This ongoing initiative showcases blogs with fewer than 500 subscribers which I think are deserving of more attention. Hopefully these blogs will spark your interest and you’ll check them out. It’s my way of spreading awareness of talented writers whose work I admire.
This week’s featured blog is Ashley’s A Different View. I first met Ashley in November 2021 when he and I were both invited to take part in a discussion titled “Exploring Basho’s Moon,” an examination of one of Basho’s famous haiku, hosted by Mark Scott’s Season Words blog. I found Ashley to be the kindest fellow imaginable, and his delicate skill regarding the writing of traditional haiku was astounding. Since then, I’ve come to consider Ashley a good friend of mine, someone whose love of nature and poetic ability create a sense of peace and serenity. Ashley speaks my language, you could say, and his blog is a calm harbor of natural beauty and exemplary writing.
I asked Ashely if he’d like to provide a little background about himself and his blog. I’ll let his own words do the talking:
- I’m 74 years old and married to Carol for 52 years although we were courting about 5 years before that so we’ve been together for at least 57 years
- whilst Carol has had so much illness in her life (cancer x 4 + heart problems) SHE is still my rock
- I’m a great grandfather
- I was born in the city of Armagh in Northern Ireland to northern English parents
- Armagh was the ancient capital of Christian Ireland & whilst no longer a practicing Christian, the sound of cathedral bells is in my heart (see John Betjeman: Summoned By Bells)
- left home at 21 to live & work in London, UK. Work location then was close to the River Thames & that river flows within me still
- 30 years spent living & working in England in the clothing industry: after redundancy, aged 45, worked in various jobs (transport, retail, health service) now retired
- returned to NI some years ago
- did voluntary work with the Woodland Trust (30+ years). LOVE trees, obsessed by them
- through WordPress discovered haiku & writing in season
- have always wanted to write & illustrate
- lower back problems meant that I restarted my life, exercising daily, a mixture of physio exercises & Qi Gong
- I have only ever travelled outside the UK about 3 or 4 times but follow blogs all around the world. With tools like Google Translate I am amazed how many different cultures & languages I am able to connect with
- I love the simplicity of seasonal haiku
I would be remiss were I not to mention that one thing I find intriguing about Ashley’s blog is that I have some Irish ancestry, and the Emerald Isle is a land I’ve always wanted to explore. I’m able to do that vicariously through Ashley’s writing and photography. Ashley’s essays take us on strolls through the Irish countryside among wild flowers and the trees he loves so dearly, and his haiku–distilled to their very essence–paint glorious pictures of the natural world. For an example of what A Different View offers, here’s a post Ashley chose to share:
In a nutshell, if you love nature, if you appreciate fine Japanese short-form poetry, if you’ve ever felt the desire to travel to Ireland, Ashley’s A Different View has it all. I hope you’ll visit Ashley’s blog and walk along with him among the trees.
Let’s spread the love and support our fellow bloggers.
Silent Pariah 