It seems just a short time since I moved away from Amble, is 30 years a short time?
Much of the landscape of the town has altered, there are now streets with names I do not recognise, (I might need a sat-nav to find my way round my home town). We have a new town square which still does not have a familiar feel, but no railways or coal dust, no need for disciplinary action to be taken by my mother for using a shortcut home along the railway line and through the allotment gardens.
The harbour is spacious and clean; neither staithes nor coal barges, no grain silos, no terrifying noises apart from the herring gulls seeking remains of fish and chips. Even bracing a chilly north east wind, being around the harbour is an enormous pleasure; it is the focal point for the town, its identity, its pride. Local people meander to and fro out not just for an afternoon stroll but to meet people and chat, perhaps to the fishermen landing their days catch, feed the orphaned cygnet or the ducks then chat a bit more.
This friendly Northumbrian manner is something about Amble that thirty years hasn't altered, maybe what has changed is my appreciation of it all, the people, the beauty of the coast, the abundant wildlife on the estuary and the unique qualities of our county.
Thirty years probably isn't a long time, just long enough for me to begin to see more clearly.
