03/07/26 - The Old Royal Library, Malvern

Late, for the Summer Solstice This was meant to be walked on 21st June. It was also meant to be walked at sunset. My first excuse is that I have been busy on the coastal walking. My second excuse is that we have the 1am England Mexico game this weekend. I am not staying/getting up late twice in succession. My third excuse, I would be shot for lighting fires in the tinderbox heatwave we are experiencing.Summer Solstice: The Longest DayJune brings the great pivot of the year: the Summer Solstice, when the sun seems to pause at its zenith before beginning its slow decline.It's a festival of fire and light, of fullness and ripeness, of standing still in the very height of things.Pilgrimage at midsummer has always been drawn to the great circles of Stonehenge, Avebury and Callanish, where sunrise aligns with ancient stones in a drama that has played for millennia. And, of course, in a more contemporary way, Glastonbury Festival, always occurring around Midsummer's Day.But it can be as…