Midmar Kirk RSC sits somewhat bizarrely next to a Christian church.
25th February - I'm sitting on the recumbent in the churchyard. It is quite extraordinary that such seemingly opposing traditions are united here. However there are countless stories about the traditions of church siting (see "Mysterious Britian", Colin and Janet Bard, 1976). More of that later perhaps. The church and circle are situated on a hillock overlooking a steep sided valley with a Glen coursing across its base. The ring is remarkably well preserved; 7 standing stones plus the recumbent. No less spectacular, the atmosphere is distinctly alpine; the two canine flankers making a long forgotten wolverine call to the rich forest beyond
A rare surviving example of a church sited in the grounds of a pre-Christian stone circle.
I am wearing black again and feel conspicuous - an outsider to the Christian faith. Maybe it is just a label I put on myself; I see nobody judging me here. The wind is strong and yet mild. A crow barks its throaty beat, accompanied by the shrill pip of a slighter bird in the trees above. The air has a spring-like sweetness to it, charmed further by birdsong. A nearby road brings the steady hiss of rubber on wet tarmac into sound. The sun is unflinching and brilliant.
FOOTNOTE: I had left the driver's side door open in my haste to visit the circle. On my return to the deserted, shady glade in which I had parked, the car smelt of pine. Wonderful.
Extraordinary heavy metal circle near Aberdeen Dyce airport. One of the finest, most complete monuments of its kind. The growing urbanisation surrounding it cannot hold this druidic temple back.