Edge of Belief
Thoughts from Caldey — a Monastic Holy Island off the Welsh Coast
Caldey Island, July 2023.
Photographs taken on Kodak 35mm film.
It’s difficult to comprehend the sacrifice needed to isolate oneself from the world. To withdraw from established relationships and let go of our deeply entrenched connections. To sever the link between yourself and society.
Trusting in the companionship and comfort of something with no guarantee or tangible evidence of existence, feels as if it undermines what it means to be human.
But, maybe the moment we can trust in something that we cannot fully comprehend is the point when we begin to realise what it means to be human. To be truly conscious, mindful and present.
Could it be that retreating to the world’s fringe, to the edge of community, taking refuge in isolation, alone with nature’s raw beauty and terrifying power, takes a sacrifice that goes against our deepest, most engrained intuitions?
Perhaps it is a sacrifice that represents bravery in its purest form.
It would, at the very least, take absolute trust. Absolute trust in yourself and your beliefs.
The thought of seeking solace and refuge in a supposedly higher power with only blind trust, can at once seem utterly terrifying.
Is it a sacrifice that could have the power of absolute destruction?
Or, is it a sacrifice that can have the power of absolute freedom?
By A. Milne
Caldey Island, off Pembrokeshire Coast, South Wales. 13.07.23
