by Valerie | May 6, 2020 | childhood, General interest, history, people, travel, writing a novel
In those days when I was determined to read all the many volumes of A la Recherche du Temps Perdu, I did not choose to inhabit a padded room as Proust did. Instead, I was trying to read the third volume while walking up the steps to Montmartre followed by an... by Valerie | Mar 4, 2020 | childhood, General interest, history, Italy, people, travel, writing a novel
Gretel and Zita It is a strange coincidence that a book about a mayor and a bear in a north Italian mountain town is published, just when young people worldwide are questioning the human species’ relationship to and role in climate change and the floods that devastate... by Valerie | Feb 26, 2020 | General interest, history, people, travel
When one reaches the ‘height’ of one’s ambition, it is presumed – or hoped – that one will stay up there for a while. When there is a ‘peak’ in one’s fortunes, a fall is predicated. The only way to continue along the relentless tread of time is downhill. Better,... by Valerie | Feb 19, 2020 | General interest, history, Italy, people, travel, Uncategorized
Aura – a breath of golden hue around a special person. We can all feel it at a particular place or in unusual circumstances, when the intensity of the lived moment thrills one almost into a momentary state of extasy close to fainting. The mind blanks out for a... by Valerie | Feb 12, 2020 | Uncategorized
Doors – division or welcome. Storms were rightly forecast for Sunday when we set off on our weekly adventure after an early visit on Saturday to Beverley market, already crowded with all who are convinced that early pickings are the best. I prefer calmer...
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