Fog is the thought of mountains.
Yana SmietanaFog is the thought of mountains.2020
“Fog is the thought of mountains” this quote of the Georgian writer and the poet Vazha-Pshavela have got stuck in my head since I was a child, I always loved spending time in mountains, just watching those magnificent peaks would make my ego disappear somehow and I felt myself one with forgotten mother nature once again. The last time I ...
Gabh Ceum
We set off in early September, hacking and heaving our bags through the entangled bank of Waverley Station. The rectangular light of the Edinburgh-Glasgow train door beckons us through the buzz of flesh and bone.
PLEASE TAKE CARE, WHEN ALIGHTING FROM THIS TRAIN.
I bustle past a small boy, a frail couple, and a beef-tub with a red mohawk, who by far gives me the biggest appraisal. Darwinism in...
Loss led me to Kilimanjaro
The true impact of grief cannot be understood without being felt first hand. It's an entirely different ordeal experiencing grief yourself than it is watching someone else grieve. I've seen friends lose parents and thought how tragic that must be, but ultimately, and as awful as it sounds, I was still able to continue with my life as normal, albeit tinged with a deep sympathy. It's not until y...
realms
Being in nature is like knowing that I am not alone.Believing in the existence of others as such is love.Fairies — nature spirits working to help humans reconnect to the Earth and realise the intimate relationship we have. Awakening us to a path of greater joy, appreciation and expression of creativity in our lives. To show respect by being open to their presence, connecting to their homes —tr...
Love Raflecting Lovers—White Salmon River, Washington
She makes Love to Us All—most times in ways that are uncategorizable, unlabeled, fettered with unutterable meaning. Because it is a sacred language; the language of Pheeling. to Pheel—experience emotion through physical sensation, through the physical plane. She is not mundane.She whispers, tickles Our toes as We stand together near the Rivers rushing; sacred rage ensues. ignited in Her bones i...
Mother and Me
...As I stepped my feet on the warm Soft sand I kissed the ground of my motherland I walked through the forest And took in the smells I closed my eyesAnd just felt what I felt And then I met someone Who I hadn’t seen in years And I felt love and understandingLike one person truly cared This woman so exquisite So divine and simply beaming Because as I looked into the water I saw myself...and my ...
A spontaneous hike through the Cinque Terre
It was a usual Friday night in Turin, with the options of going to a few bars, clubbing or drinking vino by the river Po. Almost all weekends in Italy revolved around 2 euro bottles of wine. Our choices led us to Mexican and ‘Irish’ bars full of infused conversations, card games and French practise (ironic I know). Before we knew it 3am had passed and we were sat in a kebab place waiting on ou...
Lasting Call: My Return to North Korea
Alexander KAN. Lasting Call: My Return to North Korea
Dedicated to my daughter Katya
(Translated by Yoon Kan, Berkeley University of California)
View from the burial hill in the city of Hamhung
Ladies and gentlemen, let me begin with a passage from my first short story, “The Rules of the Game.” Written in 1987, this story defined the meaning and direction of my subsequent work.
“An...
COVID-19 Has Made Us Rethink Our Relationship With Nature
In pre-pandemic times, before the devastating COVID-19 virus swept across the globe, affecting everyone and everything, going outside was not that big of a deal... at least not for me, anyway. Leaving the house was just a regular part of my life, casually etched into my daily routine. As for connecting with nature, I like to think that it has always been a constant fixture of my life. Before CO...
