Cornwall was warm (very warm!) and exotic. It was full of stories and inspiration. Our apartment Njoya was beautifully positioned, much nearer the sea than I had dared hope and equipped with everything you could possibly need (I would highly recommend it- Classic Cottages – S. Cornwall, Coverack – lovely ownwers Ray and Jenny Toft). The coastal path was at our door and the sea was a huge presence, constantly shifting and hypnotic. We sat outside on sea watch, with a glass of wine in hand, on more than one evening and I was reminded of how powerful an influence the sea can be on one’s mood and well being. Terry from Easington recently sent me a poem Thoughts of the Sea that expresses this very well – and of course the sea features very strongly in this part of East Durham.
In Cornwall I found the need I often feel to escape the public world emerging. Despite outward appearances I like being in hiding – and I began a number of poems which I will work on now for some time. Here is an extract towards the end of a poem I have called…
The Sea House ….
…and I sit in the shift of small things
the patterns of now and the sea-house evening
when the men
go down after midnight to catch
another early tide and return when the sun warms
the quay
a million miles a year to arrive from the east
slipped back in the bed rock of time, I am ghost of
myself out of public
no white sailing boat on a flat blue sea.
But – despite my brief and welcome exile it’s great to be back and I am looking forward very much to working in Easington, to the prison Book Festival event at the Gala Theatre on Oct 27th and our Room To Write weekend – all of which will keep me very busy and will be very exciting!
A lovey place to think and write and recover…
We all need such bolt holes.
wxx