Category: #Silenti

The worm-word and I : ZERO

In Part One, we looked at how most of our daytime consciousness is made up of actual words that are spoken within. This can be quite a revelation if we have become used to them but never really observed the fact. This flow of internal language is busy narrating the events of our existence, our opinions and our reactions, as though we carried it … Read More The worm-word and I : ZERO

A Hebridean Diary (3) Of Coats and Kings

We had gone to bed early – exhausted by the journey from Poolewe to Uig. What felt like a full night later, I woke, refreshed, to find the sun streaming through the bedroom curtains… Not a sight we were used to on this trip. I smiled. It’s always nice when something really special ‘just happens’ on your birthday. Ahead of me was a day … Read More A Hebridean Diary (3) Of Coats and Kings

Falling from Solstice

The tree on the right marks the farthest point the setting sun reaches on its solstice progression across the ridge beyond the garden. From the dark wood lattice of winter, through the joyous green spring, to the fullness of summer, I never tire of standing outside the house and attempting to capture a little of its evening splendour… Falling away, now, as it nears … Read More Falling from Solstice

The worm-word and I : TWO

In part one, we looked at a simple but effective technique to remove us from the ‘head chatter’ of the flow of verbalised thoughts in our mind. Use of the deep word ‘ONE’, although another word, itself, can act like a ‘bullet’ to stop the stream of often unconscious words that cloud our attention, affect our emotions and drain our energy. If you’re tried … Read More The worm-word and I : TWO

A Hebridean Diary (2) Long road to Uig

The day was already old by the time the ferry from Ullapool had docked at Stornaway. We had been warned that shops were few and far between on the Hebridean island of Lewis and advised to take advantage of the supermarkets in the capital. The no-sunday trading laws imposed by the ‘Wee Free’ Presbyterian church were in force across the island, and we were … Read More A Hebridean Diary (2) Long road to Uig

Beneath the horns of goats and men

A rocky height of towering truth A hundred years of blood and sacrifice Laid waste in haste to crown a naked lie Where courtiers smile like truth and gloat Up among the goat-men at the throat Once taken, that first step reflects The once-fine earth, which now collects Within the wheels of grasping greed Old boys, less good, embrace the skin Beneath the hooves … Read More Beneath the horns of goats and men

The worm-word and I : part ONE

Close your eyes for a second and listen to your own mind. You don’t need to be anywhere quiet. It can simply be where you are. There are two schools of thought involving meditative practices: the first says you need to be somewhere detached from the world; the second states that the world – our world – is specially configured to give us deeply … Read More The worm-word and I : part ONE

The worm-word and I : part ONE

Close your eyes for a second and listen to your own mind. You don’t need to be anywhere quiet. It can simply be where you are. There are two schools of thought involving meditative practices: the first says you need to be somewhere detached from the world; the second states that the world – our world – is specially configured to give us deeply … Read More The worm-word and I : part ONE

A Hebridean Diary (1) Impressions of Lewis

Although it was a continuation of the same trip, it would be misleading to continue with the ‘Poolewe Diaries’ as a title. The sailing from Ullapool to the Hebridean main island of Lewis marked the second week of the Scottish adventure, so a change of title is appropriate… Arriving on the island of Lewis, you get a strong sense of the remoteness of the … Read More A Hebridean Diary (1) Impressions of Lewis

That ‘end of the pier’ feeling

I’ve always loved piers… Most partly grown-up small boys do. It’s that sheer expanse of linear possibility… Breathtaking. Piers are usually associated with railway towns. In many ways the railway town was the forerunner of modern urban development. The ‘seaside’ was invented by railway companies who provided the means to get there – in three graduations of ‘wealth: third class; second class and first. … Read More That ‘end of the pier’ feeling

Heroes in a Landscape (7) End of the Quest

Continued from Part Six… The final day of a weekend like ‘The Journey of the Hero’ has to serve many purposes. It has to reinforce what has been shared; it has to send people on their homeward journeys with a smile… and a desire to do it, again. In short, it needs to embrace the companions with a warm hug! It also needs to … Read More Heroes in a Landscape (7) End of the Quest

On the hill of summer

Midsummer from the Pike My thanks to fellow blogger Ashley, for his evocative Haiku this morning, and from which I stole the title of this blog. My … On the hill of summer Michael from the Rivendale Review ‘took me home for the Solstice’ with this blog. I used to mountain bike ‘up the Pike’ on the Solstice evening. Surrounded by lakes and mountains, … Read More On the hill of summer