Hallowe'en 2018

The last hour and a bit of Hallowe'en, as the summer half-year turns into the winter half-year. Ghosts and ghouls have been suitably exorcised, and the fires of Samhainn are about to be lit as darkness extends further across the days.

Walpurgis Night, April 30th, looms six months away, as the counterpoint to Hallowe'en, when evil spirits are once more banished into the darkness of the by then past winter. On 30 April 1945, one particularly spirit departed this earthly life - a little man whose resentment at being rejected for admission into the Vienna School of Fine Arts exploded into a world-wide conflagration. But Adolf Hitler was not solely to blame - his ascendency came about because of the badly handled outcome of WW1.

That mistake was not repeated in 1945; the reward was the European Economic Community. It's a pity that this golden egg and golden opportunity has grown foul, on the back of greed, bureaucracy and power play. The rising tide of nationalism, as shown in various parts of the United Kingdom, Spain and other places, has served to bring about the diminution of the European Union with Brexit. Whilst the United Kingdom has always been an uneasy member of the club, the departure of Britain (to my mind at least) is deplorable. But nationalism is not restricted to Europe.

Personally, I have very little time for Donald Trump. But let's not forget that he has a following of roughly half the American electorate. The other half loathe and detest him. He is a populist, and anything that'll bring him votes will do - anything that'll make a good deal. The American system of checks and balances is working overtime to keep him on the straight and narrow - so far, it is doing its job.

Pittsburgh

I had some difficulty reconciling myself in the use of the Star of David to commemorate those who were killed in Pittsburgh PA over the weekend. But then it occurred to me. It was anti-semitism that drove a man to commit mass murder, and it was anti-semitism that prompted the persecution of the Jews in Nazi-occupied Europe. They were forced to wear the Star of David on their clothing, prior to being rounded up for mass slaughter. It's not inappropriate. It's spot on.

Once again, I attach the image of the flame to a post. I normally only use it once a year, on November 9th, the anniversary of the Reichskristallnacht. This is the second time I have had to use it this year, and it is not even November 9th yet.

 

Caravans

OK. I can imagine that it is a frightening and daunting prospect to have a 'caravan' of up to 7000 people heading for your border unbidden. They are looking for a better life. Rather than accusing them of being potential terrorists, why not make sure that they can find a better life in their homeland? Rather than accuse them of being Arabs (haven't we forgotten that it was the Arabs that gave us the concept of the zero, something that we use everyday in our computers, to mention but a thing), shall we be compassionate and pragmatic? I have no time for national leaders who stoke fires borne of ignorance, rather than dampen them down.

Three years ago, a caravan of more than a million people spilt over the borders of Europe, fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East. Some drowned in the Mediterranean, but most were welcomed (up to a point) and assimilated into various European countries. Granted, they spoke a different language, came from a different culture, and indeed, there were one or two undesirable elements among them. But otherwise, they were people like you and I. 

Ferry woes

Our ferry, the MV Loch Seaforth, continues to be beset by technical problems. Last Sunday, she hit the quay on docking, which damaged the bowdoors through which vehicles are loaded and unloaded. As a result, the vessel can only dock stern-first here in Stornoway, whereas before she docked bow-first. This comes following two breakdowns at sea over the summer period, during one of which the Loch Seaforth was adrift for a full hour, having suffered a loss of power. The ferry is due off for its annual refit next week, and let's hope she comes back fit for a full 12 months of service, uninterrupted by breakdowns.

Summer into autumn

I left Holland yesterday in an Indian summer. After an uneventful train journey, I dived headlong into the joys of the airport routine at Schiphol. Dropping off the bag, going through security (which took a pair of scissors of me, and they were actually very good), passport control then waiting at gate D28. Plane took off on time. The air was clear all the way to southern England, and I had clear views right down the Dutch and Belgian coasts as far as Cap Griz Nez near Boulogne in France. The plane passed over the Isle of Thanet in Kent, England, then landed nice and on time at London Gatwick. Go through passport control, then collect the bag and proceed from the South Terminal to the North Terminal. That has become Easyjet Heaven. Drop off bag, go through security, wind my way through miles of perfume shops (achoo!) to the departure hall and race to gate 55C. Very warm, but the flight was soon boarding. Took off on time, at 12.30, and we were promised a 75 minute flight to Inverness. Well, it took the scheduled 100 minutes, and the descent towards the Highland capital was very bumpy. On arrival, I had to collect the bag and wait for two hours before dropping the bag off again. Found something very useful: a powersocket! Sat down on a cold, tiled floor near the emergency exit and plugged in the laptop. Whilst on Facebook, one of my contacts told me that the nearby coffee outlet had seats with powersockets - so, I went round the corner, bought a coffee and ensconced myself in a comfortable seat until 4.30pm. Dropped off the bag, went through the security (for the final time, yay!) and sat down to wait for the 6.20pm departure for Stornoway. By that time, it was getting dark, but I had nice views of the city of Inverness down below, all lit up as darkness fell. On approach to Stornoway, the plane took the tourist route and flew over Tolsta, Traigh Mhor and Garry, then over the centre of the island, coming back to Back and landing at Stornoway at 7pm. It was raining on transferring to the terminal. Picked up the bag - and was given a lift into town. Phew. Long day, but everything went fine - for a change. I'm glad I changed the booking to a flight today, rather than wait until Saturday.

