We’re halfway through Season 2 of Hidden Compass: The Podcast, and co-hosts Sivani Babu and Sabine K. Bergmann can barely believe it. There’s so much more to dig into with the season’s theme: “What Have I Done?”

The roots of that question — and its larger corollary of what humanity has done — run through today’s story and the following interview. On this episode, Sivani and Sabine sit with queer poet, writer, and world traveler Shannon Donaghy to talk about the space we take up while traveling, good intentions gone awry, and how to consider time … from the perspective of moss. But first, journey with us, as Shannon takes us to the lost forests and flowering fields of Iceland, where a surprising invasive species is trying to make amends.

Story
“Invasion” first appeared in the Winter 2019 issue of Hidden Compass: The Magazine as a feature in our Human and Nature department. See the full story and photos here: https://hiddencompass.net/story/invasion.

Storyteller
Shannon Donaghy’s creative work can be found in anthologies and on websites such as Celestial Musings: Inspired by the Night Sky and Plum Tree Tavern. When she is not reading, writing, or writing about reading, she enjoys cooking, hiking, and camping with her partner, Reilly. Read Shannon’s poem, “Demolition,” published by the Journal of New Jersey Poets, on page 84 of their Spring 2021 issue:https://journalofnjpoets.files.wordpress.com/2021/05/issue-58-final-1.pdf. Follow Shannon on Instagram @afterthischapter. And check out her Hidden Compass profile page at https://hiddencompass.net/journalist/shannon-donaghy.

Hidden Compass

Hidden Compass is an award-winning, women-led media company that’s forging an Alliance to turn storytellers and explorers into heroes and champion a new age of discovery.

To learn more about us and support storytellers like Shannon, visit https://hiddencompass.net and contribute to our fundraising campaigns. We split campaign proceeds 50/50 with the writer of each story, and storytellers receive their cut on top of their article pay.

To support Hidden Compass, recommend us to someone who’s looking to stand up for journalism, science, history, and hope. You can also buy tickets to our virtual events at https://hiddencompass.net/events, and learn more about becoming an Ally at https://hiddencompass.net/alliance. Sign up for our newsletter at https://bit.ly/2Yc2HH1.

See you next week, when we’ll go to a cartel leader’s fortress under siege, where, gun in hand, Victoria Sanderson faces the violent legacy of “Indefensible Escobar.”