Journey Within a Journey: Travel with Art, Dreams and Memories

By Thai Peck

At the age of seventy Thai Peck finds herself still learning: About places she visits and the people she meets. Above all she learns to find her strength and courage that she thought she never had, at the same time proving to herself never too late to learn. Imaginatively as well as informative and not without humour Thai Peck narrates a sentimental journey made across England, Scotland, Wales, Australia...in the hope to re-start her life after the death of her husband of forty-five years. In her journal with dreams immersed in reality, she hopes to inspire others to travel and to dream.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Balboa Press AU
• Release date: May 18, 2018
• ISBN: 9781504313001

Thai Peck

As an artist, Peck combines her artwork with her way of writing to create a story of her many sojourns inspired by the love of poetry and the help of classic poets such as Keats, Wordsworth, Tennyson and writers such as Austen, Dickens and de Maupassant.

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Copyright © 2018 Thai Peck.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Interior Art Credit: Thai Peck

Balboa Press

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-5043-1281-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5043-1300-1 (e)

Balboa Press rev. date: 09/11/2018

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For some of us Brian still is…

Friday 10 April 2015 - Sunday 10 April 2016

For me, the whole year had gone by so quickly. It seemed only yesterday that we were still holding hand exchanging daybreak greetings and goodnight kisses. Looking into each other’s eyes wondering what the morrow brings? Yet at the same time, each day seemed to pass ever so slowly while I struggled each step in the fearful loneliness of every waking hour…

Somehow, one has to survive: Breathe in, breathe out and managing one’s life as best as one could. Tears flooded readily and so often. Moist eyes happened all the time. It was hard to ersase the vivid memories of a lifetime from the pages.

Marking the first anniversary of my husband’s passing. In the absence of my children but with the supports of friends far and near - Listened to words of homage remembering Brian’s wonderful spirit had helped me to find peace and closure before I embark on a new journey, writing new chapters.

I was blessed to have had travelled with my husband on an eventful life journey that lasted for forty-five years. One more trip is coming up in May when we will travel to England together for one more time, and we will again say goodbye for the last time.

I don’t know what the future holds but only the present moment that counts. My present is the precious gift that my husband had given me. The memories of him I will hold dearly and I will forever be grateful to this guy named Brian Marcus Peck. Perhaps we’ll meet again…

Thai Peck

INTRODUCTION

Thai Peck’s book Journey Within A Journey takes us into her soul. She is so creative and inspiring and everything just comes alive. I felt as though I was also on a journey with her, living her dreams. She draws the reader into her heart and into her experiences thus softening the heart of the reader. I felt that every step she took, she wasn’t alone. Her beloved Brian was whispering in the wind. I felt a touch of sadness but her courage soon dissipated those thoughts. I can highly recommend this book. It is a journey, which each reader will be able to relate to some part of. Therefore it is an important work. Thai also cleverly expresses herself through her beautiful paintings with poems and verses as she had done in My Puddles.

Rosemary Dan

With gratitude, I would like to dedicate this journal to all the kind strangers whom I met during my voyage. And to those who helped me to trust in my belief that the world is full of kindness.

Places

Lymington

St. John’s Wood – London

Upsall – North Yorkshire

York

Edinburgh

Lake District

Tintern – Wye Valley

Haslemere

Uluru

Seattle

Tasmania

Dreams and reality are so much intertwined and sometimes dreams can be so true while reality may be so defined yet so false. Every artist has his or her own vision of the world, mine is to remain authentically imperfect be it in painting or in writing.

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Moonlit Night Watercolour by Thai Peck

So gentle spring has arrived…the night was neither cold nor warm but instead it was quite balmy for the month of May. Is it autumn, or is it spring? Does it really matter? In Australia when both seasons are quite similar in temperature?

Standing in the bedroom looking out to the back garden through the French window that was partly opened, I could feel the gentle night air passed bringing with it the sweetest fragrance of the night - a mixed perfume of flowers and the aroma of herbs. Through the soft breeze light mists filled the sky as I was looking up searching for the moon that was not perfectly full. I could only see a faint brightness hidden behind the clouds suggested where the mystery moon slept.

Feeling a soft caress at the back of my neck, a familiar hand on my skin, without looking back, I whispered: Isn’t it a beautiful night? There was no reply but his hand continued caressing my neck, sending shivers through my entire body. I closed my eyes breathing in the sensation and oh…the pleasure…! Suddenly, a thought dashing through my head: Oh no, he shouldn’t be standing here, he is not well and he should be in bed…

Eyes opened I turned around, there was no one.

I miss you! ...Whose voice was that?

Was it mine, or his…?

LYMINGTON

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A street in Lymington Watercolour

The year 2016 in the month of May, I came back to Lymington where B and I had spent a week holiday in the English summer of 2012. Lymington - a small town oozing with charm. My room at the Angel Inn on High Street was very quaint, small but comfortable enough for a few nights stay. From London Heathrow I was driven by Mr Mushood Butt (Qantas chauffeur) straight to Lymington in Hampshire, it was quite a pleasant drive once we got out of the busy London’s inner suburbs.

In the mid afternoon light, a burst of different shades and hues of the colour green sprung out from the English countryside, it's always so fresh and gentle for the tired eyes, a result of not much sleep on the long flight across half of the world. Mushood and I exchanged conversation though I could not remember exactly when and how the topic of food came up. I learned that Mushood’s wife is an excellent cook and that she could make the best eggplant dish. It’s my favourite vegetable I love to eat but have never