Autumn is in the air – unmistakable and wonderful, my favourite time of the year. And this morning was so gorgeous that I decided to walk to my appointment with my counsellor, and my love accompanied me and then walked back home. It is always good to see my counsellor, and then walking back myself, I reflected on what we’d spoken about and felt hopeful for the future (despite everything that is going on).
A day of mostly work and household duties – some maintenance that has been waiting for a looooong time. I also had a good meeting with a writer, who brought fresh garlic from his garden, and then a lovely drink with my temporary neighbour (a dear friend is housesitting in my street). Dinner with my love.
Still no side-effects, so I think I am boosted and in the clear. A great feeling!
State of disaster has been extended, as has our lockdown, the oldest in the world. Soon it will be two years that I have been writing this diary. I cannot believe how much has happened in this time. No wonder that most of us feel permanently dazed.
Be kind. Wear a mask. Support local. Get vaccinated, please. Live.
“Physical distancing remains one of the key strategies to curb this pandemic.”
Has the state of disaster been extended? Are we still in lockdown? I think we are, at least judging from the Covid-19 protocols at the Baxter tonight, but I am not sure. I need to catch up on today’s news. Apart from a Zoom meeting with a future Karavan Press poet and a coffee with an amazing woman at the Vineyard, I spent the day trying to deal with my inbox and the admin backlog. I am almost up-to-date. Almost …
Got my Open Book Festival tickets today! :)
Apart from a sore arm, no side-effects after the booster. None! I just feel that I am safer from contracting a severe case of Covid-19 than ever before, and it feels great!
In the evening, we watched Lara Foot’s adaptation of J.M. Coetzee’s The Life and Times of Michael K. I found the puppets, the dance elements, the sound and light, the background cinematography and the set mesmerising, but I did wonder about the narrative bits performed by a few of the actors in-between and was not entirely convinced that they worked for me. I couldn’t help wondering whether the scene-linking content could have been somehow incorporated into dialogue and film. Still, this is my second-favourite Coetzee story (after Waiting for the Barbarians) and it was wonderful to return to it in this form. And to be in a theatre! Ah, always a treat!
The Life and Times of Michael K
Now: bed.
Good night.
Be kind. Wear a mask. Support local. Get vaccinated, please. Live.
“Physical distancing remains one of the key strategies to curb this pandemic.”
To say that the week after our return home had been busy would be a bit of an understatement. Despite an overwhelming inbox (still not sorted), impossible deadlines, loadshedding, a book that needed to be sent to the printers and a funding application, I somehow managed to survive.
On Saturday, I even managed to finish reading a book, visit a dear friend for lunch and enjoy the magnificent ‘Meditative Guided Evening with Site-specific Readings, Dance and Music’ at the Dylan Lewis Sculpture Garden (a marvel in itself). Kirstin Wilson, John Maytham, Walter van Dyk and Anthony Marwood performed in the garden and it was soul-restoring, all the arts – nature, landscaping, sculpture, dance, literature and music – coming together to enchant the audience. Simply wonderful!
Sunday was household day: I continued with the excavations and cleaned parts of the house that needed it urgently. I am now sharing my home with two people (my lovely house guest and my love) until the end of March/beginning of April, so we need to keep some order to make sure that everyone is comfortable and happy. In the evening, I braaied for my love and a friend.
Today, I continued with the writing. Our writing group has multiplied. We started with two and now we are four. It’s fantastic. My manuscript is growing and every week I feel more and more confident about it, although it is not without its challenges – the ancient question of whose story is it and which parts of it am I allowed to tell … I don’t have answers, but I have enough experience to know what to do in order to safeguard myself against the pitfalls of writing such a story. I hope.
I was allowed my booster after the 23rd of February, when we were already travelling, so I could only attend to it after our return, i.e. today effectively, because last week had been insanely packed with commitments of all sorts. But this afternoon, I went to a pharmacy nearby and they were great about the whole thing. Did not see the needle, nor feel any pain, and now, a few hours afterwards, I feel perfectly normal. No side-effects whatsoever. Yet? Let’s see.
I am happy to be home. Super-happy to have had the booster shot of Pfizer.
