Monday's Memories: The Kilns, part 3

Before we left The Kilns we walked behind the house to visit what is now the C.S. Lewis Nature Reserve.  It was formerly just part of his property and one of the reasons he bought The Kilns.  In his day it was far outside the Oxford city limits and surrounded by countryside.  Lewis loved that.

We were told how much Lewis loved this pond, how he used to row about in it with friends, including J.R.R. Tolkien.  This brick bench where they used to sit talking was covered up with dirt and clay for many years when it was found and uncovered.

I loved being here and seeing this, but I really loved my husband getting to sit there and think about the conversations that took place on that bench between the men who gave us Aslan, Aragorn, hobbits, and Middle Earth.

 What a special day.

the back of The Kilns

And then there was Lewis' punt, another item once lost and then found.  Apparently it had sunk in the pond where it was discovered.  When KJ saw it he said, "It's a wooden box.  Of course it sunk."  It kept Lewis afloat for many years, though.

It was late in the afternoon by this time, and though I wanted to go visit the cemetery where Tolkien was buried, it was on the other side of Oxford, and we weren't sure how easily we'd be able to find his grave once we got there.  We also had a little drive ahead of us to the pub/inn where we were staying that night.  So we contented ourselves with driving around the corner to the church Lewis and his brother attended.  We'll visit there Friday.