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We have been walking around Rhyd-Ddu this afternoon, that\u2019s just Rachel and myself. \u00a0One of the nice things was leaving the car at our little rented cottage and finding this stunning landscape right on our doorstep.<\/p>\nWe have been walking around Rhyd-Ddu this afternoon, that\u2019s just Rachel and myself. \u00a0One of the nice things was leaving the car at our little rented cottage and finding this stunning landscape right on our doorstep.<\/p>\n
I think my eyes must have been popping out on stalks. \u00a0It was simply so stunningly beautiful and difficult to imagine anything better. \u00a0Each time we come up to North Wales to visit our daughter Hannah, I find something new and even more compelling about the area. \u00a0We have now seen it through all seasons – each so beautiful in its own right.<\/p>\n
I would love to have an excuse to settle in this part of the world. \u00a0Already we know some lovely folk in the Hope Church in Bangor and being amongst them has made quite an impression on me. \u00a0However, Hannah is set to leave here at the end of March so I\u2019m not sure how often we\u2019ll be coming here.<\/p>\n
As we walked around, it was so easy. \u00a0Having walked along a road from our cottage to the edge of a woodland area, the Rhyd-Ddu trail was clearly marked. \u00a0Rachel was worried we were going to be caught in a snowstorm, or even a blizzard. \u00a0She even reminded me of the perils of avalanches as a walker had been airlifted off Mt Snowdon a couple of days ago. \u00a0We weren\u2019t even on a mountain, we were just a mile or two from our cottage!!!!<\/p>\n
As we strolled I thought to myself this would be a fantastic place to run with nice trails, beautiful scenery and being able to make a nice loop of a route. \u00a0We came across two cyclists on thier MTBs with one stopping to chat for a while (he had good knowledge of all the local names, completely lost me – and he knew it!).<\/p>\n
As we chatted, we reflected on how our girls are doing and their different paths being taken in life. \u00a0We recognise ourselves in them as they make their way in society as young adults and sometimes I envy their\u00a0view of the world around us through such young and youthful eyes.<\/p>\n
We discussed a few church issues, we touched on our desire to connect with more people through the simple, honest act of sharing a meal. \u00a0I expressed the need to step back from life right now, to just make sure we are on the right track. \u00a0Everyday is increasingly precious for me, I don\u2019t want to waste a single day and my retirement must count for something. \u00a0In someways this is the pinnacle of my life. \u00a0I have worked through my career with all of the crazy twists and turns, became a Christian, got married, became a father and now have the privilege of stepping back from a salaried career. \u00a0It must be for a reason, it must count for something.<\/p>\n
While these are just a few random thoughts being shared, the overwhelming point of this post is the memory of such beautiful surroundings in the stunning Snowdonia landscape. \u00a0The dusting of snow, the clear, clean fresh air, the low winter sun all came together for a wonderful walk. \u00a0Add the company of my best friend and it was perfect. \u00a0Just perfect.<\/p>\n
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We have been walking around Rhyd-Ddu this afternoon, that\u2019s just Rachel and myself. \u00a0One of the nice things was leaving the car at our little rented cottage and finding this stunning landscape right on our doorstep.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[9,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1399","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-early-retirement","category-family-life"],"yoast_head":"\n