Desktop Pilgrimage 2021 | Day 6

Well Hall Road, Eltham.

In which we started where we stopped on Day 5, St Alphege church.

As before, we used Zoom and recorded it, but I decided to stop streaming live to Facebook. It was too much.

Then, because of the personal nature of the stories shared, I decided against putting up any kind of highlight video.

To be honest, for the hour or so beforehand, I was thinking of giving up. I had lost sight of why I was doing it. I felt overwhelmed with the responsibility to be here, at this particular time, every weekday in April, just on the off-chance that people might feel like joining me.

Plus, I’ve got a lot of work to do this week, like film an entire course on How To Write for The Idler Academy. But I started the Zoom, David joined me, and we had a good walk.

NOTE: There will be no Desktop Pilgrimage on Weds 14 April or Thurs 15 April

Where we went

Greenwich Observatory
Blackheath
Suburban housing estates off the A2
Well Hall Road, where Stephen Lawrence was killed on an April day 28 years ago.

Topics, stories

David H told a moving personal story as we proceeded to Greenwich Observatory. I’m conscious that I will never be able to do that walk again, in real life of online, without remembering what he said.
The effect of weather and seasonal change on our outlook: as it happens, the area where Stephen Lawrence was killed is shown by Google to be overcast and gloomy.
Why we seem constantly to be walking towards the site of killings. No answer, really, but it’s clear that this has always been common for pilgrims. It’s a kind of ending-at-the-site-of-an-ending.
How old Stephen Lawrence would have been now (47, I think), and how we might have “passed him” on our pilgrimage without knowing.

Video (highlight)

[nothing today]

Map

Weather report (real world)

Sunny. Still remarkably cold in the morning, but milder at the time of our “walk”.

Up next

[coming soon]

Every weekday in April, 14.30 to 15.15 UK time

How to join: send me a message for the Zoom link.