Yearning

Maroula Blades

Since the pandemic took hold over the world, I have strolled much around wooded areas, along canals and river banks. I visited Potsdam, close to Berlin, where the river Havel flows.

In February 2022, I took most of the images in this area. The sky moved me with its blue-grey hues, mirrored on the surface of the Havel. The mood was melancholic and full of yearnings. Even now, the pandemic confronts us daily. It’s hard to find a place where there are no remnants of illness. Nature stimulates and enables one to take each moment with mindfulness.

Seeing the stump of a large felled tree with its amazing life-rings reminded me that nothing lasts forever. Wild white crocuses were flowering nearby; it was a delightful space. They energised and prompted me to think we will come through this trying time.

The seasons will continue to change. In its cycle, mankind will etch steps; a pattern to be treasured.

Maroula Blades is an Afro-British artist/writer living in Berlin. She was selected for the INITIAL Special Grant from the Academy of Arts in Berlin. In 2020, Chapeltown Books published her story collection The World in an Eye. Her works are published in numerous magazines and anthologies at home and abroad.

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