Walking with The Waste Land

Walk 6 - April 13th - 

“Walking......a way to draw out the afterglow of the ‘already gone’ “

(Robert Macfarlane, from Walking in Sebald's footsteps, in "Waterlog")

Thank you to those of you who were able to take part in the walk. We were lucky with the weather and as always the plan evolved and the conversation led us as we walked! 

My lasting impression of this walk was the sense of loss which runs throughout The Waste Land. Life's futility and despair as represented by the names of all those people from Margate who lost their lives in WW1 and subsequent wars ,including the Falklands, seemed very present in that space at the War Memorial.  Eliot's despair of modern society found its voice in a  few empty whisky bottles, bits of rubbish on the memorial and the site's legacy of a bombed church knocked down and replaced by a car park.

"You! hypocrite lecteur - mon sembable, - mon frere!"

(1. THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD)

Hope you can make it to the next walk, which is part of the Chelsea Fringe, on May 25th. More details to follow.

If you'd  like more details about this walk or to be on the mailing list for future walks please contact me elspethpenfold@yahoo.co.uk

For more about the walking group: http://wasteland.onsocialengine.com/categories/23679/walking-group

For more about me and my work please visit my website, now at: www.elspeth-billie-penfold.com