I haven't fallen and broken my neck yet

[linda_joyce]

I'm not sure that some of my newer friends have ever seen this photo so I thought I would post it again. This is my home village shot from an angle that makes it look deserving of its original name Celenyn which means the beautiful place. I live in the last house you can see of the row running diagonally from left to right, that is running steeply up hill, there are two more houses above me. We are not as isolated as we look as we are surrounded by two housing estates built in the 50s on to the left and out of the picture and one to the right. If you look carefully you can make out the shape of one of those houses just a little up hill and across the road from me.

The field behind the top most row of houses was a play park with swings roundabouts see saws and rocking horses when I was a child here but more often than not we played on the remains of an old oak that had had to be felled because it was in danger of falling on us. That was our space ship,sailing ship, Conestoga wagon, stage coach and much much more. the swings and every thing else were removed in the 70s because they were considered dangerous because there was no soft landing only soil and grass and the old tree trunk had rotted away by then. It is now a dog walking area and ATM a sleigh run. To it's left is the local cemetery started about 1860.

At the bottom left is the local elementary school (4-11 year olds) and behind it is the only remaining building left of Abercarn House the home hove the 'Lords of the Manor' of Abercarn. The village was built by Sir Benjamin Hall(a Lord of the Manor) and his wife Lady Augusta to house their estate workers some time between 1820 and 1840. It is the coach house but had been converted into a human hose before I was borne.

Unusually for the Welsh valleys we have a small space between my village and the the ones below and above it in the valley. Normally the villages run into each other so you need to be a local to know when you have passed from one to another.

I wish I could get over to the point I took this photo from and take an other while the snow is down but while it might be possible to get my car down the hill and by a cicuitous route over to the other side of the valley I don't I could get back up again so I'm not even going to try