EIGG DAY FOUR

This isn't the best image of the day, but it is the one that tells the story best. This view from the harbour shows the Manse, the house where I was brought up (to the left, among the trees) and the hostel where we stayed on the right. When I was a child, the hostel was a derelict barn where we kept our hens. Sadly, it is now the Manse, built in 1790, which is derelict. It is a listed building and deserves much better attention, but suffers from the neglect of an absentee owner who will neither renovate nor sell. This attitude is the antithesis of the general spirit on the island, which is one of enterprise, optimism, community and stewardship.
The beach at the foot of the brae was where we swam as children. It still amazes me how lucky we were to be able to have the whole island as our playground. No stranger danger or forbidden territory.
I have experienced a great sense of peace and renewal during our short stay here. There is no nostalgia - the past is gone and I have no longing for it, rather a pleasure in the present. It has been wonderful to have time to notice the detail, to feel the wind on the cheek, to meander through the mist and to find the ordinary extraordinary. It has taken me a long time to be able to wallow in nature, luxuriate in beauty and savour life's sweetness without a longing to possess and capture. There is still a lot of childish grasping to release, but I am much more able to love it and leave it. So farewell Eigg!

THREE GOOD THINGS:
Friendly folk
A last cup of coffee at the Galmisdale Bay café
Dolphins leading us into the harbour at Mallaig