flow – Travel stories

2018 1

(View over the rooftops, Ericeira)

We’re in Lisboa, at a different campsite. I’m almost set to participate in the workshop tomorrow and, the sun is shining! We did all the washing in Ericeira and now Ruby is as squeaky clean as the clothes. I’ve packed my bags with all the required supplies and set out what I will wear. I have my bus timetable, my travel card and my phone is charged. It’s like a first day at school. I’d ask Denis to take a picture of me on my way but it’ll be a bit too early. Might try a selfie…

2018 2

(More narrow roads)

This experience has reminded me that I can only prepare so much, I have to turn up and trust that I will be flexible enough to cope with whatever crops up. Stuff happens… maybe the bus will be late, maybe I’ll miss the stop to get off, maybe there’ll be a strike, maybe I’ll get lost. I was wondering, isn’t this a kind of creativity?

2018 3

(Lace made of marble)

I know when I make something, especially in mixed media, I have no idea what it’s going to be when it’s finished. I also don’t know how to finish it when I’m half way through it. I call it Not There Yet, it’s between the Hopeful Beginning and Triumphant Finished where I think, this isn’t going to work, no it’s not any good, oh no it’s actually terrible! When I let go and flow from Not Working Yet to Breathlessly Waiting and hang out there a little while… I’ll soon hear myself saying, oh hang on I see it now!

2018 20

(This is the library at Palace of Mafra. They have over 30,000 books!)

Not Working Yet is a scary place, I don’t like it much. I love Hopeful Beginning, Breathlessly Waiting and Triumphant Finished. Maybe Not Working Yet knows I don’t like it… What if I made friends with Not Working Yet? In the situation of preparing for tomorrow’s journey to Lisboa, I haven’t practiced a trial run of the public transport route from this campsite. Not Working Yet is: I don’t know what the bus stop will look like, I don’t know where to go when I get off the bus, I don’t know where to go when I get off the metro. I will be depending on the kindness of strangers and my google map app. Actually, when I think of it that way, I am a bit excited, because this country is full of kind strangers.

Only one more sleep, Mairead.

(Willow, the dog)

There are lots of flowers growing in our garden at the moment. Sounds good, but… most of them are weeds. One which hasn’t started flowering yet has already grown to the height of the clothes line. Why are weeds more likely to thrive than the nice flowers? Is it because I give them what they need? Room to grow and nothing else.

(Lavender in our garden for the fly prevention, the calm and the lack of effort……)

I met Lusi today. She and her husband Gary, work with willow. They make, among other things, fencing that flows. I like the sound of that. I think it means fencing that follows the flow of the space where it stands. She knows the willow very well, she knows what it needs. In her garden she has created a living willow circle. Each willow branch is planted into the ground and then intertwined with its fellow plants, and they all grow together. She knows when to plant the willow and when it’s ok to prune it. And when she prunes it, that allows the main branch to grow stronger. Her living willow is thriving.

(Willow weaving)

Could this apply to us? If we get what we need we will thrive? If we have room to grow we will grow? If we cut out the things that we don’t need then we will grow stronger? If we trust the space where we stand we will flow?

Grow and flow, Mairead.