Groundedis about healing our ruptured connection with our ancestors & with the landFor thousands of years, our ancestors held aclose connection with the landscapesthey lived in. They imbued it with meaning: stone monuments, sacred groves, places of pilgrimage. In our modern world we have rather lost that enchantment & intimate knowledge of place.James Cantontakes us on a journey throughEnglandseeking to see through more ancient eyes, to understand what landscape meant to those that came before us. We visit stone circles, theWest Kennetlong barrow, a Crusader round church & sites of religious visions. We meet theDagenham Idol& the intricately carvedLion Manfigure. We find artefacts buried in farmers' fields. There is history & meaning encoded into the lands & places we live in, if only we take the time to look.Our natural world has never been under more threat. If we relocate our sense of wonder, veneration & awe in the landscapes we live in, we might just be better at saving it.Dr. James Cantonis Director of Wild Writing at the University of Essex. He is the author ofThe Oak Papers(2020),Ancient Wonderings: Journeys into Prehistoric Britain(2017) &Out of Essex: Re-Imagining a Literary Landscape(2013), which was inspired by his rural wanderings in East Anglia. He has written for theGuardian, reviews for theTLS&Caught by the River, & is a regular on television & radio.@jamescanton|@jrcanton1|jamescanton.co.uk