Wellness and Wordsworth in The Lake District, Cumbria
Post Outline: Wellness and Wordsworth in The Lake District
- Intro to Grasmere in the Lake District
- Where to sight see
- What to read
- What to wear
- How to find yourself in nature
Go, Go Grasmere!
Just recently I was lucky enough to visit the quaint little town of Grasmere in the Lake District. It was SO lush that I thought you’d appreciate a recommendation for both the holiday spot and the inspired poetry that came from the town.
If you’ve not heard of it before, the Lake District, also known as the Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in Cumbria, North West England about 5 hours north of London. Set among panoramic views of mountains, valleys, fells and lakes, Grasmere albeit mainly popular with visitors nowadays is one of the most beautiful and popular towns in Cumbria.
Cute little cottages are fronted with pebbledash and the houses dotted through the landscape are made from a local blueish grey slate that colour matches both the mountains and the local Herdwick sheep. Alongside the spectacular landscape were Victorian villas, tiny winding streets with sweet little chocolate shops and tea rooms, artisan craft galleries, quintessentially British pubs and more trails for country walks than you could shake a hiking stick at.
VISITS: For natural and cultural beauty
- The Wordsworth daffodil garden and museum – More
- The Beatrix Potter museum – Visit
- Windermere Jetty, Museam of boats, steam and stories (fascinating!) – Tickets
- Touring Coniston Water by vintage steam yacht gondola. (Highly recommend) – Go Sail
- Walking Tarn Howes circular (a relatively simple walk) – Link
Wellness and Wordsworth in The Lake District
Feel at one with nature
Tours and attractions aside, as soon as I arrived in Grasmere I felt the landscape speaking to me. It was singing the song of eternity and I was completely overcome by it. For this particular visit I was in Grasmere on a busy group trip but I stole myself away early in the mornings so I could be quiet and listen in to whatever it was the hills and valleys had to say.
Maybe you’ve had a similar experience at a natural beauty spot you love?
One such quiet morning I was sat enjoying my first coffee of the day when a few lines from the American poet Walt Whitman flowed back to me. They felt so right for how I’d been feeling on the trip.
I will go to the bank by the wood and become undisguised and naked,
I am mad for it to be in contact with me.
The smoke of my own breath,
The sound of the belch’d words of my voice loos’d to the eddies of the wind,
The play of shine and shade on the trees as the supple boughs wag,
The delight alone or in the rush of the streets, or along the fields and hill-sides,
The feeling of health, the full-noon trill, the song of me rising from bed and meeting the sun.
Have you reckon’d a thousand acres much? have you reckon’d the earth much?
Walt Whitman, Song Of Myself Section 2, 1819-1892. (Link)
Have You Reckoned The Earth Much?
With these few lines Walt asks you to let go, breathe deep and become one with nature. To go beyond what you already know of nature conceptually, or what others before you have learned and passed on. He’s inviting you to go beyond philosophy and mental ideas and instead to be directly in contact with nature.
When he says ‘The smoke of my own breath / The sound of the belch’d words of my voice loos’d to the eddies of the wind’ – It’s a call to remember that you yourself are part of the spectacular landscape.
The smoke rising dreamily from the cottage chimney at the foot of a mountain is no more magical, no more a natural wonder, than the smoke of your own breath let loose on the cool winter winds.
When we go deeply into nature (or deeply into meditation) we find that we aren’t separate from the natural world but rather a part of the mystery itself. Mind, body, world… It’s all one thing.
And I just love that for us!
Wordsworth Poetry Written In Grasmere
On the second day of my trip I learned that Grasmere was home to the English romantic poet William Wordsworth, and suddenly it all made sense.
I’d experienced for myself how ‘chatty’ the landscape was during my trip out to The Lakes, so yes I get it 100% – what a perfect place to live if you’re going to write some of the worlds most loved nature poetry.
Already an innovative poet for his time, In 1799 Wordsworth arrived in Grasmere where he settled with his wife Dorothy. It was in Grasmere he wrote some of his best poetry. Daffodils is perhaps the most famous poem in the English language and it’s a poem that comes to mind for most people when they hear the name Wordsworth. It’s a poem they tend to teach you at school here in the UK, and we covered it recently on Emma Mills London too.
