17/09/2020
At the end of August, the Heaney family, Una, George and Shona, not forgetting Alexa’s tortoise, Voldetort, travelled here to Arran for a long-awaited holiday. Arran is a regular haunt of ours and Brodick is our second home. Although we haven’t been here since February, the house was much as we had left it (only a few cobwebs) and we soon fell into our usual ways, long lie ins, leisurely walks along the front and pottering about in the garden. Thanks to the wonders of technology, Shona and I have been able to participate in the Virtual Choir and we have all enjoyed the Sunday services at Sherbrooke Mosspark. I’ve been keeping up with my yoga, gym and harp (thanks Alice) classes via Zoom and I even joined the Presbytery meeting on Webinar, which was a new experience… no need to drive home afterwards on a dark, wet night!
We’ve had the full weather experience over the past couple of weeks, with winds of various speeds and all varieties of rain, but recently it seems to have improved, clear skies and a beautiful sunset last night. Arran is quieter than usual, mainly due to reduced capacity on the ferries. A sign of the current situation is that the Co-op and the Post Office have “traffic lights” controlling entry. The Brodick pharmacy conducts business in the porch outside the front door… the weary hiker can no longer browse its extensive range of footcare products inside the shop. However, the views don’t change and Goatfell continues to dominate Brodick Bay. We’re due home on the 24th September, but hopefully we’ll be back again soon.