I needed to work, we could not afford to live without earning and I did not want to be owing anyone money. so it was a trip up to see Jock in Monmouth. I explained to him that if He had any woods on flattish ground I would be able to manage doing some work, remember my legs in a cast. He sent me out to Alvestone, a small village near Lydney, There I met Trevor, Dennis and Reg. These three fella`s would change my life. It was a real blessing being sent with them. They had been felling and milling timber right from leaving school, now in their late fifties, early sixties there was not much that they did not know. I met Trevor first, he looked at me then said, " hec ther lad, yer gona fall sticks with that ther wonky lug. Good on yer." Well that day was hard, but I did manage to earn more in one day than I was going to get from the benefits office. It was hard, but working along side these men was something I had not experienced before. They worked together, and for each other. There was method in just how well and how disiplined they were in the work. I could not manage to stack all the wood I had cut, so at the end of each day, after each of them stacking their own , they would come together and stack mine. That went on for about 10 days, I had the cast removed, stitches out and my leg although a bit stiff for a few days was feeling like it was well on the mend. It was a bit funny, when I turned up at Monmouth hospital to have the cast cut off. Sister in charge just looked, "What the dickens have you been up too, how on earth have you got that dressing so very dirty",. there was mud, moss, grass and any other stain one could think of on the plaster cast. I just smiled and replied, " Well Mam, It could have been worst. It could have been you." She did smile, replying, " Cheeky, well we best get on with it and get you from here". It was a big relieve to be able to move my leg again. That day I went straight back to work, and I stack my own work too. I worked along side these men for a few years, we went from woods to woods. It was a time when farmers and Land owners where being payed by the Government to clear the coppice woodland, push out and burn the stumps from the cut trees, turning the ground into fields. What a Major mistake that has turned out to be. we not only felled coppice trees but many mature Oak, Ash, sycamore plus other hardwoods. Acre after acer, not any replanting. My time with these men I consider one of my cherished memories. In such a short period of my life, I had learnt and gained so much knowledge about trees, woods and the workings of the countryside. How I moved on came by a rare chance meeting with a land agent, Mr Lee. That will follow on tomorrow.