Neither one nor the other
This is a transient place:
The air between two pages,
One breath from death to life,
Teetering on the cliff
Of leaving and becoming.
Nervous, we balance, wondering
What our story will be,
Caught in the gap of change.
In so many different ways (personal, political, work-wise, environmental) life seems to have a liminal quality at the moment, leaving what was, but not quite clear what it is becoming.
(02.09.26)
© Ben Quant 2026
Photo by Asghar Khan on Unsplash
It’s back to business
Whilst trying to hang onto
Rediscovered space
Resisting the post-Greenbelt blues!
(01.09.26)
© Ben Quant 2026
Coming to an end
A basketful of memories
Taking them beyond
Last day of Greenbelt before it takes a year off and relocates. We’re ‘letting it all go’ or maybe not.
(30.08.26)
© Ben Quant 2026
Surviving portaloo roulette
And alcohol rub on broken skin,
Finding faith and hope in doubt,
And old friends, new friends, heavenly kin.
Chatting with the poet Paul
(See I can name drop too although
Predictive text turned that into
Babe drop but that’s no place to go).
Martin Joseph apologising
To George whilst summoning the sun,
Avoiding all the forecast rain
Until it all came all at once.
Singing Bohemian Rhapsody in
The dark until the power returned,
Helping strangers push their buggies
Stuck in the post-storm muddy churn.
Singing along with men from Leith,
The main stage headline show
All treasure found in the field beneath
Us even as we let it go…
Some if the highlights from today’s Greenbelt.
(28.08.26)
© Ben Quant 2026
I started to strip on the A1:
Flung off the keep moving facade,
Peeled back the constant focus
On nothing but the urgent,
Discarded the pretence
That everything was fine.
These layers were left everywhere,
Leaving me feeling vulnerable,
Unnerved but somehow open.
Outside the wipers washed
The windscreen clean again,
Allowing me to see.
The rain began to clear.
It’s been a bit of a year with one thing and another, but Greenbelt has always been a chance for me to reset and recharge. The theme this year? ‘Let it all go’. This feels strangely apt.
(27.08.26)
© Ben Quant 2026
Life’s like ice skating
Sometimes it feels like you’re flying,
Moving so freely through the days
With effortless style and grace.
Other days you get caught in a rut,
Find yourself wobbling violently
Or crashing headlong into a barrier.
Sometimes it’s not even your fault (but sometimes it is!)
Both occur to all of us.
Be kind to yourself, don’t scream and rant.
Pick yourself up if you need to
And don’t hate the one who glides past – next time it may be you.
That snapshot, that moment in time
When you pull it off, or you fall in humiliation?
It is only that moment. It does not define
What came before or what happens next.
So don’t judge yourself or those surrounding you.
We are all Torvill and Dean sometimes
and for those who remember,
Todd Carty in Dancing on Ice…
Went ice skating today…
(25.08.26)
© Ben Quant 2026
Photo by Library of Congress on Unsplash
Packing for Greenbelt
Stripping back to the basics
God and rain ready
Canvas is beckoning!
(20.08.26)
© Ben Quant 2026
Sat in the back of a foodbank van, the sun
is beating on my face. Right now this is
a happy place. I note the irony.
I tell myself it doesn’t matter what
you have, that things don’t fill a soul or make
you whole. That’s easy to say when you have things.
I have things. Too many things it’s true.
So many things I freely throw them in
the dump. That’s not a boast but a confession.
Once, a wise man found the secret of
contentment in plenty and in debt. Perhaps
I need to find it. …But maybe not just yet.
Musings whilst sitting on the back of the foodbank van today…
(19.08.26)
© Ben Quant 2026
Photo by Autotrader UK on Unsplash
One for each of you
Twelve stones for remembering
Promises still held
This morning at church we remembered the story of Elijah taking on the prophets of Baal. At the heart of the story, Elijah builds an altar of twelve stones, one for each of the tribes of Israel.
(16.08.26)
© Ben Quant 2026
Photo by Tyger Ligon on Unsplash
And relax,
Feel the gentle rhythm:
In, out, in, out.
The flow of paint upon the wall,
The careful application until all
is covered, an even coat.
And as you breathe let go of thought,
Of fear or threat, anxiety
And simply be.
In, out, in, out.
Don’t bite your lip in concentration,
Drip the paint upon the floor
Or door or carpet. Hesitation
Leads to messy lines, just flow
With it,
In, out, in, out,
Until it’s time to lay your brush
Upon the tray, step back and look
And say, it’s done and all is good.
Life’s a little busy right now, but decorating seems to be a great way to let go at the end of the day, one walk at a time.
(13.08.26)
© Ben Quant 2026
Photo by Roselyn Tirado on Unsplash
Ode for the Day 