Tales of Ink and Lights are short stories and poems told in a combination of words (the ink) and photographs (the light). Like the guitar and the voice in a song, text and pictures work together to bring you the story.
This is a short one at the close of the year.
taking the season seriously
This is a picture of the 25 de Abril bridge in Lisbon, Portugal, on a foggy Sunday morning in November. The black and white version of this image was featured on Nordic Lens on Substack (thank you again, Patrik L).
There’s a grey nowhere zone between Christmas and New Year’s Eve where you are not really able to tell what day it was and you often have absolutely no clue as to what you are supposed to be doing. Days are filled with restlessness, anxiety even, and you could do worse than questioning the soundness of all the agitation and spending. There is a lot of noise, engines in the streets, nervous voices and season tunes at the mall, corporate-speak in the office, complex family demands to comply with, and heavy layers of pervasive advertising. At least the season does not last long and they often invite you to drink it through. After all, politics, war, life, it all just goes on, doesn’t it: tomorrow is just another day and the passage to a new year is no less artificial than any human-made border.
Or …
there is an option to take the season seriously
heed the call of winter
slow down and come
to a halt
find some degree of silence
let yourself slide deep inside
till you can feel your bare core
go on then
give it a try
there will be a question in the silent darkness
you can hear it in the warmth of the silent darkness
the question is
some form of
what are you doing with whatever life you have left
hear the question
yes
hear the question
and trust that clarity will emerge
my wish to you
is that you emerge into a clear and joyful new year
My new ebook, trees, is just a couple of clicks away from your inbox: go to https://www.pierrefdocquir.com/trees, add the ebook to the cart, then use the discount code TIL+TREES at checkout. You will receive an email with your download link.
Just two months into the experience of writing these emails: i know i’m enjoying the writing, and i know that it would not make much sense if no one was reading. I am grateful that you are here. Thank you.
P.-S. If the Tales of Ink and Light work on you — that is, if they make you smile, dream or think — share them with friends and family who would love them too.
Terrific photo of the bridge in Portugal!
Beautiful piece and thank you for the mention, Pierre!