The past
I began this site in 2011, when you had to do some coding in order to create posts. Tools have developed over the past decade and as at February 2023, there have been 6,593 visitors with 10,244 post views.
The present
We all eventually return to nature! I love the magic and mystery of woodlands, from my childhood through to later life. I like those evolutionary claims that we find our peace in woodlands because centuries earlier we largely inhabited and belonged in the woodlands.
In recent years I have been reading about the magic and mysticism of earlier centuries. Woodland processes of leaf fall and tree decay nourish new growth. The alchemy of this natural transformation from old into new fills me with hope, as well as, providing a constructive metaphor for the human life cycle.
My final academic role was as a Reader in Organizational Change, having worked as an academic for over three decades (see Publications page for further information). That work is reflected in posts on this site. Today, my focus is shifting towards the alchemy of change and transformation within nature and culture.
I am not really on social media, I prefer the passivity of this site. I did enjoy Twitter when working as an academic and @MHughesAcademic remains as an inactive archive of academic adventures.
The Future
In his autumn before the winter comes man’s last mad surge of youth (Sophocles)
I could pretend that I am well versed in Greek mythology, but I am not.
The Sophocles quotation was sampled at the start of the Chameleons album Script of the Bridge.
It offers optimism, tinged with the realism that our decay is inevitable. At the very least it gives license to write a few more polemical, yet autumnal posts!
Mark Hughes (Saltdean, 2023)
Woodlanddecay 