“Cotswold Forest” is the name I give to a lovely group of trees 20 minutes from our home on Emory Lane in Charlotte. Marianne and I liked to take walks together, in parks and in our own neighborhood. When we moved to Charlotte the first walk we discovered was a simple one. Take a right on Emory Lane. Go a few blocks to the end, and then turn left on Linda Lane. Walk to its end, at Cotswold Elementary School. We arrived in Charlotte in July, so the school was not in session. We would walk around the school grounds and then return home. Lately I have been doing this little walk (about 40 minutes round trip) every now and then. I made a nice discovery–bear right at the school and one comes to a lovely group of trees — so close to our house! I think this is something Marianne wanted for me, as expressed in the first line of Spring Journey: “Yes, my love, go where we have not been”.
