In both the religious and the secular world, November is the month of remembering the dead: the ordinary dead, the glorious dead, the forgotten dead. Remembrance Sunday fell this month and people are still wearing their poppies (a smattering of white now joining the red). They are probably worn for different reasons: to respectfully call … Continue reading Past Glories
“Everyone nodded, and sighed, and tut-tuted. And one person said, ‘I’m absolutely nowhere near ready. There’s such a lot to do. Only six weeks; my head is spinning just thinking about it!’ And I furrowed my brow and let out a modulated theatrical groan – just to fit in; because it felt appropriate. But really, … Continue reading Such A Lot To Do
I woke up to a tentative knock on the bedroom door. A reminder that I wasn’t in my own flat. Quick mental search: sleepy, encased in high thread-count cotton sheets, light trickling in through unfamiliar curtains. Yes, Bristol. Arrived last night. In came the boys, two Js., slowly, carefully, one with a cup of tea … Continue reading All The Diamonds
When the wind blows for days on end it can be hard to remember what a calm day ever felt like. When you are on long-haul flight you quickly become accustomed to the roar of the engines and it’s only when you land, and the aircraft is powered down, that you realise your earphones were … Continue reading Heart Rules The Head
“What do you do?” It’s one of the go-to questions, asked when meeting someone for the first time in order to find out about their work. We ask it to discover who they are, what makes them tick, what their significance in the world is. For occupation, it seems - erroneously or otherwise - is linked … Continue reading Legacy
“Two stars and a wish,” she told us brightly. I was at my Monday morning creative writing class and we were to do that ‘thing’ again: turn to the person next to you, take turns to read what you’ve written from the week before, then share your feedback. The instructions were to accentuate the positive (two … Continue reading Harsh Judgements
Attached to my fridge is a black and white photograph from Hallowe’en 1978. It’s of me and my two sisters standing in the back garden wearing cobbled together costumes. M. is draped in a white sheet with two holes the size of 50p pieces roughly cut out at eye level; the cloth gathered at her waist … Continue reading Samhain
I love a bubble. I love it in the form of fizz in a glass – whether it follows the pop of a champagne cork or the hiss of a can being opened on a summer’s day. I love it in a steaming bath where I can sink and disappear into fragrant fluffs of bubbly … Continue reading Bubbles
We’ve peaked. We’re sliding towards bare branches, denuded winter trees, skeletal frames that you’ll soon believe will never have leaves again. Yes, the intensity of autumn’s colour blast looks like it’s been run through too hot a wash; its vibrancy has been siphoned off, insipid now, like an 18thCentury patient drooping from bloodletting. I walked … Continue reading Trees Please
There are so many causes worthy of one’s support. Most of us will have at least one cause or charity we hold dear. If you are from a seaside town it might be the lifeboat. If you lost a loved one to a disease for which there is no cure, it might be medical research … Continue reading Tread Lightly