But there’s another poem from Wordsworth which is my all time favourite and I’d love to share it with you here, if you’re curious and still reading with me?
In the poem ‘Intimations on Immortality’ Wordsworth remembers how as a child he felt the magic of the natural world around him. Every hillside and stream seemed lit from within by dreamlike wonder. Everything spoke to him with wisdom and beauty. But as an adult he has lost touch with the wonder he once felt so vividly. But why? And how can he (and we) get it back?
Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood, by William Wordsworth.
(An excerpt from a poem he worked on while staying in Grasmere in the Lake District.)
Heaven lies about us in our infancy!
Shades of the prison-house begin to close
Upon the growing Boy,
But he beholds the light, and whence it flows,
He sees it in his joy;
The Youth, who daily farther from the east
Must travel, still is Nature’s Priest,
And by the vision splendid
Is on his way attended;
'Whither is fled the visionary gleam?
Where is it now, the glory and the dream?
Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting:
The Soul that rises with us, our life’s Star,
Hath had elsewhere its setting,
And cometh from afar:
Not in entire forgetfulness,
And not in utter nakedness,
But trailing clouds of glory do we come
From God, who is our home:
Heaven lies about us in our infancy!
Shades of the prison-house begin to close
Upon the growing Boy,
But he beholds the light, and whence it flows,
He sees it in his joy;
The Youth, who daily farther from the east
Must travel, still is Nature’s Priest,
And by the vision splendid
Is on his way attended;
At length the Man perceives it die away,
And fade into the light of common day.'
Extracted from Intimations of Immortality, William Wordsworth
Enjoying The Great Outdoors This Autumn
One message I’d love for us take away from this poem from Wordsworth is that no matter how far from the shore you end up, be that geographically in terms of your proximity to the great outdoors, or spiritually in terms of your self connection, you’re never forgotten. Nature, the great beauty, is always there for you. Always singing a sweet song and inviting you home.
Nature is always trying to woo us, but sometimes we’re looking the other way.
Shop: Literary Lake District Starter Kit
Literary Inspo: A Pocket Wordsworth
A lovely little pocket book to keep at hand. The description of this collection reads: ‘A leading figure among the Romantic generation, Wordsworth created out of his personal communion with nature a new poetic which had a profound moral and spiritual influence on the entire nineteenth century.’ And you can enjoy a selection of his lifes work for just £9.99. What fantastic value!
Cozy Weather Proof Walking Boots
Flexible, supportive 2-3 season walking boots that keep you comfortable without weighing you down – now updated for more comfort and durability. I’ve been wearing mine for hiking and walking trips for 3-4 years now and they’re super soft, not too heavy and look pretty stylish too.
Rains Jacket
I am in love with the weather proof wear from Rains. Rains is a contemporary rainwear lifestyle brand creating waterproof designs for the global citizen. Stylish, nice lines, effective (very important!) and they come in a range of lush colours.
A Wide Brimmed Weather Proof Tilley Hat
I’m a big fan of Tilley hats. Born from a love of the Canadian spirit and the joy of life outdoors, they looks super sweet and last forever (well, a very long time at least!) It’s the perfect multi use hat if you’re into outdoors adventures. I love wide brimmed hats because they protect your skin from the sun as well as keeping the rain at bay on wet weather days.
A Darling Daffodil Earring Set
I’m in love with these hand made silver daffodil earrings I spotted on Etsy this week. It’s a two in one set with an option to wear as a pendant. The earrings are made of Sterling Silver 925 and plated with 24ct gold.
I hope you enjoyed learning a little about the British mountain town of Grasmere and getting to know two lovely poems. Maybe you’ll find them food for thought as the days go by this week. A poem has to work on you slowly like that, doesn’t it?
If you have the chance, I’d highly recommend a visit to the Lake District and to Grasmere in particular. You can also learn more about Wordsworth and visiting his home town here.
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Next up, let’s enjoy a little peace and quiet together with the latest guided meditation on Emma Mills London
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