Saturday, September 24, 2011

Pomegranates and the dead falcon .





On the evening walk a falcon falls out of the sky and lands dead at our feet . Wilf ignores it. I pick it up and lay it on one of the window ledges in the village hall . A sudden heart attack ? It's eyes still clear and bright . Late at night I walk across the village green and move this thing of beauty to a tangled, impenetrable thicket of wild pomegranates , junipers and blueberries . A more fitting resting place for an aristocrat of the skies . Strange how natures grace can move you .

Off in the car to look at a 12th century church in a deep valley three miles away . A sign on the front door : " If you want to gain entry knock at the house with blue shutters and ask Madame Dubonnet for the key ". Wilf waits in the back of the car while 'the font ' goes in search of Madame Dubonnet . A tall lady in a blue check shirt finally appears . She points out the nine hundred year old Greco-Byzantine frescoes in the apse . Gaudily over-restored to look as thought they'd been painted yesterday . A shame . The sense of antiquity completely gone to be replaced by something that would suit a Vegas wedding chapel . We smile and diplomatically tell our guide , quite truthfully , that '' they are really quite remarkable ".

France is playing New Zealand at rugby this morning . By seven the salle de fetes a hive of activity . Jack Russells hopping in and out of the french windows , five year old farmers sons staging sword fights , combine harvesters blocking the road, hamburgers being grilled on an outside barbecue , the mayor deep in conversation with his constituents . A scene of ordered chaos as only the French can do it . Angus is offered a very large glass of flock ( the lethal local brew ) and an undercooked cheeseburger before settling down with Wilf on a bench at the back . The family fellow is soon in a sleep so deep that he remains oblivious to the lusty singing of the Marseillaise . Life in France Profonde .

16 comments:

  1. Fantastique!!!! Life in France profonde is getting better day by day - Madame Dubonnet (is she shipping the Queen's favourite drink to Britain??) and Jack Russels hopping in and out of the windows - well what can I offer to top that???
    Love from the hopping and stomping flock in Southern Italy Susanne, Daisy and Foxiie - very trotty this morning

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  2. I do the same thing if a bird hits the window or when I'm hiking and come across a squirrel in the road who zigged when he should have zagged. Everyone should have a respectful resting spot.

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  3. That church is a bit garish! It almost looks like paint by numbers!

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  4. A Rugby fest in your village today, in ours an Oktoberfest--I have a feeling the celebrations are very similar when you live in a small town/village complete with under-cooked cheeseburgers!

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  5. Mum has a drink and nibbles on the couch watching the game too, and I am fast asleep on the bed, like Wilf oblivious to the rugby.

    Mum went last night to the Westpac stadium in Wellington, to see US vs Australia. The atmosphere was electric, but she was shamed by the booing.

    Alas I think France will lose today.

    Julie and Poppy Q
    xxx

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  6. oh to be in france profonde! who needs a vegas church when m'ongoose paints such a colorful picture of life itself. m'ongoose renoir. only i think your joy is far greater than his.
    love to that adorable face. the last one is now my screen background... is okay?
    love,
    tammyj
    tjake@cox.net

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  7. What a noble and lovely person you are, Angus.
    Thank God for you in this world.

    I don't recall ever seeing pomegranates on the tree. I must have but I can't remember. Very elegant, quite beautiful. The frescos are not.
    Love to all.

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  8. RIP beautiful falcon- great pictures in today's post, too bad about the church Vegas -style redo

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  9. Poor falcon! I'm glad he has a fitting resting place.

    Well, I bet nobody falls asleep during services in that church!

    I guess even Wilf can't be patriotic in every country, even though he seems to be a great diplomat. Unless he snored through the singing, you were probably the only one who noticed! ;)

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  10. A beautiful bird such as a falcon deserves a beautiful final resting place. Thank you for taking the time to move it. Love the photo of Wilf today. :)

    Blessings and Love,
    Janelle and Maggie Mae

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  11. Thank you for the kindness offered the falcon. Raptors are wonders to behold - though mice have a different opinion, I am sure. I thought Wilf had eaten some pomegranates with his red beard in the first photo. HA.
    Hate to confess but I liked looking at the church - put me to thinking of the illiterate parishioners long ago for whom the frescoes were their best Bible. I do agree, however: restoration overdone :(.

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  12. OMG, are you paegan? Cuz that's like Headline News at 11 for a paegan. ;)

    re the frescos: beauty is in the eye of the beholder, right? is the beholder blind? sigh...

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  13. Just caught up on the past week in the days of Wilf and also on my French lessons.

    Weird about that falcon. I wonder what happened.

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  14. My goodness - the falcon story is eerie. I wonder what happened to him? I'm glad that you found him a suitable resting place.

    I hope that Wilf got a hearty taste of the undercooked cheeseburger!

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  15. It was an omen relating to the Scottish match

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