pirates, smiling, islands

In a Spanish history book I read of los piratas inglesas, in particular Drake and Hawkins - heroic mariners, in the English history books they gave us when I was at school. Specifically, the author refers to "... Drake, not only a pirate, but a destabilising factor in strategic areas of the Spanish economy." There, our books and theirs agree.The fate of the armada in 1588 was, not surprisingly, a "tragedy", rather than an English victory, as we were told. I expect that English school history books are, nowadays, less chauvinistic than they used to be.

I watch someone smiling a secret smile into the screen of a mobile phone. A smile not to be shared.

From the plane, the reflections of clouds look like an archipeligo, while between the shadow-islands, a real boat navigates, its wake behind it.