I drove back down to the old mill down Anstey Mill Lane which I remembered from my childhood.
We young kids used to haunt the place as the river flowed through the gates, turning the wheel and spilling through the sluice to rejoin the river later on.
Even in those days the wheel did not turn, no farmers brought their grain and only the birds and rats lived there and us boys of course on school holidays when Ma and Pa were at work and we did just what we liked.
We climbed the ladders and dipped our fingers into the rushing water and disturbed an owl that was having nap and we got dirty and soaked.
I had to drive down the new highway to find it and turned into a lane that said "No Thru Road" and parked the car close to a blackberry bush.
It had all changed as there was a six foot high mesh fence surrounding the mill which was now a heritage building but the river had been diverted and there were no kids playing there neither in the mill or paddling in the river close by as they were probably all at home playing on their iPads.
Image found at www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk
What a sad but true statement on how life has changed! You had wonderful adventures as a child, lots of fresh air and physical activity and hands-on learning experiences. Today's children exercise only their minds, and I fear all the magic of childhood, all the sense of freedom and great adventure, has been lost. Great post, Old Egg, treasure those memories!
ReplyDeleteI wonder what today's kids will be nostalgic about. Old computer games and outdated social media sites?
ReplyDeleteLove the picture ... and the picture you paint with your words..
ReplyDeletegramswisewords.blogspot.com
Love the picture ... and the picture you paint with your words..
ReplyDeletegramswisewords.blogspot.com
On our disposable society, I worry about our childrens' grip on their past.
ReplyDeleteI think we are lucky to have memories such of this, places and times in our childhood where we played and explored with the carefree exuberance of youth. There are places from childhood I still visit in my dreams. I wonder where our children's memories take them, and if theirs will even have a place that felt like home.
ReplyDeleteIt is sad to go back to those locations where our memories first began only to discover things are completely gone, or have been changed to the point of hardly recognizing them. Thank goodness for the memories we do have and that we can write about them and share those memories.
ReplyDeletegood thing (it should be more, but) that we have our memories, the world does not simply change with time, it's transformed in a version suitable to different people than us.
ReplyDeleteLate to the party, but I have to tell you how much this piece brought back really happy memories. I grew up close to a McDougals flour mill and as kids we were fascinated by the water wheel. The building still stands - I pass it most days, but now it's a crumbling wreck. The wheel has gone but still the water rushes past.
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