Goodbye to a Goodie
Tuesday morning breakfast was a mug of tea, and toast with bramble jam.
I ate it gazing at the image on a set of harvest season/autumnal placemats which are a recent purchase from a seller on Etsy and came in their original 'Cloverleaf' branded box with a care leaflet tucked inside. Two large mats and 6 of individual size. One of the large ones is currently looking lovely, standing up as decor in my kitchen. I know it's a bit early in the year to bring out the berries and golden leaves, but I couldn't bring myself to tuck them away in a drawer when they look so cheering.
And don't we all need something cheering just now…
I'm having to block out the news to keep functioning; every time wildfire updates appear in my feed, my heart shatters for all the people, animals, wildlife, and landscapes affected. All that legacy of hard work by conservationists in ancient forests, all that fear for communities, for homes, and all that terrible terrible loss. And all that worry now, for future seasons and climate changes. Tears of helplessness and frustration and sadness are close to the surface, and I have to go and stare at a greenfinch, or a song thrush, in our garden for a moment.
Today, there is another layer of sadness, but also gratitude in watching the birds. I refer, of course, to the news yesterday of the passing of legend Bill Oddie. It's was through birds that I first encountered the bearded, glasses wearing, sometimes grumpy (but always ready for joy) man on my tv screen, although I came to appreciate his comedy and love of music later. Bill Oddie's infectious joy for watching birds and all of nature inspired a lifelong passion in myself, as I'm sure it did for many of us. Does any one remember the episode of one of his programs (was it SpringWatch or his own series?) where Bill was disguised as a haystack at the side of a river, with a stick for a kingfisher to perch on?! And the one where he danced around on the heathland waving two white handkerchiefs to attract a nightjar?!
As a child and then a teenager, struggling to fathom out the world's seemingly complicatedly contradictory muddle of expectations, it was Bill Oddie who helped to teach me how to watch wildlife. That is where I found my refuge. I'd grown up on Sir David Attenborough's Earth series’ and Simon King's Big Cat Diaries, but it was Bill who showed me that I could connect with that same sense of natural miracle on my own doorstep. And how to tell a dunnock from a sparrow.
I have missed him on the tellibox this past decade or so, and was saddened to read of his long health battles. Don't worry Bill, I'll continue to tell anyone who listens (or doesn't!) that that bird going 'teacher teacher' in spring is a Great Tit!
Three cheers for a true 'Goodie'. RIP
I'm off to stare at some house sparrows - they really are doing wonderfully well in our hedge this year...
In 2005, I married my Brit and moved from NY to Wiltshire. That spring we became obsessed with 1) the birds nesting in our garden and 2) a new show called Spring Watch starring Bill Oddie and Kate Humble. And thus I fell in love with the UK, British nature, and the hosts of Spring Watch. RIP, Bill.
There was an article in The Guardian yesterday about Bill Odie‘s death. It started with a paragraph that mentioned his involvement with wildlife and birds, and then the rest of the page whiffled on about the goodies 50 years ago. I remember the goodies all those days ago and frankly it wasn’t that funny but his wildlife adventures were worth mentioning in more depth. The Guardian just glossed over it. A token mention not very good especially for that paper.