Today I was playing golf in Keith with my father - good going in his case since he turned 90 last July. I was reflecting as we went round on the geographic features both on the course and surrounding the course. On the course there are the hills, the differing soil, the water, the twists and turns and the slopes. The particular slopes which were bugging me were the very gradual ones on the greens which I could not read properly. I expected the ball to go straight towards the hole, but at the last minute it would turn left or right and remain stubbornly in view instead of disappearing in the cup.
But beyond the course as well, I looked at the Balloch as it rose above the town of Keith or Ben Rinnes in the distance. Maps often do not give that sense of varying altitudes. Even Google earth does not give quite the sense of geography being three dimensional, but it is getting there.
I was further reminded of this as I flew up to Aberdeen. It was difficult from the air to really appreciate the mountains of the Lake District or the Grampians. From the air, one can differentiate between water and land, between city and country, between fields and woods. But to gain a sense of height, to see hills and valleys, is much more difficult.
No conclusion to this. Just a rumination - and after all golf allows loads of time for ruminating.
(My Dad with a tricky chip)
