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11 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 10 FEBRUARY 2019 CULTURE ENVIRONMENT No this is not a craft activity, and neither is a reed bunting a cane decoration! This kind of bunting is a bird. Buntings are small and sparrow-sized, some drab coloured, others with striking pat- terns around the head. Over a dozen bunting species have been recorded in Malta but most are very rare – some seen just once – and the rest are not all that common either. One of these is the reed bunting (M. durrajsa tal-qasab) which, as its name clearly implies, is a bird of reedbeds and wetlands. Reed buntings do not nest in Malta, they are scarce autumn visitors, staying only a short time to rest before resuming their migration across to Af- rica. Occasionally, some of them decide they've flown far enough south, so they stop and spend the winter here. Naturally, for a reed bunting to overwinter, it must find a nice quiet reedbed where to hunt insects and spiders undisturbed. A good chance of spotting one is at Ghadira or Is-Simar nature reserves. Go visit, they're open at weekends. Who ever said Valentine's Day is just for couples? We say SPREAD THE LOVE with all your loved ones, whether it's your mother, brother, best friend or you just want to brighten up an unsuspecting special person's day! We've got you covered with our delicious Organic & Vegan ar- tisan sparkling wines and Palm Oil FREE hazelnut spreads. These indulgent treats will surely do the trick! Each hamper costs €25 and includes one sparkling wine and one hazelnut spread. We have limited hampers available and orders will be accepted on a first come, first serve basis. Kindly send us a Facebook private message or email mandy@foemalta.org to reserve your Spread The Love hamper now. Visit Friends of the Earth's website for more information about our work, as well as for information about how to join us. You can also support us by sending us a donation - www.foemalta.org/donate GREEN IDEA OF THE WEEK 551: FIND OUT MORE! www.foemalta.org/v19 Text Victor Falzon Photo Aron Tanti 551 - 'Spread The Love' Valentine's Day Hampers 647. REED BUNTING xxx FOR one night only, art histo- rian Marquis Nicholas De Piro and gifted pianist (and heart surgeon) Alex Manché will be leading a unique soirée of po- etry, singing and music at the Teatru Salesjan. Folly, Fantasy and Feeling will showcase a selection of locally-connected humorous and sentimental poems, com- posed by several poets and performed in English. The evening's entertainment will not only feature hilarious and thought-provoking Malta- related poetry however – this one-of-a-kind performance will also include music, song and even a chorus line, in what promises to be a truly memo- rable event. Folly, Fantasy and Feeling is the second poetry grand soirée to be presented by the Marquis and Manché in aid of the Save Valletta's Skyline Appeal, fol- lowing the highly-acclaimed Nostalgia, Notions and Non- sense also performed by the duo at the Salesian Theatre in April 2018. Aiming to raise more than €8 million to fund vital restora- tion work on St Paul's Pro-Ca- thedral in Valletta, an iconic structure in the capital city's skyline, the Save Valletta's Skyline Appeal is a cause close to Nicholas' heart. "The Val- letta skyline tells us an awful lot about our identity," he says. "The Skyline Appeal reminds us that we must preserve it at all costs, as a vital part of Mal- ta's cultural heritage." As a lover of art, poetry and Malta's rich history, Marquis Nicholas de Piro has penned a number of anecdotal books and poems, and has recently opened Casa Rocca Piccola in Valletta – the home he shares with his wife Frances (Ding) – to the public. Although co-hosting Folly, Fantasy and Feeling as a pia- nist, Alex Manché is also a consultant cardiothoracic sur- geon at Mater Dei Hospital and he set up the cardiotho- racic unit in Malta in 1995. The talented duo will be joined as co-hosts by fellow poetry and music-enthusiast Lucy Paterson. Folly, Fantasy and Feel- ing will be performed for one night only at the Teatru Salesjan, Sliema from 6.30pm until 9pm, on Wednesday 27 February 2019. Patrons are entitled to free parking. Tick- ets are available from the Te- atru Manoel website at book- i n g . t e a t r u m a n o e l . c o m . m t / Event/12384/ ELIZABETH Grech wrote her first poem on a piece of paper while perched on the fortifica- tions of Hastings Gardens in Valletta. 18 years old, and in love, she was mesmerised by the beauty of the sea in front of her. That poem ended up scrunched up a few days later, in hurt and disappointment of a teenage love that came to an end, but from that mo- ment on poetry became her way of venting, or expressing emotions buried deep down. "My writing has always been sporadic though - until three years ago I found the courage to find my voice," Grech said. Finally her writing was allowing her to dream, to contemplate and listen to the music of words. The result was 'bejn baħar u baħar' a collec- tion of contemporary poetry, elegantly written and incredibly authentic. In them she shares her vulnerability on subjects such as feminin- ity, love, loss, friendship, identity and beauty. Most are bite-size, candid affirmations, which can be read at a different pace than, say, fiction. Often her writing makes one's heart pon- der and wonder, until the words envelope the reader into a warm cloud of affection. This is probably because her poems are born mainly through emotions, which burst out as words on paper. Water, as her poetry indicates, is her favourite element. Award-winning author Clare Azzo- pardi, in her review of 'bejn baħar u baħar' says: "Sometimes the poems are calm, silent, teasing, just like the sea – I want to dive and stay." Grech makes it amply clear that the sea had always been extremely important to her. She spent her childhood summers in the blue wa- ters of Wied iz-Zurrieq and always considered it a place to "drown my pains and nourish my body and soul." When she left Malta for Paris – where for the last 17 years she has worked as a commercial and literary translator – she became increas- ingly aware of the sea's "symbol of openness, a horizon of open possibilities, a link with other worlds". Bejn baħar u baħar is published by Merlin Publishers, as part of a programme to revive the cultural importance of poetry. It is available from all leading bookshops or directly online from merlinpublishers.com Alex Manché and Marquis De Piro to headline event at Salesian Theatre Contemporary poetry inspired by water Alex Manché, Nicholas De Piro and Lucy Paterson