Encouragement Files

(14-25) Field Notes for Curious Minds

Apr 09, 2025

This midweek offering is a chance to showcase words, publications and people who have inspired us. Perhaps, it will encourage you to celebrate the creativity that lifts your spirits, and stories that offer a counterbalance to the fractious edginess of an out-of-kilter world.

There’s something about Spring. In our tiny corner of rural France, in the Vienne, less than an hour south of Poitiers, the copses, hedgerows and vergers (orchards) are bursting with colour; every shade of white and pink, a confetti shower of blossom that nods to bounteous gifts of fruit as the year unfolds. We love the promise of fresh tastes and flavours preserved for the long winter months that will make next Spring every bit as special as this one. Birds are caught between the ceremony of courtship and the urgency of nest building, their distinctive songs serenading different moments in the unfolding story of the season; blackbirds trill, the woodpecker taps rhythmically, and the cuckoo remains familiar yet elusive. The black redcap has returned, bobbing in the early evening light. We have a pair of magpies patrolling our meadow and the starlings are rarely without the companionship of a dozen of their closest friends. Spring, aah.

Beyond Substack

T R A V E L

Regular readers know that we have rail adventures planned for later this year. As we wonder how to capture the stories that unfold, we are drawn to the way Roads & Kingdoms allows us to see the world through the eyes of people who know and understand it best. Like trains in India through the lens of a commuter.

**Author & Photographer: Ritayan Mukherjee**

“The stop you get off is more important than the train you take because no one stays on the train!”

― Mehmet Murat Ildan

A R T

Astonishing, ethereal art as ‘light paintings’ by Reuben Wu complement the night skies over Lake Michigan. Photography and painting, lines blurred.

“If we, citizens, do not support our artists, then we sacrifice our imagination on the altar of crude reality and we end up believing in nothing and having worthless dreams.”
― Yann Martel, Life of Pi

So Good We Saved It

We were delighted to learn of ‘bowellism’ among the many fascinating details offered by
Andrew Eberlin
about the ‘inside-out’ Lloyds Building.
There’s no question,
Jenny Tough
was kicking Karma’s ass on a recent bikepacking adventure in Spain.
Beautiful, lyrical descriptions of nature’s swoops and swirls by
Pipp Warner

Far above the hill, a tightly knit flock of birds, as tiny as pencil shavings, is flying east. I think for a moment, they are leaving this moody scene, but suddenly they swoop and head west and as they do, their silhouettes become silver dust. This shimmering shoal, swims the sky, twisting and turning black again, then silver, then black. An alternating current of energetic feathers.
Our cherry tree here in a little rural corner of France has blossomed, seasonal promise of a bountiful harvest. Such a joy to read this beauty of a piece by
Jeffrey Streeter
celebrating Japanese cherry blossom season.
“Ah, cherry blossoms! How one's heart trembles for them when stormy winds blow, although anyone can see they themselves care not at all.”
The Tales of Genji (early 11th Century)
Life in rural France with just a bike for transport is an ode to intentionality; we love this piece by
Irrational Adventure
that makes us feel seen:
With each ride, I have built not just strength, but trust in myself. A quiet belief in my ability to navigate life on my own terms. My bicycle has become more than a way of moving. It’s a reminder that I can carry myself through challenge and change with presence and purpose if I slow down.

Brief Encounter

(17 hours in Paris … including sleep)

Bite Size

More rail journeys - again in India - where you get the thrill of emerging from 58 tunnels into a constantly changing landscape.
Favourite places to eat in Europe from folk who have feasted at them.
Astonishing photography and insightful storytelling as Melissa Schäfer gets close up to polar bears (taken from Sidetracked Magazine)
Creative Boom has a keen eye for artists. This list of 10 illustrators to check out is excellent, trails of breadcrumbs in all directions.
We love the creative possibilities of old school album covers, so we adore this piece from ItsNiceThat celebrating Rocket Recordings’ back catalogue.
Copyright © Rocket Recordings

PS

Whenever we travel, our camera inevitably points at street art … one person’s graffiti is another person’s art gallery. Creativity and talent abounds in Paris.