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Garralacka........how well I remember it from my childhood....the house
set in the rolling countryside and the neat courtyard in front. Everything
was always pristine, clean....the whitewashed walls, the newly painted
doors and windows. It always seemed to be summer there as we walked over
the fields observing the animals, noting the weight of one and the condition of another. Always, a sense of full and plenty.......what we
expect to see in the country.......the hens, the geese, lambs in season,
and the beauty of a pheasant's plumage as our walking disturbed its
feeding among the heavy ears of corn. Then it was back to the house for
supper..... a table where there was always full and plenty and where the
word organic would not even be understood as they would have known or
could not even conceive anything else.....
......It was those far off memories that made me nervous about seeing it
again recently. It had such fond memories for me that i felt that it
could not possibly be the same......but it was. To my joy, the courtyard was
still as pretty as ever. The walls were dazzling white and the guest
cottages surrounding it were like something from a world gone by. The new
Mistress of the House informed me that things had changed however and
that these rustic cottages had all modern conveniences so that the visiting housewife would have very little work to do. I noted her delight
in being able to provide so well for her guests and gladly let her show
me other new developments in this special place of my youth.......... An
old choked up shrubbery had become a football pitch and tennis court and
nearer to the main house was a play ground where children could play safely.
We walked the fields again but now the walk was easier as it meandered
slowly to a lake where we sat and watched the birds dive into water and
then wheel overhead before they flew away.
I realized again how wonderful it was............ that sheer feeling of
being in a little piece of Eden and yet only a few miles from the nearest
town and sea side.
That heavy stillness of a summer's evening when the day's work is
done..........when the only sound is that of bees returning to the hive,
the low munching of cattle as they feed contentedly in rich pastures or
the bleating of sheep on the far off hill.
Yes! I was well content with my visit to Garralacka and realize yet again
that it is in such places that we renew our spirits and teach our children
the priorities in life."
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