Let go
I clung compulsively to things I thought I wanted / needed / couldn’t live without. What were those things? self-imposed standards (“if I do this at all, it needs to be great”) expectations of others (especially when they were likely to be upset or disappointed if their expectations weren’t met) my expectations (“why am I…
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Disconnected
When I started this blog, I was in a bad place. I was deeply depressive and couldn’t see a way out of it. I had a hard time staying in the present. I felt uneasy with myself and in my own body. I had a compulsive drive to go back to what triggered this depression…
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Walking in silence
“Only by going alone in silence, without baggage, can one truly get into the heart of the wilderness. All other travel is mere dust and hotels and baggage and chatter.” (John Muir) I feel the same. Going in the wild means deflating the ego. Accepting ourselves as a tiny part of something large and amazing.…
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Cities in silence: Brussels
I’ve done this short series that I called “Cities in silence”. It’s the silence of cities devoid of people, withdrawn, turned towards themselves. There is a certain nostalgic beauty to it. The last in this series is Brussels. This is the place where it can rain for a whole week and winter winds chill you…
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Chosen paths and dead ends
We usually talk of dead ends metaphorically. What we mean is that something didn’t work out. We feel we cannot continue along a certain path. But sometimes dead ends are real endpoints – there is nothing beyond them and we cannot turn back either. And while there may be warnings along the way, there’s no…
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Cities in silence: Lisbon
Home is a state of mind. I’ve never lived in Lisbon but everytime I go there I feel like I belong. Maybe it’s the light. There’s a special quality to the light of this city. The way it gently embraces everything. The lightness and openness it creates. I miss waiting for sunrise somewhere in Alfama,…
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Taking photos with the body
Taking photos depends on moving, exploring, changing the perspective. Approaching possible photo compositions and subjects from different angles. Dancing around them to find a good composition. Waiting for the good moment. It’s physical. I used to favor zoom lenses. It was convenient to be able to zoom in and frame from a distance. But my…
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Cities in silence: Paris
Paris wasn’t love at first sight for me. There was something about it a bit too imperial and well-to-do for my taste. I felt it was lacking humility. But I learned to love its silences, shadows, and hidden beauty during long walks. Without the usual tourist crowds, this subtle beauty of abandonment and ruin became…
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The ghosts sleep tonight
I woke up suddenly in the dark. Somebody had just called my name. Was I dreaming? A long time ago, when I was living at my grandma’s and I couldn’t sleep, I used to listen to the noises coming from the attic. Mice looking for food. I knew that, but I couldn’t help imagining other…
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On the path
Late morning. I walk towards the rising sun. There’s a huge concert of birds all around me. The first bluebells are here, early heralds of what will soon be a deep blue forest cover. I stop for a drink of coffee and I watch the play of light and shadow. Being on the move means…
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