Waking up to the call of the midlands

ABOUT 10 days ago I was woken at dawn by the incessant calling of a cuckoo. Dawn is rather early at this time of year so I went back to sleep, but it was a pleasant alarm call.

When I did get up it had developed into a glorious sunny day so I took our new dog for a walk. He bounded through wet meadows full of spring flowers.

There was a lot of lady’s smock, which is also called the cuckoo flower because it blooms at the same time of year that the bird is calling. Then I found a magnificent clump of early purple orchids.