Friendship

I've never been very good at friendship.  I get on with almost everyone and maybe that's the problem.  Aristotle said that he who is friends with everyone is friends with no one.  I've never had one 'best friend'.  Even at school I would always be part of a trio.  I do try to keep in touch with people that I have considered to be friends but I'm really bad at it.  I haven't seen a friend from college since her wedding nearly 4 years ago and despite liking the odd Facebook status of old school friends I actually have no idea how they really are.

The news this morning was all about Dr Liam Fox and how he blurred his personal and professional boundaries by lettting his friend attend Defense meetings.  That's a pretty cool friend.  One who's prepared to break the rules to help you out. I expect they played squash when their girlfriends dumped them and never once spoke about how they were feeling.  Women are so different; everything must be analysed and discussed but there is always competition, although never as openly as a game of squash.

Today was long walk Monday and as I was thinking about Dr Fox and his 'bestie' I decided to invite a human friend to join me and my furry pal.  It was great to walk, talk and put the world to rights.  I'm feeling a bit rebellious at the moment so it was a good job we were in the middle of nowhere or our conversation, if recorded, would have read like a script from Grumpy Old Loose Women.  We sorted out the arts, education, religion and public rights of way!

Public footpaths has never been a topic I've been that passionate about before but when you are attempting to follow a map and the footpath disappears, militancy strikes. I must confess to marching straight across the field waving my map at my poor friend, who had no choice but to follow.

  Obviously, you have to keep going, aware that you have just passed a sign that tells you trespasser's will be shot but when you eventually reach a locked gate you know you are going to have to climb over it and look less than ladylike.

This picture is the other side of the gate!

We walked all the way to Mundon Church, passed the cute Alpaccas at the goat farm and stopped at petrified forest.  Now, I can see why those trees are petrified.  I'd be terrified if I looked like that too!

Apparently, the wood from them was used to build the Spanish Armada.  I'm a bit confused by that fact!  Why did the Spanish come to Maldon to get wood to build their boats?
The Church at Mundon was made redundant in 1970, which surprised me because I thought it was only people that could be made redundant. It is now being cared for by a group called the Friends of Friendless Churches, which is such a great name but does make me feel rather sad.

We walked for about 3 1/2 hours and my poor friend was saying that she felt rather shattered at the end of it. I looked on the map when I got back and it seems as though I frogmarched her on a 12 mile hike!  No wonder I'm not good at friendship.  Even the dog refused an evening stroll!