Brightwell-cum-Sotwell

The prettiest village ever seen

The fairy tale atmosphere I felt at Mt Vernon I also sense as I start my walk around the village of Brightwell-cum-Sotwell where the Bach Centre is situated. I am aware that the village has a 1,000 history. There are no street lights or lamp posts alongside the roads, there are no markings on the road, and neither can I see any signposts for traffic. There are dozens of old thatched cottages with lush front gardens and I spot a few houses that obviously stem from Tudor times, perhaps earlier. Many of the houses have dates incorporated into their walls and I start a little competition with myself trying to find the oldest house. If it weren’t for the few cars lining the road here and there it would be easy to imagine that I had travelled in time and I was now in the mid 19th century. 

Sotwell thatched house1688 Sotwell  Sotwell house

Some of the hedgerows are huge and tower over the road; they are certainly at least a hundred years old. The variety of plants along the wayside indicates a healthy ecosystem, bees hum and birds are singing loudly, competing with one another. Some enormous oak trees also line the road which are certainly several hundred years old. There is something amazingly undisturbed about the village which I decide is one of the prettiest places I have ever seen. I come across St James church and know that this is where Dr Bach was buried in 1936. Strangely, there is an old red chestnut tree next to the church and also a holly tree at the entry to the graveyard. 

Walking around the old graveyard (I cannot go into the church as it is locked up), I quickly spot Dr Bach’s grave with the inscription Behold I am alive for evermore which touches me, and tears prick my eyes for a few seconds. I realise for the umpteenth time how this one man has touched ten of thousands of people and gratitude swamps me as I silently walk away.

Dr Bachs grave

 St James church Sotwell

Watch a photo story with music on YouTube about Brightwell-cum-Sotwell and Mt. Vermon which summarizes these first three blog posts...

Brightwell-cum-Sotwell - website

Next time: The Travellers – I have updated the piece Dr Bach wrote about the characters as remedy personalities wandering in a wood. In my version new the figures are now on the Internet. ;-)

Are you familiar with his original story? If not, here it is.

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Edith Westerholm Kiendl
Liebe Nicola, sehr lustig und gelungen! Man erkennt sich doch in einigem wieder.... mir persönlich ist ein Spaziergang im Wald lieber als der ewige Computerdjungel ;-)
Judy Seele
I so enjoyed this blog. I have done level 1 in South Africa. I am going to be visiting the Bach Centre in June, so this is very helpful. Thank you.

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Nicola's blog

'One Person's Journey' available as an ebook.

Further training course for practitioners:

Sept. 2024: BC-ACE workshop Mindful communication

Previous blog postings:

- Navalny, Vervain personified

- My phone, my habits!

- Sheer bloodymindesness

- Everything is connected

- Worry

- The evil of 'Vine'

- Finding meaning in life

- Corona - again

- Deadly floods

- A red chestnut discovery

- Impatiens broke my arm

- Goodbye 2020

- Magic

- Coming out of lockdown

- When normality slips away

- Our house is on fire

- The Elm bottle breaks

- When nearly everything changes

- Our social lives and genes

- Two refugees

- A nasty accident

- Friendliness

- Sleep

- Panic

- Someone mad with you?

- Breaking decades of silence (II)

- Who is not socialising and why?

- Breaking decades of silence (I)

- Who gets angry and why?

- Hey, Mr President!

- The saddest day

- Life is full of stories

- At Heathrow

- Building site Guardian Angel

- Letting go

- Specifically Chicory

- The Travellers - a fun piece!

- Emotional baggage

- A wild bird and the rescue remedy

- The garden at Mt.Vernon

- Inside Mt. Vernon

- Brightwell-cum-Sotwell

- Edward Bach's philosophy

Nicola Hanefeld 15My name is Nicola Hanefeld, I am English but I've lived in the Black Forest area in Freiburg, Germany, since 1981. I was a biology teacher before I left England. I have been a BFRP since 1997 and am also a trainer for Bach Centre approved courses. I have three wonderful children, all grown up now and am blessed with three grand-children. I'm a member of Greenpeace and am also a teacher of the Alexander Technique.

Alongside the Bach flowers, photography is one of my passions. Follow me on Instagram where I share my photos. Another passion is writing, and you will find many stories relating to my experiences with Edward Bach's amazing remedies in my book One Person's Journey.

ONE PERSONS JOURNEY

 

 

 

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