And she writes...

It's been a long time since my last posting (February - a whole 4 months!) and not for lack of words, but so many that I didn't know what to do with them.

I wasn't stuck, unmotivated, or disenfranchised - quite the opposite as I wrote entire reports in my head overnight (thanks insomnia!).

But the silence must break, and now is that time. The future of our wee district primary school hangs in the balance, and I'm taken back to a comment I made to a friend some time ago that a domino effect was about to occur, which I foresaw not only in Pairc but across the wider islands, should the current trajectory continue. We need housing for people to live here year round, we need building contractors to fulfil those contracts which meet the needs of small-scale rural developments, even when market failures exist (of which there are multitude). In crofting areas, everything is so delicately interlinked and intertwined - land, crofting, agricultural support, education, language, culture, availability & quality of employment, housing, and the most important aspect of all - People.

A lever on one cannot be pulled without an effect on everything else. And to claim unintended consequence is to be ignorant of the wider tapestry that exists. There is opportunity ahead, but risk on the horizon - which route will we take for these areas, and how do we envision the Highlands & Islands 50, or 100 years from now, and what is our own individual part in shaping that.

I reflect on this, with the recent loss of a man so pivotal in so many ways, and an inspirational colleague to me, Joseph Kerr. He understood so acutely, what so many do not, and saw the nuance so oft missed or overlooked. He dedicated his life to the crofting system, to great and lasting effect. Joseph, I think you'd be fair chuffed to know my pet lamb now bears the name 'Josephine' and will go on to join the breeding flock on the croft for many years to come. I'll think of you each time I call for her 🤍