From my study window

THE VIEW FROM my study window is a constant source of pleasure because it provides a panorama of the fenland landscape to the north of Bourne with the added attraction of elevation which enables you see the countryside in far more detail than on the ground.

This aspect was one of the factors that prompted us to buy the house when we retired to Bourne almost thirty years ago, a decision we have never regretted and with my desk in front of a large picture window, I have an uninterrupted view of the countryside for many miles with a number of fields edged with trees, the Car Dyke built by the Romans, several cottages and the old smock mill at Dyke village on the skyline together with the towers of Morton and Rippingale churches and, on clear days, the spire of Haconby church.

There are always walkers along the public footpath which crosses the countryside, sometimes horse riders and cyclists. Treasure hunters with metal detectors and hunters with shotguns appear occasionally in the fields. Birds and animals abound, among them lapwings, barn owls and herons, foxes, deer and hares, while the weather pattern and cloud formations are worthy of the poet's attention at any time. Even at night, the lights twinkle from faraway cottages and sometimes a full moon bathes the familiar scene in a warm glow while on summer evenings the red sunsets are a sight to behold. Stormy days also have their attractions as dense black clouds move slowly overhead shedding sheets of rain in one spot while a rainbow lights up the sky in another. It is like sitting in front of a gigantic screen showing an unending film of nature's many moods.

Inspiration is therefore never far away and if tapping away at the keyboard flags, I need only pause a moment to admire the view before resuming with renewed vigour. I am also a constant observer of the farming year, watching the plough and the harrow in the autumn, preparing to plant new crops of wheat and barley, and then the frost and the snow which turn our countryside into a winter wonderland overnight followed by the spring when the green shoots push through the earth and as the weeks pass they grow taller and soon those mellow mid-summer days are here and the combines are cutting a swathe through the golden corn and the year begins again. And so the seasons act as a marker for our life span and constantly remind us that the years are passing and we must enjoy each day to the full.

There is also encouragement for the amateur photographer and on those occasions when I am short of a picture for the Bourne web site, or when a particularly dramatic view presents itself, I need only pick up my camera and snap away without moving from my desk. The result is that I have amassed an annual chronicle of the changing year, from January to December, with all of its diverse activities and appearances and I have chosen a dozen or so of these views which you may like to share.

THE CHANGING SEASONS

Photographed in January 2012