Mattle Island

Mattle Island is an islet in County Clare, Ireland. Perhaps the sea gave it up reluctantly, keeping the island small enough to forget but visible enough to remember. Maybe its name resists explanation because the place still belongs to the woman who first saw it breathing through the fog. Imagine standing at the edge of Clare with salt on your teeth, able to point at Mattle Island without knowing whether it is land or a promise the ocean has not finished making.