I always wondered how people can be so burned-out they need a break. There’s always time to switch off, isn’t it? Well, sometimes you’re bombarded with things that make it difficult to say ‘No, it’s enough’. And society pretty much teaches us to always be on our toes, to immerse ourselves in tons of projects, to be always attainable on all channels, to stick out and make a name for ourselves at any price. Onwards and upwards. And yeah, the last couple of weeks and months have been a bit manic, with a workload soaring up bit by bit and freelance & volunteering commitments going literally ballistic. And there’s no end in sight, really. Not that I dread the time, I like to be busy and it’s been pretty amazing! But my batteries were kinda drained and I was running low on creative input lately. So I decided to take a break from work stuff and the busy city life as much as possible, pack my bags & head up North to the beautiful wilderness of Skye for a few days: Set up camp in a field or on a forlorn beach, surrounded by nothing else than a breathtaking landscape and flocks of sheep, plagued by midges and other biting troublemakers, taking care of body hygiene with a dip in the far-too-cold sea. It was heaven!
I wasn’t entirely sure if I’d be happy and comfortable to switch off within a split second and let go of everything that troubled me. But after a beautiful sunny day out and about, we pitched our tent at Talisker Bay, crawled into our sleeping bags and a mighty storm swept across. And it was probably the piping wind and the rain’s rhythmic drumming on the roof that made me realise, I had put my mind at ease and there’s no other place I’d rather be right now. No stress, no work, no news, no social media, just us. Only the Hebrides periphery, the good and easy life, the island’s mysteries, roughness and remoteness, jumping from bright sunshine to fog, gusty wind, heavy showers and hail to bright blue skies again. I even had reservations about getting back to the real world, the city, the work, the routine and many obligations. But at least now I know where to find it. Solitude.