They were given many names, like 'witch,' or 'bitch,' or 'whore.' I dress in their stories, patterned and purple as night, like the bruises they wore: these troublesome women who always wanted more. Why wouldn't they just accept their position as subordinate, as Adam's rib, as The Lord commanded it? So the men would ask.... Continue Reading →
The labyrinth of life. There's no ball of string for it, is there? And it seems to be full of Minotaurs. At some point in early childhood, you become aware that one day you are going to die, and you might well ask: 'What the hell does it all mean then?' I remember wondering if... Continue Reading →
Spring has whispered its spell over the barren countryside turning the brown, one green. It has not yet reached the high karst mountain summits, but in the stand of beach cladding the slopes, witness its reaching. Another week, another day, another hour, and there will be a time for such a summit. Now the wild... Continue Reading →
**Warning: contains strong language!** Some days are hard they're like swimming through treacle and you drink tea then you drink coffee then you drink more coffee then you drink tea again and you eat chocolate you eat biscuits and you eat more chocolate and its only caffeine and sugar but you're still a kind of... Continue Reading →
Sometimes, the great bones of my life feel so heavy, and I wonder, where on earth does it come from, all this weight? There is a song lyric: ‘what’s that secret sorrow that your carryin?’ But it’s no great secret: bereavement, separation, loss. I feel bereaved by every memory which hijacks my senses unexpectedly from... Continue Reading →
The winter in Lockdownia continues hard, and with no sign of relief in sight. The sun has not shone on our land for almost two months. There is nothing more I can do for my people in Quarantinia without the protective tincture which is due to be brought by ship from the Outlands. With the... Continue Reading →
Reading what I have just written, I now believe that I’m a coward. ‘Let them shoot me,’ I thought as they marched me in, ‘I will not talk.’ But as soon as they showed me the knives, I crumbled. All my bravery evaporated like the breath of winter. One piece of paper, five names: the... Continue Reading →
This near-winter time of year when the nights draw in: I never was a big fan. In fact, typically sadness, fear and age-old anxiety would always hit around this time. I had a taste of it in October, when many days were overcast and cloudy, but oh, what a cold and crystal clear November we've... Continue Reading →
‘He had hands like yours,’ my Grandma tells my husband-to-be one Sunday afternoon. We’ve just popped in to say hello. She’s in a reminiscent mood (when is she ever not?) talking about my Grandad, of course. My Grandad who I’d never met. Of three husbands, he’d been the only one she’d truly loved. She hands... Continue Reading →
‘Time it was, and what a time it was, it wasA time of innocence, A time of confidences…’ Such was the time I spent with my Grandmother. Her home was always a place of sanctuary: she stayed up all hours of the night and was always glad of company. She could sit for hours recounting... Continue Reading →
