This was the first route that I have reviewed for Slow Ways and it felt good to be contributing to the project and was made easier with 3 of us navigating any unclear paths. I remember reading in Robert MacFarlane's book The Old Ways about how if you know what to look for when walking in rural landscapes, the footpaths and ways start to stand out and become clear, and I feel having been walking for so many days I'm noticing subtle differences that indicate a path to follow, or something small in the distance marking where I am heading.
After a number of days walking alone it was really special to have company for the whole day, walking with 2 great friends who also knew Ro very well. Lavinia, Ro and I had been housemates for a few years in Bradford from 2009 and Wren lived down the road. It was a beautiful community of friends who lived close, ate together, hosted asylum seekers, went wild swimming and had some great parties in between working, being involved in activism and living our lives alongside each other!
We spoke a lot about Ro all day, too much to share here, but one thing we kept coming back to was his love and care for his family, being there for them in whatever way was needed which was sometimes made more challenging by physical distance when he was in Bradford and they were in London, but he always put them first and wanted the best for them and was so proud of their achievements. Ever since we met he had talked about his siblings, he loved being a big brother and also being an uncle and took these responsibilities very seriously but also had huge capacity for fun and playfulness and giving something a go, and these qualities extended to time spent with friends for which we are grateful.
We talked about how he knew who he was deeply and to achieve this takes courage, time, focus and a desire to be fully himself. He wasn't always understood but was able to be attuned to others and I know how thankful I am that he saw parts of me I hadn't and helped me see them. We also spoke about Wren's friend Jamie and how special it is to have recordings of our loved one's voices as a way of remembering them.
We had planned a lunch (and coffee!) stop at a pub in a small village, but when we arrived it was closed due to flooding, but the owners were so friendly despite their situation of not being able to be open for business and having to sort out the flood damage. They chatted to us, let us sit on the outside tables near a beautiful smelling lavender bush to eat our lunch, and use their toilets.
We continued on our way breathing well in the fresh, open air and reached a tree where there were so many birds singing to each other, it was so loud it made us stop and in silence we faced the tree and watched as they fell suddenly silent and then flew from the tree in a magical murmuration, it was incredible to watch and one of those moments where everything has led to the point of being in that place at that time and witnessing something spectacular. My words are limited in describing how it looked and felt but it was a very special moment to share together on this journey, we all felt it.
This was the first walk I've done on this journey where I was walking towards the sunset and it was a beautiful end to the walk. We hugged some large trees and arrived in Olney at 3.30pm with time to buy a hot drink (black forest hot chocolate!) before catching the bus to Bedford.
At the Airbnb I made use of the washer/dryer and cleaned my clothes which after almost 2 weeks on the go was amazing! I also repacked my big bag and gave a few unessential items to Lavinia and Wren to take back to Bradford for me, although they weren't heavy it created space in my bag, but I'm pleased that I mostly seem to have packed very well before this journey!