Author: Susie

We drove from Totnis through Dartmouth down to Stoke Fleming, checked into a very beautiful hotel room, and then started driving south down the coast to the small towns and beaches where the American army and navy trained for D Day. Apparently Monty Montgomery had the idea that the beaches at Slapton Sands were most like Normandy. As we drove on narrow cliff roads I tried to imagine our tanks and trucks converging here. And the generals plotting out the invasion. A lady told me Montgomery and Eisenhower met here in Stoke Fleming. We drove south from Stoke Fleming and walked to the beach from a car park. As we stood on the sand and looked up at the cliffs and rough terrain it does look like Normandy. There are memorials along the 5 to 6 mile stretch both to the village people who were evacuated with 2 weeks notice and to the Americans who died here. Landing craft loaded with men and Sherman tanks that had been fitted with floation devices left Plymouth and headed around the shore past Salcombe and made the run toward the beaches training for Normandy. German U boats and what are called torpedo boats lurking off the English coast hit 3 of our boats and bodies washed up on shore as tanks sank in about 85 feet of water. One tank was found and raised in the 1980s and it stands at Torbay along with plaques that tell the story from Montgomery’s idea to train the Americans there to Eisenhower’s decision to use live ammunition during the training exercises. Torbay also built a little friendship garden just like one in France. After lunch taken at a picnic table near the beach where I ate profiteroles (cream puffs) filled with cream, chocolate, and orange, (As I ate I thought of Debbie who reads the dessert side of the menu first. Well Debbie I certainly could use you here. Today I ate toast with lemon curd, nutella, and cream. Good grief. I need a beach walk.) anyway after lunch, we left Torbay and began the tortuous drive down the coast to south of Salcombe to an English National Trust gardens and house called Overbeck’s poised on the cliffs. We looked at flowers, palm trees and wonderful birds and inside the house an amazing collection of a scientist and inventor Otto Overbeck like the polyphone music box (we had a smaller Regina music box my father had that I played tin records on when I was about 5 years old. You can hear the tunes on U Tube. When I hear the music in old movies, I can see the box). Upstairs we found many unusual antiques and stuffed animals (ugh). We took a similar tortuous road back to Stoke Fleming, walked along a scary tiny overgrown coastal path to a wonderful "proper" pub, drank Guinness and a shandy, ate a small dinner and tumbled into bed. God bless you.

We always try to do new unplanned things, and I always do a lot of research and make a list of places I want to go, how to get there, what to do there. I think I can safely say most of what we do is not on those lists! For example I told everyone we were going to Wales and we did Ledbury and Upton on Severn instead and we loved both. So I just do my best try to get us to places once we change and make a decision. This trip I was adamant I wanted to see "the girls" Charlotte, Emily and Harriet, husbands and babies. Since we missed Harriet’s wedding 5 years ago and since Sally, Mervyn, and Bill have been ill with pneumonia and worse it was very important to see all and we did! We usually leave Bude and spend a week getting to the airport or ship. This time we spent two days in Totnes which is in South Devon on the river Dart, and we took a boat down to Dartmouth (town at the mouth of the river Dart). I learned of a place called Slapton where many American soldiers training for Operation Overlord (D Day) were killed during training on Slapton Sands beach the site of Operation Tiger. Soldiers were ambushed by a German torpedo boat. We will visit Slapton and the Memorial to our soldiers tomorrow. All I have to do is navigate! We made a booking while we were in the tourist information center in Dartmouth as it will be a Saturday evening during the summer on an English beach. So after breakfast tomorrow morning, for those of you watching us on Google earth, we will travel from Totnes to the Stoke Lodge Hotel in Stoke Fleming to check in and then down to Slapton. Today was foggy and rainy we could use less rain. God bless you.

When we stay with Sally and Bill in Harefield cottage, in Bude, we do as much as we can to help, but no one is as efficient as Bill and Sally. I rushed to do my laundry, but I was late getting back from the West Bay Inn pub after visiting Mervyn and Brenda. (Mervyn is recovering nicely, thank God) yesterday and our laundry was already pegged. Then Sally cooked a roast beef dinner with all the trimmings including Yorkshire pudding. Yum. Harefield will be sold in September and Sally and Bill might relocate closer to the children. This morning I will try to help Bill hang sheets but he plies me with croissants and coffee… Gotta go, there’s marmalade with those croissants. Off to Totnes as soon as Chuck finishes packing the car. God bless you.

