December’s posts this year all share the theme of Mindful Christmas. There’ll be short posts each day encouraging us to pause and look at our celebrations in a more measured, mindful way. Every day has a concept heavily tied in to Christmas, and the plan is to look at them individually, examine what role they plan in our own Christmas and, if we decide we … Continue reading Anticipation and Preparation: Mindful Christmas Day 1
Algorithms are really fun, aren’t they? One minute you’re on Facebook and looking at friend’s posts, the next you’ve checked some information on the Web and when you return to Facebook’s Happy Place it’s full of adverts for something you may need/ will never need/ looked at and have no real desire to purchase or… occasionally… something that makes you go Mmmm. That happened to … Continue reading Sudden Inspirations that are A Really Mad Idea… but Fun to Think About: September Small Things Day 10
And I’m done. I’ve made it to Christmas Eve with a blog post every day, and plenty of hope for Christmas and the days ahead, I hope. Whatever 2021 holds for us, we can get through it with patience, trust and a ton full of hope… hope for a better world, hope for a peaceful life and hope, most of all, that we humans remember … Continue reading Christmas of Hope 2020: Peaceful Blessings to You All.
Go on… are you reading this after Christmas? Catching up on your favourite blogs and pages because the last few days before Christmas were manic? So much to do, so much to prepare, and no time to stop or breathe or anything? Well then, this is a message for you. Remember, in all the rush and panic and shopping, baking, cleaning, crying (someone always cries … Continue reading Christmas of Hope 2020: You Did Remember to Wrap a Little Something for You, Didn’t You?
On December 19th 1843, a small, slim volume of a book was published. With a red cloth cover, gilt edgings and priced at five shillings, the cost of printing had to be born by Dickens himself. His Publishers, shy after the woeful success (or lack of it) of Martin Chuzzlewit, refused to pay for the printing. Only 6,000 copies were printed in that first run. … Continue reading Christmas of Hope 2020: The Spirits of All Three Shall Live Within Me
We’re half way there, and definitely living on a prayer this year. Today it’s Monday, and in my childhood was traditionally the day we were allowed to start thinking of Christmas because my younger brother had the misfortune to be born in December (My three brothers organised life well: Eldest born in October, Second in November, Youngest in December. It was like a ready made … Continue reading Christmas of Hope 2020: Take a Bon Jovi Moment.
Gaudete….. great Latin word. It simply means Rejoice, and is the name given to this Sunday because it is the first word of the entrance Antiphon ( an interesting word, which literally means an opposite voice) a bible verse recited in Catholic churches at the start of mass, “Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice!” Rejoice means to be glad, to find … Continue reading Christmas of Hope 2020: Advent 3 Gaudete Sunday
The benefits of crafting to mental health are well known… indeed, as Mind’s Crafternoon on 5th December set out to show, it boosts self esteem, it creates positive neural pathways and it generally takes absolute concentration to learn and perform a craft. Today is about considering what craft you’d like to learn in 2021 and setting the wheels in motion. It takes 10,000 hours to … Continue reading Christmas of Hope 2020: Start a New Craft
How to Hygge the British Way 