The Brown Tower and The Sensory Garden

9th March, 2018

I decided to head towards the large brown building I can see from my office window. Somewhat oddly situated among Victorian terraces, it towers above them ominously. It looked like the sort of building that would be occupied by a public utility, the water or electricity board.  It's always in view from my desk, out of the corner of my eye. But on a previous attempt to take a closer look I couldn't find it, despite walking in what seemed the correct direction. Momentarily I had wondered if it had been a figment of my imagination. I felt a bit like the protagonist in the short film 'The Black Tower'. At that moment the building became in my mind 'The Brown Tower'. Today I did locate the building but it was impossible to get a good view of it from the street. The surrounding buildings keeping it partially hidden. I tried to go into a sort of driveway heading towards it, but was put put off by an ominous clicking sound which I took to be a CCTV system. I felt repelled from the building and headed away from it, defeated in my efforts to discover what it was. The building remained elusive and I thought slightly malevolent.

I found myself in Central Park, and headed to the centre where there is a cluster of small buildings. In the cafe, regular Saturday morning philosophy talks take place. A notice in the window displayed the current programme. 'Consciousness: does it really exist?', 'What is reality?' and 'The Interconnectedness of everything' were some of the topics of discussion.

I was tempted to go into the Cafe but was slightly put off by the cages on the windows. A bit further along I came across a gate welcoming me to the Sensory Garden. I went through and found myself in a small enclave behind some park buildings.

There were a couple of odd sculptures, one in the centre of the garden made of cubes the focal point. I sat on a bench facing it. The garden, despite (or maybe due to) being slightly dilapidated, was welcoming. I enjoyed a solitary few minutes, letting the sounds wash over me:  traffic, tennis, birds and a radio in a nearby hut. I felt refreshed and had forgotten about The Brown Tower' by the time I left and headed back to work.