Greetings Friends and Happy new year!

I write from the magical melee of Marrakesh. Today, I have chosen a calm morning over the chaos of winding streets, bustling market squares, and a storytelling festival with over 100 guest storytellers.

The square in Marrakech comes alive after dark with snake charmers, gnawa musicians, street sellers, and tourists. We have a tent set up in the corner of this square, with the ambitious aim of telling stories for 90 continuous hours. If we succeed, we'll set a new Guiness world record for storytelling.

It's quite something, and a real contrast to my midwinter spent in the North of Scotland, dreaming with the fire in a cold stone cottage, surrounded by mountain, river and snow.

I spent much of my midwinter with dear friend Aoife Lowden, dreaming up projects for the year ahead, and musing old ways, land, culture & craic, by the fire.

As such, I'm delighted to be a featured guest on her upcoming programme: "Sli na noaoine Feasa (The Craneskin Bag): Ancestral Wisdom of Ireland and Scotland.

Aoife is the real deal when it comes to this work, one of a kind really.

She plays traditional music (harp, whistle and fiddle) and carries many songs. She gathers food from the land, turns her hand to a variety of ancestral crafts, but also is unmatched in her sense of ceremony and ritual appropriate to these islands. She has what the old ones may have called 'the sight' and has a gift for seeing what's going on this world and the one beyond.

Growing up in Dublin, she lived outdoors at the Hill of Tara, then at Ishnoch, before recently coming to Scotland.

I highly recommend her course...not only because I'm a guest facilitator!

She's got a fantastic array of guests, with diverse perspectives and skills, yet all woven together in this weft of ancestral culture. The fact that she knows them all personally and has creative working relationships with us all will enhance the sense of rootedness and community in the programme.

If you do feel moved to sign up and join us, I get a small commission if the following link is used (which is a nice touch of acknowledgement and reciprocity).

Link:

https://aoife-lowden.mykajabi.com/a/2148023380/ojzEAvtS

Scottish, Irish and Celtic culture are massively on trend right now, as folk near and far, seek to learn about their cultural roots and regional knowledge. This is one from many that I'd vouch for wholeheartedly.

If you have any questions about the course, feel free to message. I'll be home on Wednesday, and will respond from then.

I'll also have space for a a few new storytelling mentees over the coming months, so will write more about that in the coming weeks.

Until then, I'll be soaking up the last few days of North African sunshine, admiring the colours, craft, architecture and poeticism of Moroccan culture...and maybe coming home with a few new stories from more distant lands.

All best

Dougie