Jennie Kermode

"St Thomas Grey, St Thomas Grey
"The longest night and the shortest day."

- an old rhyme for the Solstice; I can't remember where I first heard it but it always comes back to me on this day.

Soon the brightness will grow again, and fast, always faster somehow than I expect. The day will no longer be over by half past three. The world will come back to life.

Dec 21, 2022 at 1:55pmWeb
Show threadgui_traderDec 21, 2022
@jennie_kermode possbly the thing I miss the most about living in the UK. Night falling at 3.30pm in December, and 6 months you wake up at 4.30am not knowing what has happened. Southern latitudes are a bit boring in this respect. But sunnier!!!
Show threadJennie KermodeDec 21, 2022
@gui_trader Aye. I was just interviewing a Brazilian guy as night fell here, and I was wrapped up in blankets, and he was sitting in bright sunlight looking slightly too warm. Telecommuting has made these changes seem a lot stranger.
Show threadIan BartlettDec 21, 2022

@jennie_kermode

I've never heard this, but reading it reminded me when as a small boy I was exploring my village on my own and came across a monument sitting in a field. It felt like I'd discovered history. The village was Stoke Poges and it was Thomas Gray's memorial. He was buried nearby in the church yard of his most famous work. I was seven or eight.

Show threadKim WoodDec 22, 2022
@jennie_kermode but.... February, though?
Show threadJennie KermodeDec 22, 2022
@kim I didn't say it wouldn't be cold and damp.