We met at Ravenscourt Park Tube Station, Hilde and Petra and Cilla and I. The sky threatened rain and I wondered if this would be my third wet outing with the Tamesis Seedgoup but as we waited the clouds began to blow apart and patches of optimistic blue appeared. Petra conducted us through an alley into Ravenscourt Park. A grove of London planes beckoned but Petra took us past them and into a walled garden where a sapphire dragon fly zoomed erratically over res and white roses and where there was a corner bench where we could sit, eat the picnic food (crimson, slightly bitter cherries from Cilla’s tree, parsnip crisps, strawberries and apple juice), and discuss heroes – Petra’s chosen subject.
Could there be modern heroes wondered Petra. It seemed to her that heroes were in the past or the future, or in mythology – as hers were. Hero rapidly came to include heroine and indeed we did have modern heroes: Caitlin Matthews, Bobcat, Georgia O’Keefe, Ghandi, Nelson Mandela, Edward Said. But we had mythological heroes too. I described my love affair with the Arthurian heroes that began in childhood and there was a long digression on the relative merits of Aragorn (as played by Vigo Mortensson) and Legolas (Orlando Bloom makes a beautiful blonde hero). Our heroes show us our own qualities and virtues suggested Cilla.
We had now been joined by Trui whose success in finding us in the park could be described as heroic. Trui’s hero was William Stukely, the 18th century antiquarian which led us to talk of intellectual heroism – perhaps more appropriate for our post modern age than Celtic warriors.
We discussed the shallowness of modern celebrity heroes and arrived at a concensus (I think – please disagree if you want people) that heroes should offer moral or spiritual example, something to aspire to in an imperfect world.
What else ? The fact that heroes are often flawed and suffering – Achilles’ pride, King Arthur’s wife’s adultery with Lancelot and unwitting incest with Morgan le Fay. The aching loss when heroes die and something of irreplaceable value passes from the world. But then there’s the idea that true heroes never die.
So it was an illuminating discussion and thanks to Petra for suggesting it.
Then we went down to the river, following Hilde’s insight that we must consider the river more in our meetings. We watched the tide dropping, the black-headed gulls flying against the wind, a solitary mallard(ess) picking among the rocks on the foreshore. The boats went up and down the river including a solitary rower battling both wind and tide (another hero). The constant movement of air and water and light on the leaves mesmerised me.
And then we all went home.
