Memories, Sometimes Wonderful

Have you ever thought about a glorious time from your past and the image you recall seems a little hazy? It has been twenty two years since we left England. What I remember, was an idyllic four years spent in another country. I was just moving out of my early childhood and into my teens when we left for our four year adventure. I was going into seventh grade, Junior High. Of course, I thought I was all grown up. The reality was, though, my sisters and I were just kids. Kids exploring a new world that was completely different from the one we left. We moved from the dry, blandness of the Mojave desert in southern California, to the vibrant, lushness of the English countryside.

England was where I began to grow up. It's where I met my best friend, where I started to indulge my passion for horses, got in my first fight, experienced my first love and it is the source of my fondest memories. My favorite memory of England is Rendlesham Forest. Our house on the base was a new two story duplex, with a back yard facing the forest. We were able to walk out the back door, go across the yard, and step over the sagging wire fence. Once over the fence, we were no longer on the base. We just crossed the road and into the forest we went.

My sisters and I would dash across to our natural playground. We spent countless hours exploring that forest. I remember the elephant tree marked the spot where we always left the trail. There is a fogginess to most of the memories I have. I don't know that I actually remember what the tree looked like, just that it had one branch that was much larger and thicker than the others. It stuck out straight for several feet, before curling back up. If we were industrious, we could climb up and it made a great seat.

There was also the Hippo pool. Well, that is what we called it. To this day, I have no idea what it was. There was a good fence around it. The pool of water was rectangular in shape, maybe about five feet wide and seven long. The water was terribly murky. I remember green water full of algae and slime with a small concrete slab or box at the end of the pool. Why did we call it the Hippo pool? Who knows, the origin of the name is lost to the mists of time.

My best friend and I knew of a tree in the middle of the forest. She called it the witches tree. We didn't see it too often since it tended to creep her out. There was a story at the time about the tree. It may have been local legend, it may have come from her imagination. The story went, that a witch had been hung from the tree. Before she died, she laid a terrible curse. I don't know what the curse was, just that it had happened. I am leaning towards the idea this was from the imagination of my friend. Rendlesham Forest was known for it's UFO's not witches.

My fondest memory of the forest are the ferns. Beautiful tall, green ferns that were at least waist high on us. I recall happily playing with my sisters and friends in those ferns. They grew tall on a single stalk. If we sat in the dark soil underneath, the fronds of the fern would spread out in a lovely arc over our heads. There were times we just sat off the side of the trail listening to all those who walked by. Other times, we would pull a few ferns from the ground in a small circle. We would gather those still in the ground and tie the tops together making fern houses. I can remember laying on the ground, watching the light turn green and filter softly through the fronds.

Many of the memories of these years now fade into the foggy recesses of my mind. It has been so long. Except, the ferns. Playing in the ferns with my sisters and friends will always remain clear. England is a cherished experience, one that I would never trade.


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This is my entry for LJ Idol: Exhibit B. This weeks topic was one of four. I chose Shadow Children.