Over the course of a year, I spent a lot of time with a particular tree. I called him the Christ Tree, because the visual correlation to me was obvious. The poems and images on this page are a selection of encounters and conversations that enabled me to find my way after a very difficult time in my life. So often inspiration comes from an unexpected source and I was wandering around this area recalling how I spent time here with a close member of my family, trying to put things in perspective and not really succeeding very well, when the light literally changed and I turned and saw this figure crucified on a tree.

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I had walked here before, many times, and had never seen it before. But on this day something changed, and I did see it. I went on to photograph it many times, in different times of the day, conditions and times of the year. The inspirations and conversations I gleaned from these encounters was remarkable. The tree was like a conduit, enabling me to listen to a deeper voice that guided, comforted, was harsh when it was required, all to enable me to see and understand how I could go forwards. I was talking to a Master after all.

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I kept taking images, an awareness letting me know that this vision might not always be there in this form as nature and the elements change our landscape constantly. I treasured the atmosphere there and shared a special time. And as I predicted, things gradually changed, myself included, and although the tree is still there, the presence is not as strong. Added to this the weather and climate has changed the outlook of the tree as time has moved on. I carried on for as long as possible hoping that I would be able to recreate my encounters in the form of pieces of work that showed how much this experience meant to me.

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This area is special for many reasons as it forms part of the landscape around where the famous Long Man of Wilmington, a vast chalk figure depicted on the South Downs of England, is very much part of the sacredness of the area, along with the Church and Priory ruins. The Christ Tree was not the only shining soul that I have met there, and the poems and images below also feature some of the other beautiful trees in this wonderful landscape.

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