Twist and gone.

Welcome to my twisted world. I was brought here by my father before I could even walk, as he was by his father. I knew the ways and lays before I could articulate the reasons why.

I loved the scents, the musky dustiness, the bristles against my skin, the men, for they were nearly all men, the noise and the bustle. I knew, before I was even a scholar, the difference between an S twist and a Z twist. Shroud or hawser, I didn’t need to count. It was instinctive, in my bones, in my mind, I could tell you if it would hockel or if it was likely to be kinky, but it’s all gone now. The beautiful natural fibres, the sisal, hemp and Manila replaced by a mass produced synthetic product, made without love, respect or soul.

The ropewalks of Bridport are no more.