Tuesday 5 June 2012

Diamond Jubilee


The UK is celebrating the sixty year reign of Queen Elizabeth II. Houses are decorated with bunting and flags. People are wearing red, white and blue. Youngest son and NQT are in London as they were lucky enough to have tickets for the concert at Buckingham palace. We like the opportunity to show a little patriotism and have a good party! Two excellent days of celebrations culminated with the lighting of beacons all over the country. The Curate and I climbed to the high point on the common land to watch the lighting of our local beacon. Once lit, we looked across to the moor to search for other beacons. Every now and then the darkness was pierced by car headlights - but then we saw two beacons - two of the 4150 being lit around the country tonight. In the darkness, we thought about the past, when beacons were lit to celebrate, to warn and to send news around the country. The Curate and I can remember beacons being lit for the Millennium and the Queen's  Silver and Golden jubilee. I wonder when they will next be lit - and I wonder where we will be.

8 comments:

  1. What a wonderful celebration. My English grandmother would have loved it all! Long live the Queen! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Elizabeth - It has been a wonderful weekend - even here in the 'sticks'. The weather did wash out a few celebrations on Sunday but anything planned for Monday went ahead. Youngest son and girlfriend had tickets for the jubilee concert in London - it will certanly be something they will remember.

      Delete
  2. What a nice blog, we saw some beacons too. It felt so British!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Goosey, Thanks for dropping by. There was something quite special standing in the dark with such a large crowd waiting for the beacon to be lit. Makes you feel very patriotic!!

      Delete
  3. Lovely evocative pictures. Hardly reported here in crisis land but nice to see on my favourite blogs. Axxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Annie, It was very, very wet at times - not like Spain. I imagine huge, expensive celebrations are not the sort of thing people would want to read about at the moment. We read about the financial problems of Spain in our papers almost every day. Our sons have struggled to get jobs and are now both employed (for the moment)and for that I am very thankful.

      Delete
  4. Lovely Photo's. We had a "BIG Lunch" with the Longest Banana Split in Argyll. It seems to have sparked a lot of activity here, added to that unheard of temps of 28 in Scotland in Spring. We are inundated with wedding couples,and Baptism requests. Hope the weather stays this way for them!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 28 degrees in Scotland ....we might move north yet! It's hardly 'flaming June' here! The Curate is about to do his first wedding...at the end of 3 years training! There are several more lined up at a neighbouring church which is good. There are only 2 in this church ......and we are away for one of these. Fortunately lots in surrounding churches so he will be well trained by the end of the summer.

      Delete