Glenfinnan - unrest day
Day Eight - Loch Eil - ‘rest day’
A day of rest in the Glenfinnan bunkhouse (5 miles beyond Glenfinnan, by Loch Eil).
A day of showering, of washing clothes in great trays, of an amazingly hot drying room, of getting supplies (or getting a break) in Fort William.
Many left us here after the extraordinary time walking out of Knoydart. This leaves 12 in the bunkhouse, 3 in vans and 9 or 10 in tents scattered around.
The day was book ended by two difficult meetings.
The morning meeting was impromptu.
It was kicked off by Alec voicing his concerns about our walking into Glasgow on October 7th, flying the combined Palestine/ Scotland flag on the day Hamas carried out their attack. He is concerned we’ll be misunderstood and that that misunderstanding will obscure the fundamental message about the need to reclaim community lands here in Scotland.
There are very strong feelings, with people voicing their distress, fury, anger and pain over what is happening in Gaza. There are many tears because of what is happening in Gaza, but also because of what is happening in Africa and all over the world, and what colonialism has done and continues to do in the Americas, in Australia, and all over. There is also grief at what has been happening to the communities’ lands we have been passing through, the erasure of peoples memories across these islands that these were our lands, that they were stolen, and that they need to be returned to communities. There is the need to remember how to regain community and to remember how to support each other to return to and reclaim the lands.
The meeting is also about filming.
Alec is filming so much and so intensely. He is really throwing himself into it, and showing huge commitment and respect, but it can also be hard for some of us for whom filming can be experienced as an intrusion. The issue of filming using the drones is raised. Someone says it makes them feel the military is around and they are under surveillance. It reminds them of what is happening in Gaza.
Amongst this storm of strong feelings, Eva is facilitating. Up until now we’ve not had such a collective clash of feelings (within us more than between us).
Instead of anyone being shut down, Eva points out that everyone has a right to have and express their feelings and to raise their questions lets: “Let’s slow it right down and hear each other”. Which we do.
Then the day of self-care and stuff-care, and gathering other stuff or taking a break, of taking folk to catch trains from Fort William. Wapat still waiting for his luggage that never came through when he arrived more than a week ago from so-called Canada.
The evening meeting is briefer than the morning one, but no less contentious.
In the evening meeting Eva and David (who are being our drivers) ask for two volunteers to travel with them in the two vans and help with set up at the next stop. There is a general silence, probably because those of us who are here for the whole walk are wanting to walk the whole walk. Eva points out that we are collectively doing this walk. We can only walk the whole way if we each take turns going with the drivers to set up cooking and the camp for the next night before the walkers arrive. Within that complex dance of folk not quite saying what we feel, David (walker) agrees to help the next day.
Since that day, it feels like we have all embraced the driving/ setting up aspect of the walk. The mood switched, as if we took on that we are on a collective not individual journey, and that includes all aspects of supporting each other. We need each other.