Oh my dear, Bude vacation almost over. We leave Bude on Thursday morning. Made our exit plan this morning just before we headed off for the Bay Inn to paint Widemouth Bay and cliffs and have lunch and drink shandies and Guinness. After Henry’s nap he played in 3 pools. A tiny one, a bigger one, and finally the hot tub. Stephen put tiny Oliver in the tiny pool and floated him like Moses while Emily and Henry splashed in the hot tub. Our friend Mervyn got a good doctor’s report and we celebrated with champagne here at Harefield. Had a great warm sunny afternoon. Sally made all kinds of fahita stuff for dinner! We then packed up children, grannies, aunties, Chuck, Susie and Bill into 2 cars and headed to the Bude breakwater for a walk. Ready for bed. God bless you.

In Sunday Mass in Bude one of the readings was from Job 38. God asked Job to consider the Creator who made all and rules all. People continue to ask about Jesus "Who can this be?…even the sea obeys him." how often we forget God. The priest called our forgetfulness of God "practical atheism." We say "I am OK on my own. I can think what I want and do what I want. Say what I want." God doesn’t wield a big stick. His feet do not break reeds when he stands next to us. He speaks in a very low voice. Sometimes when I find myself saying "No" I thank God that he whispers "Yes." We spent a windy chilly few hours walking south along the tops of the cliffs from Upton Bude down to the beach at Widemouth Bay. This is an amazing stretch of cliffs only rivaled by the western most cliffs of Ireland. The wind and waves crash in on the surprisingly sandy beach and the rocks are beautiful. Mindful of the weight and quantity of our luggage, I did not pick up any rocks to bring home in luggage. Well, I did pick up rocks, caressed the sand off them, and then dropped them back for other walkers. This was little Oliver’s first beach walk. The 6 week old was well wrapped up and snug against Mummy’s warm chest. Chuck and I went to the Bay Inn for Guinness, Shandies, and snacks. I can find amazing cheeses brie and goat and I am hoping my cholesterol isn’t off the charts when we get home. We eat a lot of local farm produced cheese, lamb, and beef. Yum. Sally, Emily, and Barbara (Sally’s Mum) cooked a wonderful lamb dinner (from local farm baaaaaa). God bless you.

On June 17, without knowing what had happened in Charleston, South Carolina, I spoke of the kitten Bible and my reaction. Please stay with me as I work my way through this. Chuck and I walked through an English town me always looking for a church… And he said, "There is a church." I saw a church with no cross on top and broken towers, and little odd flag decorations all across the entrance. "I don’t think so." but we crossed the street and I walked up the path…I peered in the door and saw a lot of ladies as if in a meeting handing out brochures. I took a brochure thinking I would walk through the church yard as is my wont and remember the church as it was, "before Cromwell." "No I said," but I was drawn in and I saw what looked like a tea party with about 20 English ladies who drew me in, put a brochure in my hand and said, "Start there at book one." It took me a second to realize my eyes had deceived me and I saw insignificant because of my prejudice. "Knitted Bible!" Scenes from the Bible all around the church. I stopped at Zechariah in the tree and a lady next to me commented! "Even the tree is proper!" It was a traveling exhibition. The scenery and people were all knitted. From Genesis to the Resurrection. Finally a lady said, "Go up there for the Last Supper." I climbed up on the altar (communion table), and I had an engaging conversation with a lady who invited me to Catholic Mass and introduced me to the "old" Catholic priest who says Mass in two villages. Need more vocations. I had to leave and get back to the boat…I left the church wondering what made my eyes see insignificant "kitten bible"…what made me want to shun the experience, what drew me in to a truth I would have rejected if I went on my initial reaction?… I left that tiny church full of confidence that people can be wonderful and beautiful in faith. Thank God for the knitted bible! Now then, as I was standing outside a small church all concerned with our differences a wild young man was shooting people because he considered their "differences" irreconcilable. How horrible… I watched our president speak to the press saying, "…this type of mass violence does not happen in other advanced countries." I felt like he slapped me. "We, most Americans, would not do that." I responded to the television screen from a room in England. But I am an American and I do carry a better than thou mentality. God forgive me and God bless us all. Family fills this English house full of love, and I ask God to continue to pour out his Grace. God bless you.