Leaving Arnhem
Leaving Holland
Zeeland islands
Dover Strait
Dover
Sussex
Comfortable seat in Inverness Airport
Inverness Airport
Rainbow at Inverness Airport
Inverness from the air, at dusk

Wednesday 10 October

Last day in Holland, for now. Visited the Castle Country Park as it's a beautiful and warm autumn day. I had to pay an admission fee, which is not required in winter, but is in summer. It was fairly busy with elderly people taking a stroll around the place; I was probably the youngest in the park this afternoon. There are many water features, including the Tricky Fountains (which are triggered to soak you through when you break an infra-red beam), Neptunus and a waterfall and many ponds. It was a perfectly still afternoon, which allowed for many reflections of the trees and the blue sky. The leaves are on the turn, which made for an even more magical event.

A different view

If you were to compare the world to a village with one hundred inhabitants, this township would consist of:

57 Asians
21 Europeans
14 Americans (North and South)
8 Africans
52 women - 48 men
70 non-whites - 30 whites
70 non-christians - 30 christians
89 heterosexuals - 11 homosexuals
6 people would possess 59% of the world's riches
6 people would have the US nationality
80 would be homeless
70 would be illiterate
50 would be dependant on someone else
1 would die, 2 would be born
1 would own a PC
1 would hold a diploma

Looking at the world in this way, understanding, acceptance and study are required.
If you woke up this morning and you're not ill, you will be luckier than the 1 million people who will die in the next few days.

If you never suffered war, loneliness, starvation or injury, you are luckier than 500 million people in the world.

If you can go to church without feeling threatened, without being arrested or killed, you are luckier than 3,000 million people in the world.

If you have food in the fridge, have clothes to wear, a roof over your head and a bed to sleep in, you are richer than 75% of the world's inhabitants. .

If you hold a bank account, have cash in your purse or some small change in a box, you are among the richest 8% in the world.

If you can read this, you are doubly blessed, because

1. Someone thought of you
2. You do not belong to the 2,000 million people who cannot read
and
3. You own a PC!

(From a church magazine)

Israel

Attended church this morning, and the preacher had a very insightful sermon. She started by highlighting the confusion surrounding the name Israel. We know it as a political state in the Middle East, founded in 1948 by people professing the Jewish faith. However, in a Biblical context, Israel stands for something different to a political entity. It stands for a tenet of faith, not exclusively Jewish either. It is a pity that the current climate, in which the name Israel stands for something that is politically divisive, something that claims to represent one branch of Christian religion, and within that a very narrow scion, Zionism. It is deplorable that these narrow viewpoints are used to tar all Jews with the one brush, whereas quite a few of them do not agree with what the state of Israel stands for (or claims to do so); but do profess the faith in what the biblical Israel represents. There are people who use the actions of the Jewish state to justify their (alleged) anti-semitism; a recent discussion in the British Labour Party is a good example of that. It was profoundly saddening that one of the two main parties in the British political spectrum had to even think of discussing the adoption of the definition of anti-semitism. Why? Because of the way the Palestinians had (allegedly) been treated by the modern state of Israel. Again, to tar all Jews with the one brush is at best deplorable. Some would go even further, and say that the Holocaust never happened. In certain countries, denying the Holocaust is a criminal offence. It is all a far cry from the Israel, depicted in the Bible. It is all a far cry from what Christianity, as a faith, stands for.

Let me close this post by including the flame I post on the anniversary of the Reichskristallnacht, on November 9th. It will be 80 years ago this year since that Germany-wide pogrom of the Jews. Because? They were Jews.

Journey

I just wanted to share my experiences on the journey from Stornoway to Holland yesterday, October 2nd. It all went pearshape from the word go, when the 7 am ferry to Ullapool was cancelled. I had to hurriedly book a seat on the plane to Inverness, in order to catch the connection to Amsterdam. Flight went well, except for a very bumpy turn over the Moray Firth north of Inverness - the winds were blowing at force 7 from the west, which had also prompted the cancellation of the ferry. After spending a vastly interesting (sarcasm alert) four hours in Inverness Airport, my plane took off at 1.45pm, landing in Amsterdam 75 minutes later, at 4pm local time. Baggage took nearly half an hour to turn up, but then I could go to the station and wait for my train. This left at 5pm, and as Dutch trains have Wi-Fi internet access, I was finally able to go on-line. Arrived at Arnhem at 6.15pm, which meant half an hour's waiting time for the local bus that would take me to my father's home town, 5 miles away.

Another step down the Cobbled Road.

Reunification

Twenty-eight years ago today, the former German Democratic Republic, part of the then Warsaw Pact, and the Federal Republic of Germany, part of NATO, were reunited. The two states were formed out of the wreckage of the Third Reich, ruled by Adolf Hitler. After the Berlin Wall came down on 9 November 1989, reunification followed a year later. When I visited the former East Germany in 1995, the vestiges of communist rule were still present around Eberswalde, 40 miles northeast of Berlin. I'll never forget the extreme cynicism of the name of an orphanage, Anne Frank House, at nearby Chorin. To describe it as an orphanage was also cynical. It housed children that had been taken from their parents for being dissidents to the communist rule. Remember Erich Honecker? Instead, remember the poor souls that were killed for trying to leave his communist paradise. In the 1980s, I sometimes listened to East German radio on 188 kHz longwave, giving out weather reports for socialist resorts across Europe and Russia. Sochi, Zakopane... Much has changed since then, the world is unrecognisable since 30 years ago.

A new start

This is my 4th blog since I started blogging 14 years ago, virtually to the day. Northern Trip took me from Kirkwall to Stornoway. When AOL pulled the plug on its journals service, I transferred to Blogger under the guise of Atlantic Lines. Five months before, I had opened a parallel blog named The Shell Gallery where I would write during family visits to the Netherlands. All these remain on-line, but I shall only continue to update on A Cobbled Road. My circumstances are changing, but that's not what this blog will be about. I'll only post about outcomes.

Why the name? Life is never easy, but you can only go forward.