"Catch yourself as close to waking as you can," said Julia. "Write three pages of longhand about anything and everything that crosses your mind. As you vent on the page, you become intimate with yourself and your real feelings. Not only sorrows but joys become clear to you." This is Julia Cameron, talking about the Morning Pages tool she first revealed in her most famous book The Artist's Way. … [Read more...] about Writing my way out of the fog
BLOG
Why I can’t wait to be 80. No, really…
I have recently been writing a series of articles about loneliness. Not because I’m feeling lonely, but because I’ve been commissioned by a client and it’s an important topic that’s affecting a lot of people as the result of lockdown. So loneliness is definitely on my radar at the moment – and often what’s on your radar keeps popping up on your radar. I’m also doing a four-week course called … [Read more...] about Why I can’t wait to be 80. No, really…
A year on, how will the Covid story end?
On this day last year, I was frantically packing clothes into a suitcase, ready to move into my brother’s house. The first lockdown had been announced the night before and there were a lot of rumours flying around, including one that the army were going to police the streets of London (false, as it turns out). The atmosphere was tense and uncertain, and I couldn’t contemplate living on my own … [Read more...] about A year on, how will the Covid story end?
How Mother’s Day revealed a hidden treasure about my father
It took me a moment to realise the significance of last Sunday, but when it dawned on me that this was the first Mother’s Day we hadn’t been able to celebrate with Mum, I followed the lead of many others on social media and posted a photo. The image I chose was one of Mum at age 17, in 1943 – still in the thick of World War 2 but looking so excited and upbeat. When I posted it on Facebook, my … [Read more...] about How Mother’s Day revealed a hidden treasure about my father
The sheer inevitability of wings
The other day, I was speaking to a friend who is one of most nurturing people I know. We were having a catch-up and I breezily announced that I reckoned I was through the "primary stage" of grief after my mum passed away last September. I continued, explaining that I couldn't understand why I still haven't decided what I want to offer next as a signature service - even though I've thought about … [Read more...] about The sheer inevitability of wings
What did your 2020 smell like?
I’m no stranger to the process of reflection. The personal development training I’ve done over the years has taught me to reflect every day on what went well, what didn’t go so well, and what I’d do differently next time. But Rach Allen’s questions were deeper than that. She invited me to reflect on the past year – particularly the period after we originally spoke last July for her podcast 40 … [Read more...] about What did your 2020 smell like?