The moors, at night - what a place to break down. Only the drystone wall and rotted tarmac is rendered semi-sharp in the pale cone of the headlights and the red glow of the tail lights, with the interminable darkness surrounding the car on all sides, stretching to a black-on-black horizon. A single red dot stands motionless in the sky, likely the top of a radio tower, and occasionally a small pair of lights slides across the gaps in the unseen clouds, belonging to a plane. There are twin dots of light far below, suggesting a steep valley, one above the other. After a moment of peering, it's clear the lower light is shimmering, a reflection on the surface of moving water, the curve of a river.
It is this limited view of the world that you hear something, abrupt and wheezing. Loud enough to rattle the windows. Not what you want, alone in the cold dark.
Paddy Dobson
15th May 2023