Thin Spaces

I love the way a vital idea sometimes sneaks its way into a conversation and sits there quietly, waits till the conversation ends, and then jumps up and down till we pay it the attention it demands.

Such was the case yesterday when I was talking with Sue Heatherington. We discussed the importance of "thin space"; those places where distraction drops away, and we feel more connected to something meaningful. It varies - sometimes it's people, other times ideas, and frequently just the spirit of the place itself. Sue talked about The Waterside, and it reminded me of the places I have found it - for me, often in the northwest of Scotland, at Troodos in Cyprus, and other places. I didn't visit them (or, in the case of Troodos, live there) for their "thin place" qualities; I discovered them while there and found that they retain that quality visit after visit. 

They are important places. In a world constantly searching for "content", they are places where the noise of content is irrelevant, a…