Cheshire 16 Bruera /a saxon settlement /the churchyard sundial /the locked doors /a buddleia bush and a coffee/the fixtures are out

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We had a plan to day but it was thwarted by the weather . For July it is dreadful . It threatens rain every day . The skies are overcast . That complete covering of grey with little to relieve it . The plan had been to do something most days . Hodnet Hall - only opens in the summer months on a Wednesday . Each week something else got in the way . Looked it the same would happen today . Cholmondeley Castle Gardens - again summer opening only . This time Thursdays only. By the time mid morning had come around we just had to go out somewhere . In the end we got in the car and just drove .

Across the border into England . To a small hamlet called Bruera . There is nothing there . Or at least just a handful of houses and farms and the church . I had always passed by the church on my way to work . It had fascinated me as it was an unusual design. A little too ornate in a way for such a small hamlet . Even in the height of religious fervour there would have been few communicants . The style was highly unusual and I always thought it looked Saxon . Today was the day I was going to find out for myself what exactly the church was like . I hoped to go inside too but that remained a bit hit and miss as unlike churches abroad these very quiet country churches remain firmly locked up . A sad indictment on society .

We talked about Covid as always on our drive . Were numbers going up? There were friends who had caught Covid recently . Having escaped its clutches for two and a half years all of a sudden they were suffering . What would it mean for our trip through the tunnel in 59 days time . We probably no longer need to fill in all the forms that were necessary in April but at this rate we will be in lockdown again . We had the trip planned out and needed to top up the Caxton Card ready for use abroad and buy some turkish lira just in case . But it felt too early for that as we still had the rest of July and all of August to negotiate . Gabby needed refilling again . The bedding is washed and needs returning to the van . The empty cupboards need refilling . Jobs we can do over the next few weeks . The football fixtures have come out for next season and the plan to stay at Banbury is being rehatched . Perhaps if we can get tickets for the away match at Dorking that might do instead we thought. It is down south. It is part way to the tunnel and if we can get tickets we could get the train in and enjoy an away match . Funny how plans change so quickly .

It was raining when we parked up outside the tiny church with its pristine churchyard . The hamlet including the church are all built in the vernacular style of Cheshire with red sandstone the major building material . Many of the houses are typical of the Grosvenor estate design . I opened the gate and stood in front of the ancient church . The slate roof glistened in the heavy rain which was by now falling . The belfry had always fascinated me as it was oak framed and louvered with a shingle square spire . The church was basically Norman but today I was going to see none of that as the doors were firmly closed . I could walk inside the porch to keep out of the rain but that was that . Had I been able to go inside I would have seen an altar table and chancel gates which dated from the 18th century with Jacobean sanctuary chairs . The coat of arms of Charles II were emblazoned on the walls . So many of these ancient churches still have their coat of arms from different reigns . The font too apparently was a stone baluster with hollowed out trough dating from the 17th century . Again ancient churches used odd items for fonts . Our local church many years ago used a hollowed out 17th century bed post . The stained glass had been replaced in 1897 with glass in the Arts and Crafts style . I could see the back of the windows and wished I could go inside . Oh for the cleaner to turn up and open the door or the rector to pop round to let me in . Ah well I could only dream of what was inside . Perhaps next time the church would be open .

The churchyard was as interesting as the church . When the church is old the graveyard tends to be the same . I walked amongst the older tombs . Some dated from the early 19th century others earlier . All shapes and sizes . More stones than in some churches which seemed to reflect the wealth of the souls buried there . Very few empty spaces without a headstone . The ancient yews dripped raindrops on my head as I stood looking at the remains of the old stone cross which was converted at some point to a sundial . The shaft dated from 1693 and the head from 1736. The church was built on a mound with a ditch round it . The ditch held up with large sandstone blocks . There appeared to be old stone graves just placed haphazardly around the churchyard .

Having given up on going inside all that was left was to get out of the rain . To visit the local garden centre , stop off for the usual coffee and buy a Buddleia for the garden . The first butterfly friendly plant to go in the garden this year . The start of my wildflower area .

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