays of the Sun, in the under growth birds scurried back and forth seeking out a tasty morsel, while in the distance I could hear the whistling and clanking of the steam trains as they ran along the Watercress Line, Steam Railway.
I was fortunate enough to have this Beautiful Church and it's ground all to myself during my visit, and for a time it was as if I'd stepped back in time.

If you're in the area, and have some spare time, this Church and it's Yew Tree are well worth a visit.  Just soak up the peace and quiet.

j.

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