This is where the children played. Just two weeks ago I was here with my grandson at a weekly forest school session where a group of children aged 3-6 explored these woods with curiosity and joy. Dens became havens for pretend play. Tree trunks were climbed and became castles, rockets, towers and the crow’s nest…
Do you know how the caterpillar turns? Do you remember what happens inside a cocoon? You liquefy. There in the thick black of your self-spun womb, void as the moon before waxing, you melt (as Christ did for three days in the tomb) conceiving in impossible darkness the sheer inevitability of wings. Kim Rosen …
“Two men look out a window. One sees mud, the other sees the stars”. Oscar Wilde When I wake up in the morning, I have a small window at the foot of my bed that looks out onto a steep wooded bank. Every morning the weather and the light create a wonderment for me –…
I found myself in a cabin in the woods in the middle of storm. Yes, the one we all felt the effects of last weekend. Storm Ciara. The cabin is somewhere I retreat to on a regular basis. It is in the middle of woodland surrounded by chalk streams and near a lake. It has…
This week I am inspired to write about finding a compassionate way in the world. This last weekend I have been teaching on the Aberdeen Masters degree. The first years were beginning their compassion course and the second years were beginning their research module, called Professional Enquiry. Both groups came together for practice and for…
Having just attended the funeral of my dear friend, being in the process of changing my life quite drastically and talking with Heather about the huge changes in her life, I find myself on a train to London feeling rather reflective. At the weekend I was also stunned by the news of the sudden death…
Change Said the sun to the moon, You cannot stay. Change Says the moon to the waters, All is flowing. Change Says the fields to the grass, Seed-time and harvest, Chaff and grain. You must change said, Said the worm to the bud, Though not to a rose, Petals fade That wings may rise Borne…
“I am making a spell” “What is the spell for?” I ask. “It’s a spell to stop the world from breaking” This is the conversation I had with my 5-year-old grandson last weekend. We were on a beach and he was mixing sand, seawater, seaweed, shells and stones in a bucket with his spade. I…
Having a young grandson enables me to do some cool stuff. I have recently noticed that my relationship with him also allows me to be authentic. Just yesterday whilst disco dancing in my kitchen with this 5-year-old, made me realise that I am totally myself with him. I am not shy, reserved, embarrassed or inhibited. …