Author Archives: Scribe Doll

Feriae Augusti

Posted on August 16, 2019 by Scribe Doll

Yesterday morning, when I opened the windows my skin suddenly felt taut.  It was like a slap. There was a a chill in the wind.  The sky was a pale, drab grey.  My heart sank.  It’s only the middle of … Continue reading →

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Paris, 14 Juillet

Posted on July 16, 2019 by Scribe Doll

We were in Paris this time last year.  I was enjoying the buzz and feeling shortchanged: we don’t have national holidays in England, at least none that carry any kind of historical significance.  No religious holidays except Christmas and Easter, … Continue reading →

Posted in Odds & Ends | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Reconnecting

Posted on July 7, 2019 by Scribe Doll

The fountain pen feels heavy in my hand.  I haven’t written for a long time.  I mean written – not typed.  That I do every day, all day.  Click, click.  Irregular, hollow.  I tap the plastic keys, one letter at a … Continue reading →

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A Few Thoughts About Lent

Posted on March 10, 2019 by Scribe Doll

As the Dean traced the ash cross on my forehead and said, “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.  Turn away from sin and be faithful to Christ” and the Cathedral choir sang Allegri’s Miserere, what … Continue reading →

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The Hour of the Book

Posted on March 3, 2019 by Scribe Doll

The day is drawing in and I’m rushing to finish translating a page.  I need to look up a word and that slows me down.  I don’t like to stop mid-page but if I don’t leave now I’ll be late.  Do … Continue reading →

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Tea Ceremony

Posted on February 3, 2019 by Scribe Doll

A gentle hum that grows louder, then turns into a hiss that becomes a gurgle  The water is boiling, bubbling, impatient.  The teacher removes the electric kettle from its base, and pours its contents into a clear glass pitcher.  This … Continue reading →

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A Shapeshifter at Play

Posted on January 27, 2019 by Scribe Doll

All the windows are locked.  Curtains closed.  Blinds pulled down all the way to the sills.  Even so, its chilly breath hisses through the tiny gaps and reaches my knees.  There is an occasional tremor in the candle flames on … Continue reading →

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Telephone Nostalgia

Posted on January 13, 2019 by Scribe Doll

It suddenly occurs to me that it’s been months since anybody called our landline.  Except for my mother, of course.  Day after day, when I check the phone after coming back home, the display is always the same.  0 Calls.  … Continue reading →

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New Year Resolutions?

Posted on January 6, 2019 by Scribe Doll

I’ve binned my 2018 New Year’s resolutions. Unopened.  They were past their use-by date.  Somehow, they ended up being kicked under the bed or falling behind bookcases, where dust grows in tumbleweed form, buried under dictionaries on my desk, or … Continue reading →

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Needling

Posted on November 14, 2018 by Scribe Doll

For some, it’s a massage or a facial. For me, it’s acupuncture. As soon as I’m overwhelmed by stress, run down or simply in need of TLC (not to mention if ever I have a health concern), I book in … Continue reading →

Posted in Odds & Ends | Tagged , , , , | 8 Comments