SWALLOW - HOME COMING

AUDIO DESCRIPTION AVAILABLE 
Please view 2nd image in the product gallery to hear audio description of the artwork.
 
As April approaches and the earth tilts us away from winter into spring, my morning walks are no longer greeted with the same brown, dark shades of those cold months, nor the icy frosts and bitterly cold winds that slam against your skin as you walk, nor the changeable skies that mimic the uncertainty a long winter brings. This stillness of life becomes more alive once again and the darkness lightens. Things are waking up and life can begin again. 
The blossom makes its first appearance amongst the browns and greys of the hedgerows, despite being battered by the harsh Northumberland winds.  The warmer skies are filling up with the sweet melodies the swallow brings with it after the long and dangerous journey from Africa made very year, always returning home to where they hatched from an egg. 
This is one of the longest journeys made by any living creature, with the swallows travelling up to 6,000 miles across land and sea to reach the safety of their birthplace. This small, determined bird that forges paths through even the most bitter and beastly breezes symbolises the journey I have made over the last seven years. It was my focus and determination to come home again which has carried me here today. No matter how harsh the winter, how strong the winds blew, how much the frost damaged the vegetation, new life reappears, and so I must go on.