Rain song

The slick sharp shapes of the city are blurred out of focus. The pale bright sky darkens. And then the rain comes. Sudden. Violent. An eviction. There is thunder. Lightning. I sit up. Turn my eyes to the sky, press my nose to the glass. There’s something thrilling about a storm which makes me feel like a child. I listen to the rain pelt out…

Lethe

    © Emily Hughes, 2018

unraveling

It’s World Mental Health Day today. Here’s a poem I wrote, for anyone who has unraveled at the seams. For anyone who has had to sop up the mess of themselves and squish it back inside and stitch themselves back up and, well, carry on. If you are struggling right now then please, go to the doctors. Please reach out to people. Please seek…

retreat

After a week on a writing retreat at the Hurst with Arvon I am feeling tired and exhilarated. So many thoughts and ideas spinning in my head. So many inspirational moments. So many wonderful, generous people. There are countless benefits to a residential writing course and for each and every person the journey will be different; tailor made, if you like. But here is…

hidden depths

  ‘But it is one thing to read about dragons and another to meet them.’ — Ursula Le Guin   The Girl and the Seven Dragons of the Deep Once upon a time there was a girl. A girl whose heart was weighed down with a heavy cargo of sadness. One day, she found herself on a cliff edge with her heart screaming in…

The Chinese Armoury Shop: Part 3

Hua Mulan (386-557) Chinese warrior during the Wei Dynasty, practitioner of martial arts I slept soundly that night and woke up feeling glowing and refreshed: time to try out the new sword! I was excited, but also a little nervous, so I watched a few videos on YouTube first to pick up some tips. Once I felt I was well enough versed in fades…

The Chinese Armoury Shop: Part 2

Detail of the Nine Dragons scroll painting by Chen Rong, 1244, Song Dynasty.   I looked up and saw a man standing there. He was holding an old-fashioned paraffin lamp which cast a dim glow around us. His hair was snow-white and he wore thin wire-rimmed glasses; even so he squinted at me as he spoke. He seemed old and young at the same time, which…

interrupted

interrupted by a daydream, 2014 She tugged at her apron and bit hard at her bottom lip, watching as three drops of blood fell, staining the perfect blanket of starched white cotton. The memory shifted into place: a bolt unlocking. She didn’t want it – not now – it was all too painful. Exhausting. But there it was, tugging at her. It seemed insolent…

The Chinese Armoury Shop

When I started this blog five years ago, the intention had always been to make it about photography: this was my passion and my way of sharing my ideas and my images and engaging with others who had similar interests. But things change, and I have come to realise recently that the reason I have lost enthusiasm for blogging in recent months, years even,…

to the shore (for my mum)

For those who seek strength at this time of year, Emily x shore, 2013 She ran down to the seashore because he had told her to run, and she didn’t know where else to go. Her faithful chocolate lab, Chess, galloping at her side, long pink tongue flapping in the wind. It was cold – bitingly cold – so she pulled the hood of her fur-lined…