Dear Readers, it’s easy to get so caught up in busy-ness and sorting things out and running around. But the rewards for stopping and looking are so great. Just look at these spiders’ webs in the garden this morning. For just a few moments the sun illuminates every single thread and turns it into a rainbow.

Sometimes things like this make me want to cry. We rush downhill in our lives, and yet look at this beauty. Everything is illuminated. It is heart-stopping. And in a few minutes, as the sun climbs higher in the sky, the moment is gone. Surely the spreadsheets and the laundry can wait? As my dear Dad used to say, you’re a long time dead.

There were four webs in just this tiny corner of the garden. Goodness knows how many there are in the whole place. It’s been so wet that I think they’re making up for lost time, as are the bees, who are all over the hemp agrimony. Summer’s lease hath all too short a date, because when I see the spiders I can almost smell the autumn leaves. Take a few minutes to stop and pay attention today, Readers. I promise that the rewards are bountiful, and surprising.