If you can’t admire a cow in a field, you’re missing something fundamental about life.
Alan Moore
Week 25 – Walk With Purpose
This chapter discusses the benefits of walking with purpose as opposed to walking for leisure. Studies have found that when walking for a purpose people tend to walk faster. Some of the studies concluded this led to better health and wellbeing.
I don’t know about the conclusions to the studies I can only say how I feel after ‘walking with purpose’.
I walk faster when I have a destination in mind, I don’t want to be late. Having a goal boosts my mental state and feeling of wellbeing. I often set off later than I intend which means I have to walk faster to get to my destination on time.
During term time I have a weekly purposeful walk to a local school. I volunteer as a school reader providing one-to-one reading support for children helping them improve their reading skills and boost their confidence.
Returning home after a recent visit to the school I found that one of my favourite benches to ’sit and rest a while’ had been replaced over the summer holidays. Of course I chose to ’sit and rest a while’ and enjoy the view before returning home.
No Comments CherryPie on Sep 20th 2025
Aethelflaed, also known as Lady of the Mercians, was the eldest daughter of King Alfred the Great. Justifiably thought of as England’s forgotten Queen; she was a formidable leader in a shadowy history of the dark ages. She only one child, a daughter, AElfwynn, and when her husband Aethelred died in 911, she ruled Mercia alone. *
Spending much of her time in Tamworth, she raised her nephew Aethelstan here. He would go on to become the first King of all England. On 12 June, 918 Aethelflaed died in Tamworth and a few days later was finally laid to rest in St Oswald’s Priory, Gloucester, beside her husband.*
*Information from a signboard near Aethelflaed’s statue in front of Tamworth Castle
2 Comments CherryPie on Sep 18th 2025
In addition to displaying items from the Staffordshire hoard Tamworth Castle also has on display the Glascote Torc.
The Glascote Torc is an Iron Age, gold, silver and copper ally torc, probably dating from the 5th-4th century BC. The Torc was found in 1943 by Mr S. G. bates and Mr G. E. Croshaw whilst digging a drainage ditch in Glascote boat yard next to the Coventry Canal between Glascote and Amington.
In 1970 when Mrs G Bates read an article on ancient torcs she realised the significance of the gold band the family had in a box in their attic.
During our visit to Tamworth castle a descendent of the family told us personal family anecdotes about the the Torc before they family, after reading the newspaper article, realised it had historical significance.
Following this discovery the Torc was held and displayed in The Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery. After many years of campaigning, in 2025 the Torc has returned home, on loan to Tamworth Castle. It is displayed in a gallery next to the Staffordshire Hoard.
No photography is allowed of the Staffordshire Hoard or the Torc. The picture above shows the replica of the Torc made in 2007.
6 Comments CherryPie on Sep 17th 2025
and fairies residing in Tamworth Castle.
7 Comments CherryPie on Sep 16th 2025
We recently learned via a random YouTube video that Tamworth Castle holds some pieces from the Staffordshire Hoard. On a sunny Sunday afternoon we took the opportunity to visit the castle which has a lot more to offer in addition to the Staffordshire Hoard. Tamworth Castle covers almost 1000 years of history from its early Anglo-Saxon roots to its life as a museum today.
You can find out about life at the castle throughout the eras, including Medieval, Tudor and Victorian, as you explore its many rooms, chambers and corridors – just beware of the dungeon and the haunted bedroom!
The castle’s walls hold a wealth of stories and legends, from expelled nuns to royal visits and you can discover them all as you step back through time.
Our newest exhibition ‘Battle and Tribute’ focuses on Tamworth’s Anglo-Saxon heritage as the capital of the ancient kingdom of Mercia, where you can get a close up look at exquisite pieces from the Staffordshire Hoard.
5 Comments CherryPie on Sep 15th 2025
Week 48 – Walk Hungry
This chapter discusses the potential benefits of going for a short-measured walk (not a hike) before breakfast. It talks about recent scientific studies that have concluded a walk before breakfast whilst the body is still in fasting mode burns off more fat and improves the way the body reacts to insulin.
I would not normally have chosen to walk before breakfast but my car was booked in for a service on a drop-off-and-leave-it-there for the day basis. Unfortunately, due to Mr C’s car breaking down and the subsequent engine fire as the car was removed from the tow truck towards our driveway, he was unable to give me a lift.
This meant I had to resort to shanks pony and train to get home after the drop off and back again to pick up my car after servicing.
Mr C had told me of the pathway I needed to take to get to the railway station without crossing or walking down busy roads. As I walked along ‘motor mile’, I spotted a pathway and took it. I realised I was on the wrong pathway when I first walked over the railway and shortly afterwards the motorway. However, before retracing my steps to find the correct pathway curiosity got the better of me, I couldn’t resist walking a little further to see where the path came out.
Once I was back on track, the path to the station was obvious because it was signposted. I found the pathway rather seedy and not a pleasant place to walk. At the station I purchased tickets from the ticket office and crossed the bridge to catch the train home. Only one stop.
Whilst I sat on a bench and waited, a couple asked me about purchasing tickets. I pointed them to where I thought the ticket machine on that platform was situated. The ticket office is across the bridge on the other platform.
A few minutes later the couple returned, they had located the ticket machine but unfortunately the machine had not printed off all the tickets, giving them a message to ‘seek help’ from the ticket office. The lady sat next to me on the bench whilst her husband crossed the bridge to try and sort out their tickets. The failure meant that they missed the train by minutes. It reminded me of a similar incident that I had many years ago. Some things never change!
Back in Wellington and walking home, a walking group caught up with me and we had a little chuckle that I was joining the group. The leader waited for the rest of her group and I continued to the pedestrian crossing, pressing the button. The group caught up with me and we bantered and chuckled, the walk leader joking that I had pressed the button for them.
I knew they would be walking as part of the Wellington Walking festival and found out that they were going to Dothill via the Wellington Loop to find out more about the trees in the Dothill nature reserve.
I continued walking home by the direct route. After no breakfast and just a cup of tea I was rather hungry when I got home and was looking forward to lunch.
Unusually, the garage phoned up just after lunch to say my car was ready. They don’t normally phone up until later in the afternoon. If I had known my car would be ready so quickly, I would not have gone home!
My second walk of the day led me back to the station for my return journey to the garage to pick up my car.
2 Comments CherryPie on Sep 15th 2025
