Deborah Baldwin's Letter

For my dear sons. ,

Never take things in life for granted, for we all often do, but at our peril.

I write at a time the natural world is increasingly under fire, and am dismayed to say our present beloved UK leaders are intent on overturning laws, brazenly reneging on pledges to protect UK wildlife. The impact, if they are undeterred, will mean life will change as we know it, in the most detrimental way.

Am hoping that by the time you read this letter the changes afoot to harm further our natural world will have long been seen as wrong and our environment become more valued, the approach of the ruling powers, the lawmakers’, radically different.

As children, a lot of spare family time was spent outdoors on walks, in open fields, traipsing through woods, collecting leaves, sticks, plough through dry fallen Autumn leaves that crunched pleasingly underfoot, or waded through puddles, in wellies, on muddy footpaths. Trips to the beach; playing, paddling, swimming in the sea. Collecting shells, going rock pool fishing. It was our time to wind down and take in the world around us, have fun. Even in the garden, finding caterpillars, spotting butterflies, excitement if a hedgehog swung by.

I hope you can do all these things and more with your children. That action is taken for not just for the now at the time I write but for the future and you now are reaping the benefits. It is the simple pleasures that can often reap the greatest rewards and I hope you do not see your natural world around you disappear as quickly as I have seen in my life time. I hope you live in a world packed anew with awesome nature.

I write this letter fairly recent of the Covid pandemic, a time when we had to shut ourselves away and then when we could open our doors, be cautious in our day-to-day lives. What helped many people was the big natural world, woodland, coast, city parkland, our gardens. It helped to ground people, regain a sense of calmness.

Yesterday I did the 10k walk around Cardiff Bay with your father. We strode out and saw in that short time, a grey heron fishing, a cormorant do battle with an eel. We were in The Cotswolds last week, saw red kites aplenty flying above. And the green rolling unspoilt hills with the sun setting was really most wonderful.

Never take things in life for granted, my sons, embrace them with all your might.

Love Mum xx