Saturdays used to be the quietest day in Dock Cafe – slower pace of customers, more chance to chill out and enjoy a natter with people over their cuppas…

Not this month!  Last Saturday saw the arrival of the Four Corners Festival – events which had been held in different venues in the North, South, East and West of the city on Saturday morning converged on the TQ at lunchtime.  The volunteers in the cafe did a great job of feeding and watering the steady procession streaming through the doors – before we all set off for a pilgrimage walk to Titanic’s slipway.

On that hugely-evocative spot, standing on the stone which has felt the hobnailed boots of countless yardmen from all corners of the city over the past hundred years, we prayed and re-commited ourselves to living in a shared city – where we don’t hide in our ‘corners’ but find ways and places to meet, talk, laugh and live together.

So that was last Saturday – this coming Saturday involves a tiger, a lifeboat and some deep discussion about the meaning of truth…

Anyone who has read Yann Martel’s brilliant Life Of Pi (or seen the film, or, like me, read the book ages ago and then remembered how good it was when I saw the film) will know that it just cries out to be chewed over, chatted through and argued about – preferably in a situation involving lots of coffee and friendly faces.  Well, Dock to the rescue!  Life Of Pi is the subject of our new monthly Saturday Book Group, meeting at 3 in the cafe.

Happiness is a good book and good company… See you there!