At last! Another issue of Pushing Out the Boat! It has been a long wait for Issue 4, but you will not be disappointed by the wonderful work within these covers. There are pieces which will move you to tears, pieces which will make you feel uneasy, pieces to cause a wry smile to twitch at the corners of your lips, and even pieces to make you laugh out loud. The poetry, as always, is of the highest quality. The magazine begins with Maureen Ross's perfectly modulated poem "Beginning with the Sound of Water", and water permeates the writing in the pages which follow.

Mary Johnston's story "Mysie", written in a Scots that sings off the page, is moving and disturbing, as is Martin Walsh's "Thicker than Water". These darker pieces are offset by beautifully told humourous tales from Haworth Hodgkinson and Phyllis Goodall, and thought-provoking and witty haiku from Muir Thores. Once again Jonathan Wonham takes us off to the oil rigs in part 2 of his long and perceptive sequence, "A Place Unseen".

Kate Percival in her story "Every Ten Metres There Are Two Rats", leaves the reader uneasy about the perils of growing up, while Linda Smith's sparklingly written "A Year With My Father" reminds us of the challenges and delights of a Northeast childhood in what might be called recent history.

As always I'd like to thank the visual artists whose work so enhances this magazine. I'd also like to thank Mindy Grewar for her hard work as Managing Editor.

So fetch a cup of your favourite brew, put your feet up, and begin reading. You're in for a treat.

Magi Gibson, Editor

Cover:
Catterline Bay, 2004
(acrylic on canvas)
Cath Roberts