Empty Fields
The fields are empty now.
Silent in the sunlight,
The wheat and barley
Grow without the oversight of man.
Or so it seems to travellers
In this quiet Suffolk land.
The season's start
Brings out the plough.
Or at the harvest
Then the combine
Works the fields.
One man alone
Within his windowed perch.
I saw them once,
The horses,
Breasting a rise
At the headland next to the road.
In the fifties, it was,
The last time I saw the team,
The ploughman stopping them,
Talking to my friend.
He had this notion that all was ending.
Everything that he and I had known
Not so long ago,
When we were boys.
Milk dipped from the churn,
Weary horses ambling home,
Saturdays in the garden,
The wheelbarrow full
From the black earth,
Fecund beyond today's imagining.
And he was right.
Almost everything has gone
Except the fields themselves.
The ploughs, the drills,
The gatherings of the crop
Still go on.
But now what sights and sounds
Living in our memories
Are lost forever.
From "A Kind Of Heaven" by Richard Maslen
Some Favourite Websites For September 2026:
Stoneware Birds – Life-sized handmade and unique British birds, now available to buy online.
A charming unique gift or a treat for oneself. See the website to know how each one is made. Now available to buy online. Each bird is an individual creation, varying in choice from the perky wren to the plump bullfinch together with other well-loved British birds. Which will you choose?
St James South Elmham Village – An ancient and deeply rural village in north-east Suffolk.
St. James South Elmham is a rural village with a strong community and a host of regular community events. Agriculture is at the core of village life and still comes right into its centre. Nowadays, the high-speed broadband service supports farming and family life, and many other activities, services and businesses besides.
Hetty’s Little Copy Shop – A wide range of printing services - including 3D - plus passport photos and more
The Little Copy Shop is in Thoroughfare, Halesworth, and offers all sorts of useful services involving printing, laminating, scanning, binding and copying plus various photographic services including passport photos.
Rookyard Cottage, Holton – Eco-friendly self-catering cottage near Halesworth with private heated indoor swimming pool available
Set in over two acres Valley Farm offers two self-catering cottages, Rookyard Cottage and Swallow Barn, both with eco-friendly features and each sleeping up to four people + cot. Rated AA 4 Stars. WiFi. Private heated indoor swimming pool available. Ten miles from seaside at Southwold. Pets not accepted.
Singtong Neeyom Thai Restaurant – Delicious authentic Thai Cuisine
Take a look at Singtong Neeyom Thai Restaurant in the centre of Halesworth, for a range of delicious and skillfully prepared Thai dishes created by their own native Thai, Piek.