‘Nation must take the correct route’

THE leaves are changing colour and the ground is covered with acorns.

The leaves of some of my geraniums are turning while the scarlet heads burn brightly.

The salmon ones are still magnificent, but the Michaelmas daisies are

starting to flower in a purple haze.

The ‘season of mists and mellow fruitfulness’ cannot go on for much longer and the ‘maturing sun’ will start to lose its heat.

I learned recently that the words crisis and crossroads have the same Greek origin.

As I was walking round the cricket field, clutching two sticks, and phone in pocket in case of a fall, it came to me that we as a nation are at a crossroads.

The crossroads of the seasons might well be a crisis for us all.

You might remember from my articles in The Sentinel that I have been productive during lockdown and afterwards. I have not been into the sitting room until after my meal, cooked in one pan if possible, and cleared up in the evening. But the

winter days will be longer and darker.

Part of me looks forward to lighting the fire, drawing the curtains and settling down in front of the TV. Having just acquired iplayer, I can binge watch the series I’ve missed.

It’s quite comforting to know there are no committee meetings so I won’t feel like a couch potato!

The American poet, Robert Frost, wrote a poem called ‘The Road Not Taken’ describing how we come to a time when we have to make a decision which path to take. We cannot regret not making the right choice.

Let us hope at this crossroads or crisis, we all take the right road.

PAMELA CLARKE BETLEY