In most summers when I was a child, we went camping in France. Other than pain au chocolat and squat toilets, there was one theme woven through all of those holidays – a family canoeing trip. We always rented canoes for a day, heading off along a river into the countryside. This sounds straightforward, and no doubt for other families who enjoy similar outings it is just that. But for us, it never was. The river was always fast, there…
I finished my breakfast of mutton and mare’s milk, rooted my laptop out the depths of my rucksack, and slipped out of the yurt. Our campsite was on a plateaux by a river and we were surrounded by majestic peaks. Their steep sides were shades of pink and green and dotted with pines, and ice clung to their tops like white hats threatened by the breeze. I turned slowly about to locate the nearest of them, and after hopping across…
What are your dreams? What do you want to achieve in life? One of mine is to be a writer – like a proper one who makes money from it. So I’m working in that direction, slowly, in my spare time. I often read a helpful blog by Jeff Goins, who helps writers get started. He tells me that it’s important to identify myself as a writer now – I shouldn’t wait until I’ve actually sold or published something before…
Getting lost is no easy task around here. We live on an island small enough to walk around in a day. A few weeks ago though, we managed it. We got lost, at least for a little while. Sasha (my one year-old son) and I set off on a blackberry hunt. We wandered through the lanes, grazing our way along the hedgerows. We entered a field and then made our way down a track; tantalised by the abundant fat fruit.…
The Water Lane was a rough, unpredictable path of mud and loose stones that ran alongside a stream. Thick vegetation lined each side, and tall trees blotted out most of the sun. It was a mysterious place for a child to wonder, and gaze at the flying insects that danced to birdsong among hazy sunbeams and shadows. The passage ran into a valley, then began to follow the funnel-shape of the land toward the sea. Here the water entered the…