Month: February 2026
Islands
Villages of Spain
Driftwood
Horizons
Little domains; outlying sections of the old Raft-of-Corks.
You will find here a variety of sub-domains from The-Raft-of-Corks.
These sub-domains floated around The-Raft-of-Corks in the 2010’s. I intend to add some pages on their specific themes. Click on the links and if you would like to return to any of these sub-domains please bookmark them.
Villages of Spain
A sub-domain from the Raft-of-Corks.
Santibañez el Alto My village in Spain
Here is a link to a site I created on some Villages in Spain. I would like to add to this.
My aim was to find the heart of the smaller villages I have passed through on my journeys through Spain. The de-population of Spain has left many villages almost empty. They still have a heart. Inland Spain is full of treasures and surprises. Nature has freedom and space to thrive. The roads are quiet and the Spanish are always pleased to talk.
https://villagesofspain.the-raft-of-corks.com
Pilgrimage
An important pilgrimage destination on the West Coast of Scotland.
https://pilgrimage.the-raft-of-corks.com This is a link to some thoughts on and accounts of Pilgrimage.
Islands
https://www.islands.the-raft-of-corks.com This is a small selectiion of poems. Like all the pages here these little blogs might develop: most things do.
Driftwood A sub-domain from the Raft-of-Corks.
Pieces I have bumped into from 15 years ago.
https://driftwood.the-raft-of-corks.com These pages are theological and ecclesiastical musings from an earlier life. This link is repeated in the section Nothing Survives. My infrastructure for reflection on my spiritual life has evaporated. The core values are stronger than ever in my life. I expect I’ll add an update to the pages in that category.
Horizons https://horizons.the-raft-of-corks.com/
https://horizons.the-raft-of-corks.com
In my reading days some books were outstanding for me. Here I introduce some of them. The main themes are addiction and contemplation. Wisdom which I hope will survive.
Nothing survives
No Thing Survives
This Sistine Chapel portrayal of the Creation of Man introduces the Category of pages in this blog post introducing the theme “Nothing Survives.”
“Nothing survives” is the last of three categories which cover this blog johncameronfletcher.com. johncameronfletcher.com is a revival of and epitath for The-Raft-of-Corks.com
The section of this blog called “Everything Changes” is a celebration of life. Those pages try to capture the wonder, awe and love that have so often accompanied me.
I have always loved Nature, and love itself has underscored the rhythms of my years.
The section “Most Things Develop” carries reflections on growth, education, relationships, our inner life and spirituality.
Nothing Survives
This Post is where the more lightly philosophical pages live — questions and ideas that flutter between curiosity, insight and laughter.
As a teenager I loved Mathematics. I was part of a group of seven boys in the sixth form, all of us preparing for A-level exams in Pure, Applied and Further Mathematics. One day we set ourselves the solemn task of listing the five most important things in life. After serious debate — and perhaps some hunger — we reached complete agreement:
Food — Football — Girls — Religion — Mathematics. In any order.
As Glasgow teenagers we knew our priorities. Girls were more of a mystery than anything else. The College at that time was boys’ only. When one of the group managed to find a girlfiend we grilled him for details.
“Tina and I went out on Saturday,” he had declared on a Monday morning.
“How far did ye get?” we asked unanimously. “Milngavie he anounced proudly.”
A Jesuit education goes a long way.
I have always enjoyed philosophy. It has taken me far. Even beyond Milngavie. Journeys of the heart have no specific destination.
And I still find myself wondering what “Nothing survives” could mean.
Pages in this Category will appear bellow.
Most things develop.
A plea to allow time for growth.
All developing in line.
In nature, growth takes time. And once it has happened, it cannot be reversed.
This section of the blog reflects on that simple truth.
Spiritual Development.
Some of these pages explore what it means to live a spiritual life.
By “spiritual” I do not necessarily mean “religious.”
Religions are often embedded in belief systems. Beliefs can reinforce identity — sometimes to the exclusion of those who believe differently. Religion has repeatedly divided humanity into rival tribes. I know this well. I am a Glasgow Catholic. Protestants supported Rangers; I supported Celtic. Lines were drawn early.
Giant Banner of Saint Patrick at a Celtic football match 2026.
But spirituality, as I understand it now, is about connection — with ourselves, with others, with all living creatures.
A spiritual life can open us to inner peace and fresh perspectives. It can soften boundaries rather than harden them.
In The Raft of Corks, written over ten years ago, I described my own experiences of spirituality while walking pilgrimage routes across Europe. Since then, another decade has passed. These pages reflect what has unfolded in that time — years that have carried me into the final stretch of life.
This ancient mariner hopes to awaken as a happier and wiser man.
Developmental Theories.
A handfull of theories Which I find helpful.
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Unmet needs can be traumatic.
I will also reflect on some of the great theories of human development that blossomed in the twentieth century. For me, they are as revolutionary as Galileo and Copernicus reshaping our view of the solar system, or Newton and Leibniz uncovering calculus — the mathematics of change.
These insights deepen our understanding of what it means to be alive: creatures always in motion, always becoming, living amid rates of change that enthral, illuminate and challenge us.
The Clearing at the End of the Path
When the end of the path comes nearer. I was listening recently to a summary of Peter Fenwick’s research into near-death experiences. Often these experiences bring clarity to our Life. Some of them resonated with moments walking on Pilgrimate Paths “Being” overtakes “Doing” I do not know when I will die.But I do know that…
St. FRANCIS of ASSISI’S approach to War
ST. FRANCIS of ASSISI and A MIDDLE EAST WAR This post is constructed from a chapter in “Eager to Love” by Richard Rohr. He often refers to St. Francis of Assisi. . In times of conflict, most people retreat deeper into their own side. Francis of Assisi did the opposite. Instead of hardening boundaries, he…
New Horizons
Horizons was a section of the old Raft-of-corks.com.- It was a site containing reviews on some of my favourite books on Spirituality and Contemplation. My life has largely been lived as a questioning Catholic. Not only have the apples dropped off the Tree of Knowlege but the leaves, too. The roots still remain. Metaphysics and…
Everything Changes.
Life is movement, change and renewal.
Everything in the Universe changes. Ageing is with us every day.
Once I could walk a 1000km Camino. Now the hill home is too much. Everything changes.
Arriving in Manjarin on the Camino Frances. 2014. Now permanently closed.
Much has changed since 2016, when I last posted here. I have re-named the blog. “The-Raft-of-Corks.com” is now a part of johncameronfletcher.com.
The-raft-of-corks blog was largely about the Camino to Santiago de Compostella.
This blog will continue the tone. It has a wider scope.
This is a time of great change. We are engineering a new Goeological era: the Anthropocene. Humanity is experiencing acceleration as never before.
When I was walking my pilgrimange routes people I met would often ask me if I was going to write about my adventures. My reply was always,”I’ve got nothing to write.” ´´That is no longer the case. My conceptual framework is much less steady.
What does not change has no life. Life is movement, growth, decay, renewal. Everything alive is immersed in change.
Scenes like this one are disappearing rapidly.
In many ways, I intend this website to be an autobiographical celebration of life itself. At the same time, it is an acknowledgement that each death marks the end of an individual life. I suppose, as my 78th birthday approaches, I’d better get on with it.
This section of The Raft of Corks brings together pages that explore the theme of change.
In human life every breath brings something new. I invite you to take a look from time to time at the pages in this section.
Find for yourself new landscapes.
Pause over new questions.
Inhale fresh air!