Hello Hello!..

Well, it’s been quite a while!.. I’ve gone totally AWOL, haven’t I? Life took a little change of pace and, in keeping with my self-declared purpose of a ‘real and tangible life‘, I could not prioritize tapping away at my computer over actually living out the days away from it. I missed writing and was tempted to return here a few times. And, as you can see, here I am. Restarting 🙂 Giving it a try at least. Maybe less often and less regularly, but I do hope to keep sharing snippets of my life and thought with the small but lovely audience that used to visit this space.

In the meantime I have started a Facebook page. For all things small that do not really qualify for a blog entry. I am very aware of the tendency of our world to shred up meaningful narratives into weightless fragments of few-word status updates here and there, unable to convey much depth or sincerity. That is both the reason I stopped blogging (I felt unable to give it sufficient time and attention to dig deep enough) and the reason I am daring to take it up again (I believe it to be worth finding that time and effort). I miss sitting down and giving my thoughts time to materialize into a meaningful and shareable text that can in itself contain a level of ‘narrative’ rather than a fleeting declaration of the moment.

However, I am not immune to this tendency of short declarations, I suppose. Thus, the Pebble and Rainbow – something  between silence and actual writing. It is still at a very initial stage, but do feel free to check out (and maybe follow if you wish?..) As always, comments and reactions are very welcome!

Hope to see you soon 😉

Sushi Night

Our family loves sushi. Even the little one loves it (expensive tastes this one has). Going out to a little Japanese restaurant in the city, where, once in through the door, you feel like you have travelled thousands of miles by crossing over that threshold and entered a little piece of Japan, is a brilliant treat. But it is expensive. (And not that easy to organise.) Buying tiny sushi boxes in a supermarket does not come cheap either. For a while now, I have been thinking of trying to make sushi myself. And today I did.

For the first time, I limited myself to nori maki – a simple enough to make sushi roll, where the filling is surrounded by rice and kept together with the seaweed. It wasn’t bad, even if I say so myself. Definitely, plenty of room for improvement (notes for next time: less rice, more flavour in the fillings, and definitely find where to buy the thinly sliced and specially prepared ginger that comes with the bought stuff). But it did look and taste like sushi. So, that’s a success 🙂

The very first roll in the making. Salmon and cucumber.

Impromptu Mini Photo Shoot of the City. Dublin with No Make-Up

I finish my shift early on a Sunday morning. The next train is not for another 90 minutes. So I set off for the station slowly, deliberately taking detours, deciding wich way to turn only when I reach another junction.

As I move through the sleepy city, its natural beauty slowly catches my attention. This is Dublin with no make-up. Still in bed after last night’s celebrations and drama. The flattering lights of Saturday night replaced by taciturn laziness of the approaching Sunday.

I have only my phone to capture the sights in front of me. The battery is blinking low, so the flash refuses to work. I manage to snap a few shots before the phone finally dies and it is time for me to get onto the train and head home.

Foraging for Blackberries and Something More

I collect my daughter from her preschool and, instead of heading home, turn the opposite direction.

– Where are we going, mommy?

– We are going to pick some berries.

I now live in a country known for its vast green landscapes, for great wild spaces, untouched by the ‘progress’ of civilization. So it is a little funny that one of the things that I sometimes miss about my old life is… untamed nature.

I grew up with parents whose idea of rest was packing a tent and leaving the world for a few days to set up camp on a lakeshore. Or at least treading the woods for a few hours foraging for wild mushrooms. I miss that. I miss the sense of

Passionate or Curious About Home-Made Bread?

Hi, folks. I thought it might be about time for me to show my face around here, so to speak. Lately, I have been immersing myself in real, very non-virtual life. The little one has started preschool and we are all enjoying this new stage in her life as well as the change of routine to ours.

I haven’t abandoned cyber-space entirely, though. I have actually started a new project. It’s got to do with bread.

I mostly make my own bread for our family’s consumption.

Living With – and Through – a Three-Year-Old

– What is this? – asks my intrigued daughter pointing at the drops of dark red liquid slowly seeping out of her scraped knee. Once again, I am reminded of how differently she sees this world – unfamiliar, unexplained, enchanting… Nothing ‘goes without saying’, everything is an exciting revelation waiting to be discovered. One of the great rewards of being a parent is taking this journey of discovery together and having your eyes reopen to the things you thought familiar, ordinary, common… Or, to be more truthful, to the things you did not even think about or notice anymore. Seeing the world through the eyes of a three-year-old makes you question and wonder.
As I stick colourful plasters on her wounds, my girl has another ‘what is this’ moment.

On Holidays. Joys of Summer Living

Well, that’s typical. We were getting ready to go on holidays. I got a blog post ready, so that I can type it in when I am away. Tore it out of my pretty notebook and… left it on the counter in the kitchen. So much for advance preparation…

And now, we are in a different world, on a different timeline. Life is good, tinted with the taste of summer. Days go by surrounded by family and friends, with us relaxed into our own selves. Lazy summer evenings, nostalgic meals. Holidays.

Here’s some snapshots of our recent days. See you back in the real life!

How Long Is Ten Years?

I first met him eighteen years ago at a seminar for those working with children where he attended as an assistant tennis coach. Tall, wide shouldered, with dark long hair he was hard not to notice. I was a few months short of fifteen though, and, at least to me, he looked much older than his nineteen years. I can’t remember if I even talked to him then. I wonder what would my reaction have been if somebody told me then: ‘See this one here? You know nothing about him now, but he is the man you will be married to for 10 years and counting‘. Unsurprisingly, nobody did.

I did not see him for the next few years after that.

A Bit of Frost in the Summer

In my little corner, many many years ago…

I should probably start this by saying this is a bit of a cheeky post title. The summer here is uncharacteristically beautiful, light, and weightless. There isn’t any actual frost, but rather… Robert Frost. For some reason, one of his poems just keeps popping back in my head over the last few days. It is a poem that I had printed out and hung above my desk in my college dormitory room. One of the many little details to make the place my own, to cheer me up and brighten my days. And that it did. There is some force and vitality in that poem, deep, strong, and vivid as only youth can be, I suppose…

Only yesterday, I found some old photographs in my email,

Tickle My Soul. The Sacred Innocence in The Photographs of Alain Laboile

His subject is the ordinary days of family life. And yet his photographs capture something so deeply beautiful and vulnerable it hurts a little.

Photography by Alain Laboile

Photography by Alain Laboile

Photography by Alain Laboile

Alain Laboile is a French photographer I have discovered very recently, and I am absolutely smitten by his work. Living in an old house in rural France with his wife, six children, and no telly, he skillfully captures the fleeting beauty of childhood, the simple happiness of being together, the quiet connectedness to nature.

As I look at his pictures, I feel