A Bear Unearthed

In April 2012, a brown bear was found illegally killed by poisoned bait just outside the village of Psaradhes here in Prespa. As the animal was far too heavy to move, and the mountain soil too rocky to dig a grave, the bear was instead covered with a plastic tarp and mounded over with stones. … Continue reading A Bear Unearthed

To the Island

I’ve looked at the island from the first day we arrived here, set like a dark stone in a band of glittering blue water. It seems to float within reasonable reach, catching the eye with ease when you walk along the shore, but it’s remained steadfastly remote all that time. The island of Golem Grad … Continue reading To the Island

Glimpsed, In Passing: 2011

You’d be quite right in thinking that this isn’t part two of our journey to Szczecin in Poland. And rather than have you looking for it, or wondering whether I’ve deleted the subtitle of the previous post and therefore the obligation to write a follow-up, I’ll confess to not having written it. Not yet anyways. Much of … Continue reading Glimpsed, In Passing: 2011

A Sort of Homecoming

And you know it's time to go Through the sleet and driving snow Across the fields of mourning Lights in the distance And you hunger for the time Time to heal, desire time - U2, 'A Sort of Homecoming' Whenever I monitor birds on the lower hills I pass what is left of the village. I stay … Continue reading A Sort of Homecoming

The Circumference of a Second

To listen to an audio version of 'The Circumference of a Second' please press the play button. for Dimitris Noulis Sometimes just a few words can transport us. A friend had emailed me the first line of a 17th century poem by Henry Vaughan, and I found myself reading it over and over: I saw … Continue reading The Circumference of a Second