“Look at this!”
“Is it ancient or newly carved?”
“There’s a small spelling mistake.”
The letters were carved into the rocks.

The inscription was ‘Tir Mo Chridee’.
The correct spelling is ‘Tìr Mo Chridhe’.
Translated into English it means ‘Land of my Heart’.

We were on the ‘Maze enjoying a walk with friends.
The inscription was on a small rocky outcrop.
The sentiment is one felt by many on Tiree.
And the ‘Maze’ is one amazing beach.

“Look at this!”
The exclamation could equally have referred to the sky.
Our arrival at the ‘Maze’ was around late afternoon.
The sun was slowly setting over the western ocean.

There were so many different cloud patterns and colours.
The clouds added a real sense of drama to the sky.
Flocks of sea birds added to the sight.

What a day it was turning out to be.
Birthday cake at church for Mrs Life on Tiree.
The treat of a birthday lunch at the Cobbled Cow Carvery.
And now a walk with friends, young and younger still, along the ‘Maze’.

“Look at this!”
The phrase could equally have referred to the waves powering in.
Tiree’s beaches are protected to some extent by the skerries.
Nevertheless the breaking waves are still powerful.
To add to the drama the tide was coming in.

Unlike today (the ferry has been cancelled) there was only a breeze.
Yet, the waves were crashing with force on the sandy shore.
Two pairs of wellies were rescued just in time.

Before darkness fell we made our way off the beach.
The celebrations continued at a home in Sandaig.
What a fun evening we shared together.

“See This!”
The remark could have referred to the Moon.
Even before the sky turned dark the moon was so bright.
As we made our way home the moon lit up both sky and sea.
The moon’s silvery path streaked across the ‘Passage of Tiree.’

“Look at this!”
The ‘Super Blood Wolf Moon’.
It was clearly the January Full Moon
Super because of its proximity to earth.
Wolf the name given to January’s full moon.
Blood because the colour it turns due to the lunar eclipse.

At midnight the moon continued to light up the night sky.
But by 12:30 there was the need for some shut eye.
So the alarm was set for 3:30AM.

At 3:30am the moon was high in the sky.
At this point in time it was still shining brightly.
But then slowly the effect of the eclipse began to take effect.

Gradually the earth’s shadow began to cover the moon.
By 4:30am the eclipse appeared to be almost total.
Sadly the cloud cover had built up.

From our vantage point we witnessed the total eclipse.
In breaks in the cloud we could just make out the shadowy moon.
But because of the thin veil of cloud the red colour was not discernible.

“Look at this!”
Yes! We saw the eclipse.
Yes! We appreciated the silvery sea.
Yes! We stood in wonder at the power of the sea.
Yes! We witnessed the soft colours of the evening sky.
However, most of all we valued the friendship and kindness shown.

This is ‘Life on Tiree’.