This cat chased a squirrel past the tree towards the Brew House apartments on Coopers Lane. Finding no escape that way, the squirrel ran back. The cat managed to get a paw on it’s back, but not enough to hold it, and the squirrel ran up the tree.
The leaves were thick enough to hide it from my view and I could not see any way of escape. The cat waited. A leaf fell. The cat waited. Another leaf fell.
Trinity Church, Abingdon, was decorated with flowers and fruit for this year’s Harvest Thanksgiving service.
During the opening hymn, We Plough the Fields and Scatter, people brought gifts of food to the front of the church. These will be distributed to people in need through the Abingdon Foodbank. In her sermon, Revd Carol Hamilton-Foyn reflected on how food might be more fairly shared in today’s world.
The pictures above show the Farmers’ Market on Friday and the fruit and veg stall on the Market Place on Saturday.
The food brought to the Harvest Thanksgiving was in line with the Abingdon Foodbank Harvest 2025 ‘in need of’ guide. The foodbank operates out of Christchurch and Preston Road Community Centre.
In Abingdon (and Stone Henge), the earliest sunrise happens about a week before the longest days of 20th and 21st of June. The latest sunset happens about a week after. The Earth is tilted as it goes around the Sun, and its path is oval-shaped. Sunrises and sunsets are not synchronised.
Depending on where you are, the Sun will not be visible right away anyway.
This week also brought another seasonal change. The fishing closed season, which runs from March 15th to June 15th, has ended. Rods are out again as fishers return. One was up with the sun.
The first day of spring brought blue skies and sunshine to Abingdon. People went outdoors to enjoy the town’s riverside beauty. Signs of the changing season were everywhere. Cherry blossoms from a fallen tree still bloomed and added colour to this view of Abingdon Bridge and The Nags Head pub.
Yellow daffodils near the water’s edge brightened the view of Abingdon Bridge and The Riverside Cafe – a popular spot for those wanting a coffee and cakes or lunch with a view.
From another angle, the spire of St Helen’s Church rose above The Riverside Cafe.
Cherry trees also bloomed near the Old Gaol.
For people who did not have to work there was a chance to slow down and enjoy the beauty of the first day of Spring in Abingdon, the vernal equinox, when day and night are of nearly equal length. Although up to recently I used to think it was March 21st.