where i live - london, england, uk

mission: MUSE - "where i live"

by muse kirstin

I grew up in Blackheath, a "village" within London, south of the Thames. Things were simple in those days; I knew I wanted to be a doctor and an archaeologist and on Sundays my now deceased father would take me and my sister on long walks in Greenwich Park, adjacent to Blackheath. He used to take us in all weathers, to kick leaves in the autumn, to bask in the sun in the summer and sled whenever there was snow. A keen historian, my father told us stories of the park over the centuries as we walked the paths. The park has such an important history which is demonstrated by its contents; an excavated Roman temple, Anglo-Saxon burial mounds, a Georgian bath, an observatory (famed as the start of Greenwich Mean Time), a palace for Queen Anne, and the shadows of allotments in the second world war. Having briefly studied in North London, I have returned to live and work in Blackheath, moving into my childhood home a few years ago. Our children go to school in Blackheath, travelling across the heath on a daily basis in cars, bicycles, or by foot. They too enjoy spending time in the park, and we are forging new memories with them of sledding, cycle rides, sun-drenched evenings and long walks. I was fortunate to spend two exciting days earlier this month with my best friend, volunteering at an archaeological dig in the park.


Originally thought to be Victorian, the bricks we dug up were subsequently dated to the Stuart period (from the 1600s), although the purpose of the building is yet to be determined. Most exciting of all, I found a Victorian coin buried above those bricks. I conjured up stories of a boy who might have lost that coin a century ago in the dell where we were digging. Maybe he was the same age as my son. I will never know, but I loved feeling so completely connected with the history and setting at that wonderful moment in time. And I know my father would have loved to have shared that moment with me too, as my daughter beamed at me with pride when I told her of my discovery.



Thank you for visiting where I live. Please feel free to visit my blog to learn more about my life in London.

Until next time! Kirstin of Fleeting Moments.

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