Time Trails

On 100 acres land a few kilometres to the south of town a local millionaire has bought a piece of natural habitat and made it available for the public to visit and enjoy.

Signs near the entrance to the trail system describe some of the wildlife that may be seen in the woodland.

A number of trails weave past hidden ponds, hills, and past trees over one hundred years old like this yellow birch.

The leaves along the forest floor constantly change in texture . . .

. . . according to the type of trees overhead.

And the trees and branches now stand naked before an approaching winter .

With each passing the week, visitors experience the season’s continuing change – always starting and always ending in the great cycle of time.

Fogs of November

Below the heights of an ice-age geological feature called the Ingersoll moraine some of the country's thickest fogs are created as moist air from the Mississippi valley is guided north into the chilled confines of the Thames river valley. In these times drivers exercise caution and the sun is barely visible.

At these times shadows hide easily in the grey light and the forest possesses a silence wherein elves could live.

Remembering Time

Less than a lifetime ago a conflict of ideas and ambitions snatched tens of thousands of lives from the towns and villages of this country. Every November 11^th at the 11^th hour ceremonies evoke a memory of those lost early.

The towns pipe band leads the parade, recreating a spirit of sound and ceremony.

The colour guard turns the corner at Thames and King Streets.

As the last survivors of that generation enjoy long and prosperous lives, the understanding of the magnitude of what was won and what was sacrificed, deepens every year. As lines in granite listen, dignitaries describe their thanks.

A man with a name likely to be etched on some future monument describes his ongoing service in Afghanistan.

The population of veterans – now aged in their 80s and 90s are slipping away before our eyes. A photo of the crowd catches the moment a member of the honour guard collapses during the wreath laying ceremony.

And an ambulance responds.

The monument after the service is covered with the wreathes. Time and life continue to move. The crowd moves away and flags wave above names unable to follow.

Places Before

Over 45 years ago a summer camp for children teamed with play and adventure beside a pond that is part of southern Ontario’s most important wetland.

On the far shore the most ambitious and driven of the senior boy’s would engineer great tree forts high in the pine trees.

The pond is mostly drained now and the reeds have turned golden brown. The water runs more clear than ever.

Beneath nearby trees a small Madonna of the Woods does . . . whatever it is these small statues are supposed to do.

Barcelona

On the upper right coast of Spain rests the City of Barcelona. The City is the capital of the Catalan region of Spain and has been home to great artists, architects, and a multitude of others over recent centuries. It is among the more interesting cities in Europe, not so much for its past, as for its living present.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barcelona

In a downtown acoustically shaped alley near to the ancient palace an aging opera singer earns a few Euros by entertaining passing tourists.

Classic architecture includes civic squares such as the Piazza Roma Reial.

Public spaces are defined by sculpture and/or architecture.

The ancient palace in the heart of town incorporates some of the original Roman walls of the City.

Barcelona was one of the first European cities to embrace environmentally friendly transport system involving bicycles which are rentable by the city's residents.

Old Places Recent Time

A Time Traveller’s dilemma is a sudden shift in time and space perhaps sparked by a coming storm, a cold wind or the hope of discovery in new lands past and present. Sometimes the shifts are like a stone skipping on a very big patch of water from one city to another.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amsterdam
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barcelona

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montpellier

The places most pleasing to eye and spirit were not from this time – but from earlier times when stone was considered the best of building materials.

The old houses line an ancient street leading to the university in Montpellier, France.

The aquaduct looks Roman but is more recent - it brought water from Black Mountains to the top of the walled city of Montpellier.

The views from houses in the centre of town are of church steeples and tiled roofs.

The view from the end of the aquaduct is towards the highest part of the old City - through the arch of triumph.

Colours Elapsed

All colours together, appear as white - and before this landscape turns white it has turned all colours and then faded into grey. There are four seasons in this part of the world and each season is a slice of great wheel rolling down the road of time. This wheel has rolled past a street on the Time Traveller’s routine daily journey.

And the grey his thickened into cloud and freezing rain shrouding the town's main street.

The power behind this transition is the power of frost - turning water into daggers of ice buried in the hearts and limbs of all that was green.