From the safety of your knee
the garden was a wilderness
a wildness to explore,
a Neverland of whispering leaves
frogs chirruping from the pond;
an oasis amidst tarmac
concrete, brick, and mortar;
an otherwhere – escape,
the scene of slowest summer.
The last train to leave Tokyo
– bound for the West
and a promise –
clacks its typewriter clacks
along the rails hugging
our home; an ugly day
which leaves our gutters
swollen and cold.
I’ve been back in the land of peat, rain, brick lanes and whisky for a few weeks now. Back home in the autumnal Scottish Borders where my family, friends, dogs and home comforts are busy easing me back into the normal swing of things (slowly, but surely). And somehow, somehow, as so many have already pointed out (with more than a dash of surprise), I made it nine and change months round the world and came back in one piece. Continue reading “How to rough it on the road and still come back smiling”
I was sitting on yet another bus a week or two ago, Shaun and I headed for Quilotoa – an active volcano outside of Latacunga, Ecuador. I was sitting there, watching a countryside not so dissimilar to Scotland’s pass us by – all lush greens and forest and pasture – listening to music that reminds me of home, when I was struck by a moment of perfect clarity. Continue reading “The End Product of One Too Many Introspective Hangovers”
Cal Bannerman 