Some weeks ago I visited Mount Grace Priory in North Yorkshire. Mt Grace is the best preserved example in England of a Carthusian monastery, where the monks lived as hermits. One of the individual cells has been reconstructed and restored and furnished, to show how the monks would have lived.

The ‘cells’ are more like modern day starter homes. In the restored cell, pictured here with figure, there are three rooms downstairs and one large one above with a weaving loom. All of the monks had some practical work such as weaving, spinning, book binding and the like. Each monk had a garden, a privy and a short length of cloister. Food was given them through a hole in the front wall by lay Brothers who basically took care of them and the administration of the monastery.

The film Into Great Silence, which I mentioned some weeks ago, was made in the large Carthusian monastery in France. Quite an austere life.

In contrast and a million miles away from the simple hermetic life, which I do not hold up as an ideal by the way, take a glimpse at the details of a prize winning shed in Reading Berkshire…inspired by Roman architecture. National Shed Week indeed?!! Only in Britain!

You can guess what’s happening. I’m talking ridiculous dog talk in an attempt to get a reluctant dog to take his evening constitutional. Come ON! My voice deepens to bass in an attempt to establish authority. It works, for a few steps.

Eventually we are on the lane and heading for the bottom road. There is to be found a footpath sign on a wooden post. It points up towards the monastery. This public path cuts close to the main buildings then on up through the fields to the top road. We rarely have people walk this path and when we do they will stop to chat in a friendly fashion.

On the same public footpath sign is pinned a white arrow. I only found out about it’s meaning recently. Our two dogs are fine together, off the lead, however it’s a very different story if they meet while on the lead. The white arrow helps walkers, dog walkers, to make sure the dogs go in different directions. If the arrow points to the right, that’s the signal to turn left, and vice versa. This system works for the most part but like all systems human fallibility kicks in sometimes. Oh well, we try.

My walk this evening reminds me, once again, to remember to speak in a friendly, and respectful, fashion. I think animals respond best this way. As do humans.