Flashbacks

Do you lie in bed

and think of England?

Do you lie in bed and learn to feign your feelings...

My great, great, great grandfather was a Brit.

He was London born, so deep down inside I've always identified England as my home.

 

Big Ben and all the apple red busses made themselves visible to me at the early age of 4.

I was a child who lived, breathed, and dreamed the Disney film 101 Dalmatians, which is set in London.

Later on, The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe had an enormous influence on me.

I ate up the entire Narnia series. (Those books are still so close to my heart.)

The films that were released to the world later, gave my imagination food.

I grew up surrounded by the music of the Beatles.  

It dawned on me today that England has always been present in my life.

Christmas in the Spoerl Family has always been influenced by our British roots.  

Watching Love Actually is a tradition I made for myself! (Let's all cheer for the awesome Wisconsin reference!) ;)

All of my family enjoys watching A Muppet Christmas Carol.

We bake goods that aren't popular in the US but are a rich tradition for our friends across the pond.

My father and I wake up early on Christmas Eve.

We sip our coffee and tune into a radio station that airs the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols in Cambridge, live.

England is 6 hours ahead of the USA so they are just beginning the most wonderful night of the year as Americans wake up.

England was the very first place I visited out of my country.

It is the only other country that I have had the pleasure of visiting twice.

The reason why I'm writing this, is because lately I've had so many flashbacks.

I'm not sure why, but they always flash before my eyes in the early hours of morning.

One of my favorite memories isn't anything that I saw...it's a specific scent and atmosphere.

The hotel we stayed at was the most beautiful, elegant, hotel I've ever been to.

When you walked in the air smelled of perfume and clogged my brain with wanderlust and magic.

I breathed in that familiar smell standing outside in the night recently.

It took me back to London and made my heart jump.

What I love the most about England is the oldness of it.

I love the buildings and the history.

The style.

The music. (Shout out to Libera the best boys choir)

The telephone booths.

The way people (some people) present themselves.

The way everyone dresses and carries an air about them.

Mind The Gap! grew to be a familiar voice.

The humming of the tube became my friend.

The culture was my kind of culture.

I loved how everything wasn't what it seemed.

Most of all I love my friends who live there the most.

They're some of the greatest, sweetest friends I've ever had!

My heart belongs and will always belong to Ireland across the way...

but England will always be coursing through my veins.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMWt0Y6HFYw

 

Reviews

[Coyote Poetry]

I loved London. I spend three vacation there between 1977-1980. I was stationed in Germany. I enjoyed your story. Good story and beautiful photos. Made the words come alive. Thank you for sharing the excellent story.
Coyote

[Gerry Legister]

I live in England so I can easily well identify with this presentation, and it is wonderfully presented with pictures and other images, great work

[Kathryn Smith]

Aw Thank you so much!! :) x