Don Roberto: the Adventure of Being Cunninghame Graham

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Forgive the Christmas commercial – but if you’re stuck for a present for someone who likes politics, literature, travel and adventure, Don Roberto could be your man. Now available direct from the publishers Scotland Street Press and all good bookshops, price … Continue reading

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Minds enlivened

The grey shingle of Whidbey Island’s beaches is littered with driftwood, testament to the arboreal abundance of the Pacific Northwest. Whole trees, branches, fist-sized lumps lie along the tideline like the bleached bones of sea monsters. Under dull, rain-laden skies … Continue reading

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Take courage

Last Friday we launched Don Roberto: the Adventure of Being Cunninghame Graham at the Scottish Storytelling Centre in Edinburgh – a fitting venue since its director, Donald Smith, first encouraged me to give the talk which later became the book. … Continue reading

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Paying attention

This time next month I will be on Whidbey Island, just north of Seattle, with my great friend and Dark Angels colleague, Richard Pelletier. We’ll be running a residential course for the first time since the start of the pandemic. … Continue reading

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Food of love

For a dozen years, from the early nineties, my brother Simon and I ran a dance band. We had played together as children and teenagers but our adult lives had taken us in different directions and it was only when … Continue reading

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Southern bells

Before the pandemic I used to go into Edinburgh quite regularly. We have a railway station within walking distance of our house and it was a pleasant hour-and-a-half journey, down to Perth, through Fife and along the coast of the … Continue reading

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Waterfall dreams

My first waking image yesterday morning, well before I opened my eyes, was of a magnificent jungle waterfall, cascading down through several levels and widening symmetrically as it went, the whole scene fringed by luxuriant green leaves. It was so … Continue reading

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Never say never

I was surprised yesterday morning by the very strong impulse to write a blog. It’s two-and-a-half years since I last posted, in which time I’ve given little thought to A Few Kind Words. But yesterday, the project that has occupied … Continue reading

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Dreams and imaginings

My friend and musical collaborator, Dave Amos, slight of stature, mighty of voice, had a dream. He and I and Aretha Franklin were playing a gig together. In a folk club. In Fife. I had gone missing. ‘Where’s Jamie?’ Aretha … Continue reading

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Alternative realities

(Also available as a podcast here) When I was three or four years old my mother used to get me to sleep by telling me about the animals curled up in their burrows and the birds closing their eyes in … Continue reading

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