If

Having just come back from a trip north saw me looking through various blog sites, just catching up on what was happening out there.. In one there is a mention of a lone hiker who died in a remote area. It set me thinking, just reflecting on the events of the previous week. Throughout the bulk of the trip I felt unsettled. Not depressed Per SE, but not totally at ease either. A few times recently I have woken from bad, weird dreams. That has not happened for some time. One event in particular made me pause and think.Picking my way through an area of dense scrub and undergrowth I found myself funnelled down into deep gully. The bushes and small trees that enclosed it formed a perfect canopy over it. There was space underneath, a hollow, a natural chamber. Little in the way of natural light managed to filter through. My first though that came to mind was how tomb like it was. Slipping my rucksack off, I sat for a few moments, noticing the silence, the coolness, the tangy, earth smells. Unbidden the thought came, 'what a perfect place to die'. It was not in a morbid way, just a general acceptance of our own mortality. What could be more natural than to be absorbed back in to the very earth. No digging of a specialised hole in the ground, enclosed in a cheap wooden box, just another person being buried by some minister to whom I am a stranger.No marking of the place, just a plot number in some obscure church yard. When an animal dies on the hill it is not long before it's carcase is absorbed, the bones remains but even those are soon covered and become part of the Eco system too. It caused me to reflect on other things too. When I travel no one knows that I have gone. After all, for me, who is there to inform? There is no family, no close connections. Who would miss me? How long would it be before anyone realised I was missing? Definitely weeks, in all probability, months. Recently I have been stripping stuff down. My microwave has gone, my large fridge, some of my clothing, the majority of my books. My only furniture is a bed and a chair. So my possessions are few, there is nothing of real importance. If things did go wrong on the hill, I will not say 'the worst' because it really is not the worst case scenario, then ok, it happens. Better surely than existing out the later years in some cheap and tiny flat.