The fall

 

I saw a man fall in the street. One minute he was there and the next he was sprawled in the road. I was sitting in my car collecting my belongings ready to go shopping. There was a group of people talking then one man left and set off to cross the road. He looked fit and able but suddenly, he fell and was flat out in the road.

People ran over to him, but he was easily able to get up and sprang upright and was soon on his way.

I heard the group talking and apparently several people have fallen this week. We have had a new road system and new footpath markings. The pavement has been widened with a new kerb to narrow the road. There seems to be an optical illusion and you cannot see clearly where the footpath ends with a dropped kerb.

How can this happen when experts with computers will have designed the road and pavement? Well, it has happened, and it is not people friendly. Computers have not built in the human perspective and cannot see the trip factor from people’s perspective.

Another ‘fall’ altogether more predictable is the autumn. And suddenly it is as if a black blanket has been thrown over us and darkness has fallen in the early evening. It is dark when we sit down to our evening meal, it is dark when we go out to check on Speckles the hen and it was dark today when I went to get the washing in from the line.

With more darkness comes the colder weather and I have changed our duvet to the winter one. It is always a nice time, I think, when I have hung on to the summer lightweight one too long but finally, we have the snug and warm one.

I remember when we went to Canada in November about ten years ago and the ‘fall ‘seemed to follow us from west to east as we went on the train across the country. We were on the last sleeper train of the season which took us several days looking out during the day on the vast leaf-strewn autumn countryside which seemed to be closing down behind us.

I have often wondered why we turn the clocks back for autumn. When I was at school, I was told it was so that farmers in Scotland could bring their cows in for milking in the daylight. Then, seemingly ignoring Scotland, in the 1960s we tried using British Summer Time all year. Now we are back to our usual system and at least it is daylight when we get up in the morning.

(Taken from my column in the Shropshire Star)

I saw a man fall crossing the road here, he did not expect there to be a drop in the middle!