Saturday 18 September 2010

Enroute to Rhodes

Listening to music, standing on deck, gripping the handrail as we speed across the blue Aegean, I feel alive, truly alive. This is who I am; here I'm at peace, I am fully myself. I haven't even been away for 2 weeks yet and I've got 3 to go - fantastic. How am I  going to fit back into work?

The promo video running on the ferry just displayed the caption:  "the people of Tilos talk little but feel a lot". That has to be good.

Islands are sacred places

I've been back to Aspri beach for a swim - I was completely alone today. I swam over to the rocks near the holiday units and followed some of the little fish meandering around their rocky homes.

Rode into Skala and posted a postcard, then walked back after dropping off the bike. Soon I'll be leaving this little place and returning to the wider world. There is a special atmosphere here but I don't associate it with the shrines to John. I think he probably came here for the same reason that so many Celtic saints sought out small, out-of-the-way islands on which to draw nearer to God. At times I've had a similar feeling to that which I've had on Colonsay or Iona or Mull or Skye. There's a solitude, a timelessness, a peacefulness in these places.