We drove south to the Cornish coast that I think is the most beautiful coastline I have seen. We started getting all our clothes organized and get ready to wash and peg tomorrow. We will also try to get a good long walk in tomorrow. Today is bittersweet because we always come to Bude usually turning south at the end of our English holiday. Bude means we see our English friends, but Mervyn is ill. I remember meeting everyone at the farm… Mervyn was building extra rooms for Sally’s B&B and he took us "hunting". Brenda worked with Sally getting rooms turned around. We used to go over to "Little Beck" for meals and to see Mervyn’s farm animals. I remember watching Sally standing on the cliff at Boscastle as she was showing us the amazing town and cliffs at Boscastle. I was freezing, and there Sally was so comfortable in the blowing wind! Of course Debbie and I would have to say our joint memory of Bill is his guided walks that nearly killed us. We joke about how many times we would stop, "huff puff huff puff look at this flower!" We now have lots of new memories with new babies. Emily will arrive tomorrow night with two babies. Hope the weather warms up a little so they can go to the beach. Tomorrow I’ll write about the kitten bible please come back. God bless you.

Whenever I can find a place by water I move in that direction and the English make it easy…Upton upon Severn is on a lovely wide river that floods almost annually turning the town into an island and flooding the first floor (bar kitchen dining room reception). Last evening we sat outside with our host who showed us pictures before 2007 when the town was turned into an island and the river rose to fill the lower rooms to a level of 8 feet. Then a flood barrier was installed and he showed us a picture of a swan floating by and looking in at him through the glass top of the flood barrier! Funny and really wierd. We had 2 days in a bright room overlooking the river with a nice bath…tiny shower! …the key to the bedroom door is the old fashioned stick type. In fact I think most of the doors are original 600 years old (mind your head!) Anyhow…I tried to go out early yesterday for coffee as I am wont to do…and I couldn’t get the key to turn to unlock the door. I had to ask Chuck to let me out. So much for sneaking. We sit outside or inside the pub if it’s chilly and last evening a narrow canal boat pulled in. We talked with the folks. Keith is a 1 /12 th owner so he takes the boat out for a month a year. We went on board and I took pictures. Well today we are off with heavy hearts as our friend Mervyn is ill. We might not be able to see him, but will be nearby in Bude. I will be able to go to Mass in Bude. God bless Mervyn and all of us.

We traveled with an end goal in mind, but stopped as we drove through Upton on Severn, "just to have a look." Found the river Severn, boats playing in her waters, the Swan hotel, and table 10 outside on the river, parked the car directly outside on the river, booked room 3 for 2 days, and are planning a river cruise to Tewkesbury (a return ticket takes us by boat to and from with a few hours for wandering around the cathedral and market.) We spent yesterday wandering around Upton and hanging out where the canal boats tie up. Met a Mum with her little boy named Owen who first fed the ducks and then chased them. He asked to have his picture taken and I promised to email it in September! Sometimes the best surprises start at the bottom of the street! Saying for today: Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass; it’s about learning to dance in the rain. God bless you.

When we told Sally we were headed for the town of Ledbury, she called it black and white. When we enter the town center there is a building on stilts all black and white! Ledbury has preserved as many Tudor buildings as they can afford to. I imagine the upkeep on a 1000 year old building is pretty complicated. Tudor buildings are constructed from massive black beams and white washed. Imagine the pictures we have seen of Henry VIII. He seems to be 4 ft high and 4 ft wide. So do doorways seem here. And enter at your own risk! Bump… Rub your head. Bump. Stub a toe. The floors slope, and there are little steps. Whoever is first has to say, "Mind your step or head" so the one behind doesn’t bump too! We are out far from big cities today so we will follow a rather large scale map and have to depend on little signs at roundabouts to get to my final planned destination of Bretforton. We will travel from Ledbury to Little Malvern, Pershore, Evesham, to a pub that is a National Trust location and old inn with nightly music. We will see… Also plan to see several National Trust houses in next few days. Just go from town to town…seeking town centers and neat stuff. Onward we go. Might not find internet… Will write if we find work! God bless you.