The beauty of a stroll beside the canal

Close to my home there is a canal which I love to walk along when the weather is fine.

I haven't walked along there for a few weeks as this summer has not been the best, however here in the UK we are currently enjoying just a few days of early September sunshine. The current temperature is 27°c, which is very warm for the time of year.

I find that the surroundings are beautiful and peaceful beside the river so I thought that this would be a good topic to write about in response to the prompt by@JonicaBradley to write about beauty.

It's 2pm now and i've just had my lunch and am just about to head out, I will take my phone with me, take a few pictures and share my thoughts with you this afternoon.

I have been walking for around 30 minutes and have found a nice peaceful shady spot to sit down, on a tree stump, there are only a few people around and it feels good to be away from the hustle and bustle of the town centre. I can take my time, reflect on things and enjoy seeing the beautiful reflection of the trees on the water. It really is beautiful, you don't always have to travel a long way the enjoy the beauty of nature.

I have had a bit of a rest now and typed a bit too so now I will walk on a little further and capture some more pictures of my afternoon walk in the beautiful sunshine.

The natural wild beauty

I have walked another 30 minutes and crossed over a bridge to a nature reserve. To be honest it is a little overgrown here but to me that is beautiful in its own way. Some of the wild flowers are beautiful when you take the time to look they have such intricate detail and are wonderful to admire.

Its a beautiful thing also to take in the sounds of the natural world for instance the birds singing, moorhens chirping, the crickets buzzing in the long grass.

To see the ducks swimming along, the dragonflies flying past too, to watch the fish swimming in the still waters.

The brambles bushes need cutting back a bit here in this nature reserve, though there are some lovely ripe blackberries on them that I have eaten along my way, truly organic and they taste wonderful.

The willow tree

As I walked back along the canal I took some more pictures and would like to share with you this one of the willow tree, commonly known as the 'weeping willow' because of the way the branches hang down over the water.

It is also sometimes known as the 'babylon weeping willow' which came from a misunderstanding by Carl Linneaus, a swedish botanist who thought that this willow was the tree which was mentioned in psalm 137 of the Bible.

Here is the verse here below taken from the KJV.

Psalm 137

1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.

2 We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof.

It is believed however that this tree did in fact originate from China.

I think it is a beautiful looking tree, which radiates a sense of peace and tranquility.

The bark of a willow tree also has medicinal properties which can be used for pain relief and can be bought in health food stores in capsule form.

There are also many myths about the willow tree in folklore which are connected with the the moon, water and magic. It is believed that the willow tree can guard against evil and sometimes the wood is kept in peoples homes so they can 'knock on a willow tree' which is where the english saying 'knock on wood' is derived.

All this fascinates me but most important to me is that the tree is simply beautiful to behold.

Back to home for a tea

Its 4.30pm now and I have been sitting down by the lock on a bench writing this.

I find this spot a beautiful place too, the sound of the water running through the lock gates and the gentle breeze is lovely.

I know that come here any time I wish to take a break from my busy life and find some time for quiet reflection from time to time, to enjoy the fresh air and nature too.

It has been a beautiful afternoon walk, though I must get home now for a well earned cup of tea.

I hope you enjoyed my article. If you wish you can check out my other articles here.

https://read.cash/@onlymythoughts

My own article and my own pictures too.