Be kind. Wear a mask. Support local. Get vaccinated, please. Live.
“Physical distancing remains one of the key strategies to curb this pandemic.”
LitNet: You were a refugee, fleeing from an oppressive regime. Please share with us what those thousands of women and children who are now seeking refuge must feel like?
Karina Szczurek: I was a child when my parents decided to flee Poland in the 1980s. My brother was six and I was ten at the time. It was very difficult to comprehend what was happening to us, but at least we were secure in the knowledge that our parents were with us at all times and would take care of us, no matter what. Our lives were never in danger. Watching Ukrainian parents evacuate their children to safety while staying behind to fight for their future breaks my heart. I cannot imagine the levels of anxiety and distress this kind of separation causes for a family. These people will never fully recover from this, even if they survive.
LitNet: Do you know Ukraine at all?
Karina Szczurek: A little bit. I spent three weeks in the beautiful Lviv on a student exchange in 1997. We also travelled outside this historic city. It was a formative experience. During these three weeks, I experienced for the first time the real closeness of the two languages – Polish and Ukrainian – met Charlotte, who remains a very dear friend, and discovered my love for opera and ballet at the stunning Ivan Franko Lviv State Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet (renamed since then). I specifically remember how friendly and welcoming everyone I met there was, and I will never forget their delicious black bread (I couldn’t get enough of it).
Keith Gottschalk’s poem “As the sun sets” ends with the following lines: “as the sun sets/ the astronomers eat breakfast,/ set off, start work.” It is one of the first poems in his recent collection, Cosmonauts do it in heaven. The few simple phrases read like an invitation to follow not only the astronomers, but also the poet, into the night sky in order to accompany the author on his quest to honour the scientists who, throughout the ages, have observed and studied the stars above us, as well as to expose the challenges and prosecutions they have faced along their paths to understanding …
After two years of lockdown, computer screens and impossible longing, I finally got to see and hug my family – on Mahé, of all places! My love had to travel there for work and The Family Island Reunion became part of the trip. To have the three people I love most in the world in one place for almost two weeks – it was beyond-words-marvellous! (So I will allow the images to speak mostly for themselves.)
The island
We toured Mahé with the most amazing guide – George – who took us to touristy and less touristy spots and told us about everyday life in the Seychelles. Meeting him and listening to his stories truly enriched our experience.
The beaches
I snorkelled for the first time in my life – not without difficulties, as I have a fear of deep (deep starts at two metres) waters, but it was amazing to do it, even if I chickened out of a few places where I did feel anxiety overwhelm me.
The blue
Sailing with Basil, our great skipper
Spent two nights sleeping on deck – loved it, especially the waking up with the first light in the middle of a calm bay.
The deck was also the perfect ‘home’ office. Fortunately, I could relax most of the time, but a little bit of work had to be done.
My love has sea legs of note, and he and the Skipper had the best of times, but I got horribly seasick (not unexpectedly). It turned out that all three Szczureks, despite being water rats, turned out not to be sea rats. We suffered. But! It was so worth it.
The tastes and scents
Local cuisine is divine! The local red snapper was a hit. Loved the mango salad, too – Basil taught me how to make it myself during the trip. Together, under his guidance, we also prepared a feast from a fresh bonito (bought in the middle of the ocean from passing fishermen) on board the boat. Probably the best fish meal I ever had.
Family
Mom brought a wine from Italy with her that has her name on it – Roma – so we had Roma with Roma :) We also celebrated all the big birthdays which we missed celebrating together during lockdown with a ship-shaped cake and all the candles. To have coffee with my Mom on a beach in paradise is a memory I will never forget. She loves coffee as much as I do.
The light
Ukraine. The day Putin invaded Ukraine, we were at Hindu temple in Victoria, Mahé, and I couldn’t stop staring at the candle lights in the temple as a darkness was descending on the world that none of us could grasp or comprehend …
The books
A taste of local literature I am looking forward to exploring.
Going home
We flew with Ethiopian Airlines (excellent!) and on the way back during the day, mesmerised, I watched Kilimanjaro from the sky – the closest I will probably get to the majestic mountain.
Karina Magdalena 