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A young boy stands on a sandy beach during a golden hour sunset, tossing a starfish back into the sea. The shoreline is dotted with additional starfish, emphasizing an environmental theme. In the background, the flags of the USA and Afghanistan are raised on flagpoles, gently fluttering in the breeze. The ocean waves are calm, and the warm hues of orange and pink from the sunset reflect on the water and sand, creating a serene and dynamic scene

Making a difference

For much of 2024, I’ve been wallowing. I lost two women who played a huge role in shaping the woman I am: my mum and

Window in a house. At night. Lit up. Decorated for Christnas with the number 1 prominently displayed

2024 Grateful 5: Advent windows

The village has a lovely tradition where 24 houses volunteer to dress their windows during Advent. Each is assigned a date and at 5 pm

Outstretched hand lighting candles in a church

2024 Grateful 6: In memory

Suicide is one of life’s unfathomable mysteries, one you have to go through yourself to fully understand. And then it’s too late. The World Health

2024 Grateful 7: Austerity and Black Friday

Austerity. I had to look it up. It’s one of those words I thought I understood. I used to know it in a certain context,

The attic, bathed in a gentle light filtering through a small window, is cluttered with a multitude of boxes, each likely containing memories and relics of years gone by. An old wooden chair sits amidst a sea of boxes, papers, and photographs that seem to spill out of their containers. The scene evokes a strong sense of nostalgia and the passage of time, as the attic holds onto fragments of the past that have been stored away, perhaps forgotten but preserved in this dusty upper chamber of the house.

2024 Grateful 8: Döstädning

I came to Hungary with two suitcases and two pictures. What happened? How did I accumulate so much stuff? Where did it all come from?

Statue of a monk kneeling in prayer hold out a cup - set beside a river

2024 Grateful 9: Rehearsing dread and practising fear

As I looked across to the other lane on the A5 travelling from Slovenia back to Hungary, something struck me. A truck had jackknifed at

Photo of people eating at a table with a large, carved turkey in the centre

The most exquisite form of courtesy

For many years now, November has been a month I associate with giving thanks. Most likely it’s a remnant from when I was Stateside. It’s

2024 Grateful 10: Gloop or gastro?

Way back in the first century AD, a Roman gourmand by the name of Apicius sat us all at a rocky table when he declared

2024 Grateful 11: Salvation Mountain

Back in 1314, when Robert the Bruce was doing a pre-battle pep talk with his Scottish troops before engaging with the English at Bannockburn, he’s

Two SCottish pipers in full regalia - hats, kilts, sporran, playing the pipes in a hotel ballroom

St Andrew in Budapest

Where has the year gone? I can hardly believe we’re in October. Back in my corporate management days, I’d be busy compiling reports on Q3

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