Memory Lane

Yesterday blipper Midgehole Dave posted a picture of one of my favorite spots in England and in Hebden Bridge - here. He’s lucky enough to live there and I’ve only just visited. His picture sent me on a nostalgic trip down memory lane and I just had to spend an hour or so looking at my album (pre-digital, for me anyway) of my first visit to England in1998. My husband and I were meeting, in person for the first time, long time pen pals Myra and Doug Hilton from Manchester. Doug was a collector of police memorabilia back in the 70s and had contacted my husband Timothy when he was the Chief of Police in Red Lodge, Montana, asking if he could get a collar badge or arm patch for his collection. That began a long and colorful correspondence, especially once Myra and I got into it.

Since Dave posted a picture of a spot where I had actually stood (and that wasn’t the first time he’s done that), I really felt a pang of “homesickness”, and that’ s when I got the album out and found the matching picture because I can remember how I felt standing there on English soil for the first time. It’s hard to explain but I think a lot of people have a gut-level connection with some spot on the planet and when and if they’re lucky enough to get to it, it’s a very emotional experience. I felt that way about all the places in Yorkshire we visited; Haworth, Oxenhope, Wycoller etc. As a bonus, it also explained my irrational love of textiles – the history and the manufacture of them since that once was the predominant industry in that area (at least so I’m told). From a genealogical point of view, I’d have to go back to prehistoric time to find an ancestor on either side who wasn’t English, so I guess I come by the connection honestly.

I’m pretty sure the ducks in Dave’s picture are the descendants of the ones in mine, and the cat is long gone. Sadly, Timothy, on the right, is gone too and Myra is quite ill, but Doug, or Dougie as we called him, is 85 and still going strong. Things change and time goes on, but before too much more goes by, I’m going to plan a trip to Yorkshire to see my friends and the country I love. I’m going to be looking to meet some blippers too!