A COUPLE of years ago, my granny sent me a clipping from her newspaper. At first glance, it seemed to be a recipe. I am not the most adventurous cook and rarely follow recipes, so I examined it with slight trepidation and a large pinch of salt on standby:
Ingredients
One grassy field
1/2 dozen children (or as many as you have)
3 small dogs
A pinch of a brook
Some pebbles
Mix the children and dogs well together and put them in the field, stirring constantly. Pour the brook over the pebbles. Sprinkle the field with flowers, spread over all a deep blue sky, and bake in a hot sun. When brown, remove the children and set away to cool in a bathtub.
Source: The Darling Dahlias and the Eleven O'Clock Lady by Susan Wittig Albert.
I found this captivating but also amusing, especially when I saw that dearest Granny had written below: 'Sounds like a tried-and-tested Coles family recipe, darling Granny is a real source of inspiration to me: she had four children under the age of five and it is a constant reminder that life could be even busier and that I have got it rather easy in comparison.
My husband Toby and I are fairly old-fashioned in the way that we live our lives, from our hunting in the winter to the summer months when life doesn't pivot around horses and hounds. This has trickled down, inevitably, into the way that our children see the world. We have chosen to live in a secluded corner of Devon, almost as far away from the bright lights and busy streets of civilisation as is possible, and our children have learned to make the most of the rolling hills and empty lanes. They are not often found inside on days when the sun is shining or indeed even on grey days.
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Denne historien er fra July 2024-utgaven av The Field.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Helping hot dogs chill out
From cool coats to clippers, there are a whole host of ways to keep your canine companion comfortable as the summer heat intensifies, says David Tomlinson
Art in the field
Sculpting his wild subjects from life, Fred Gordon is breaking new ground in bronze, says Janet Menzies
How to canapé
A summer celebration is nothing without these tiny works of art. Devised by the country's best canapé cooks, they are just the thing to make your party swing
Ginger-beer childhoods
Summer holidays filled with outdoor adventures are the perfect way to foster a love of the countryside and a lifetime enthusiasm for the field
Glamour, intelligence and drive as standard
Retrieving birds with pace, energy and undeniable elan, these sporting poodles are winning over even traditional gundog breed enthusiasts
The cycle begins
Though it may lie forgotten for much of the year, the kennel bicycle is indispensable in summer when hound exercise gets under way
Turning the tide on the Tyne
The industrial age brought prosperity to Newcastle but at great cost to the Tyne and its salmon. Today its waters are a haven for fish and anglers alike
En garde: a guide to fencing
Not just a clash of swords and some fancy footwork, this ancient sport is an art form that demands agility, discipline and control
Who was Baron Pierre de Coubertin?
It was a diminutive, 19th-century French aristocrat, Baron Pierre de Coubertin (pictured, left), who came up with the idea of reviving the Olympic Games while studying in Paris. He was a sporting sort himself, and had also long despaired of what he perceived as French degeneracy; his country had been humiliated by the loss of the Franco-Prussian War and he attributed this to his countrymen's lack of moral fibre.
A gold-medal guide to Olympic shooting
Everything you need to know, from history, disciplines, rules and regulations to the British sportsmen and women striving for glory