Attempting the Impossible

Often, we find ourselves powerless before great forces: extinction, colonialism, repressed trauma, modernity, apathy. But for some, the only thing more impossible than overcoming such forces is to not attempt to do so in the first place.

In the summer 2024 issue of Hidden Compass, five new storytellers have joined us from around the world to share stories about “Attempting the Impossible.” At the heart of their tales are brave souls — nostalgic repatriates, eccentric artists, courageous survivors, optimistic entrepreneurs, and resilient botanicals — battling the odds.

For two and a half years, journalist Christopher Clark explored what lies behind the perimeter fence of CAFI, the “Welcome Centre for the French of Indochina” — or, simply, “the camp.” In “France’s Forgotten Place of Memory,” our photo feature and Time Travel piece, Clark weaves stories that span nearly seven decades of repatriate life. Alongside intimate photography, he unveils a mix of torment and tenderness, pain and joy, and cultures separated by oceans, decades, and circumstance.

Meanwhile, in our Portrait story, journalist Margherita Bassi takes us to the windswept island of Sant’Antioco, Italy, where past, present, and future collide. She introduces us to a cast of artists weighing the challenges of tradition, adaptation, and mythology surrounding the historic textile of sea silk, or bisso. Though they are often at odds, they all face the difficult task of “Preserving an Ancient Thread” in the face of impending extinction and a modern world.

On picturesque Jeju Island, South Korea, memories of a suppressed past are breaking through. While living on the island for five years, psychologist and author Dr. Anne Hilty witnesses a mix of repressed trauma, Shamanic tradition, and healing. In her Chasing Demons feature, Hilty pays homage to the island’s dark past and introduces us to those who spearhead hope by “Breaking the Silence.”

Then, along the sandy shores of India’s western state of Goa, food writer Joanna Lobo tastes a delicacy that challenges the palate of her country. In this Human & Nature story, Lobo introduces us to Gabriella D’Cruz, the “Seaweed Queen” who’s either at the cutting edge of a revolution in food and conservation — or caught in a whirlpool of her own optimism.

Finally, seeking living remnants of history in the glasshouses of Croxteth hall, writer Genevieve Arlie embarks on a botanical Quest. Centuries of drama burst into bloom in “The Glamor and Tragedy of Orchids,” revealing a world of marvels and conquest. But can the “orchidelirium” that once gripped visitors survive the ravages of colonialism, war, and shifting political winds?

For our readers and storytellers who seek the inconceivable,

Sabine K. Bergmann and Sivani Babu, Hidden Compass Co-founders