Pentland Skerries Lighthouse

I was born and brought up on the island of South Ronaldsay and even though I have lived in Inverness for more than 40 years, Orkney will always be home. As they say, you can take an islander out of an island but you can not take the island out of the islander.

The journeystone depicts a view from my memory of the Pentland Skerries lighthouse against a windswept sky with a shower of rain falling from a cloud. I love the colours of the sea and how it is often a deep blue on the horizon and a paler turquoise next to the water’s edge. I also love walking on beaches looking at all the subtle colours of the smooth stones and all the intricate patterns on the sand created by water and wind. The sound of waves breaking on the beach and against cliffs can be energising or calming, depending on the weather.

On the left of the beach, beside a mound of seapink flowers, a seagull sits on a stone inscribed with runes representing my initials SN. The blue symbol on the right (LAGU) symbolises a journey across water, inspiration and intuition. The round grey stone with 2 footprints was found and, I think, is still in the local church at Burwick. One story associated with the stone is that a man called Gallus crossed the Pentland Firth on the back of a sea monster and on reaching Orkney, the monster changed into a stone leaving the footprints of Gallus incised into the stone. A second story is that Pictish Kings stood on such stones to be crowned and a third story is that sinners used to stand on such stones outside the church and were pelted with rotten eggs and cabbages.

Crossing the Pentland Firth, one of the most turbulent stretches of sea can be enjoyable when it is calm but not so pleasant when the sea is rough. Some day I shall return to my place of birth.