A Rectangular World, Aylesford

Had a an eventful walk today - through Preston Hall , down to Allington Lock and back along the river via the Forstal Road to home. We started off in brilliant sunshine before seven in the morning, had a downpour two thirds of the way through, and finished in brilliant sunshine again!  At this time of year I always take an umbrella with me even if there isn't a cloud in the sky because, sure as eggs are eggs, there will be precipitation of some kind, whether it be rain, sleet, hail or even snow.
Our walk involved a long downhill stretch until we hit the lock where I took today's first shot "Ball and Chain"(see extras). All the small leaves and blossom from the riverside trees had formed on top of the water and then I saw the football floating on the surface and thought it made an arresting image. We've had no league football for weeks and this struck me as a bit of a metaphor.
Today's main image was taken at the old wharf near the village (or is it a dock - I'm not sure of the difference) before we turned onto Forstal Road. For some reason the combination of this bench seat, the rectangular elements and the reflection in the pool of water reminded me of a recumbent, compressed version of the Grande Arche La Defense in Paris and the brutalist architecture of the National Theatre on the Southbank in London (I've probably been watching too many arts programmes during lockdown!). About ten seconds after taking the shot the downpour began, so I was so glad I caught that very still reflection.
The wharf is very silted up at low tide and there were two swans there, one of which had it's head tucked into it's feathers, so all you could see was it's sinuous, crook of a neck - an abstract curve caught in perfect whiteness.
Sharing one umbrella always results in the same situation. Cocking my head to the left or right, trying to avoid getting a soaked shoulder and  very nearly poking one of my brother's eyes out because I keep dropping it too low! We still had a great time, though!