Lunch and a moment to relax

Wednesday lunch times I have found myself frequenting a nice little haunt. It's the grounds of a church sat on a hill overlooking the Thames. There is a busy artery carrying traffic towards central London only a stone's throw away, but it's lower level muffles noise from traffic. I enjoy just sitting on a bench in the company of the odd dastardly pigeon (possibly related to the ones enjoying residence under my roof tiles) and a fat squirrel or two. Fat because we're coming out of winter and I'm sure a few patrons who use the church grounds as a short cut stop off and feed them with bags of peanuts. I sit there with a very tasty container of Chinese food from an excellent take away. Chop through my lunch (without chop sticks) and have a moment of quiet. There is nothing like getting out of the fish factory for lunch, and away from the busy throws of gutting and cleaning fishes. Odd such a small sanctuary can be found even in the urban settings of a hectic city, even odder there are not more people who eat their lunch there either. Then again if there were it wouldn't be the same.

From my seat I can see a few trees, grass, ferrys and the Thames. Which is cleaner than it used to be. To the left there are two new red residential blocks. These blocks don't have a ground floor because London is a vast flood plane it was stipulated by the powers-that be, each tower block had to be built on stilts and so effectively the ground floor has no residential accommodation. Good for them, but not for me because if there were a flood which breached the walls I'd get flooded. They are but one of many blocks being built along the whole of the Thames in what is now called the Thames Gateway. They look nice, their view unique, their price exhorbitant and their inhabitants quite mixed. Along another stretch of the Thames I know of many such places which although privately owned are rented out and their tenants from all walks of life. To use a diplomatic description.

After lunch heading out of the grounds there is a large stone lion. He watches all who enter and leave. Several yards behind him there is a wall belonging to buildings adjacent the grounds. But the wall can barely be seen, for various bushes and trees in front of it. Yet there are not just bushes and trees. There are also grave stones. And just at the point of egress it is possible to see them quite clearly. The wording has long since gone on many. Just streaks of dark acid rain runs in unintelligible groves where words once told their story.

So somewhere around where I lunch there are the bones of people who once walked this earth. Their graves perhaps now areas covered in grass or even where new buildings stand. Which is quite fortunate, because it's bad enough being pestered by the pigeons for my Chinese let other people. Maybe this is why it's so peaceful. Nah can't be, some of those squirrels look pretty mean to me. Fortunately I'm pretty good with a plastic fork. Beware, man in ex grave yard come church grounds fends of fat squirrels with fork. Lucky I can run fast.