Thoughts & Reflections – Page 2

person holding lighted sparkler during nighttime

This Sparks Joy! Monthly Musings for March 2021

March 16, 2021

After everything that has happened over the last week I found myself struggling to make a post about happy things. So much so that the first draft of this post was titled “This Does Not Spark Joy!” and discussed Sarah Everard’s murder and the experiences of so many women, myself included, who have been on … More This Sparks Joy! Monthly Musings for March 2021

A stack of white paper sits on a white and grey marble surface. In the background are some pencil shavings. On the paper are two words, Balance and Burnout with a tick box next to each. A hand holding a black fineline pen is resting on the paper. It appears to be about to put a tick in the box next to balance.

Insert all February blog posts here:

February 20, 2021

… in your imaginations, that is, because there aren’t going to be any, other than this one. I could pretend that my failure to finish writing them was simply an oversight and make a spirited attempt to catch up over the the next week but I’m not going to. I simply don’t have the energy … More Insert all February blog posts here:

The fingers of a left hand are the only part of the person visible, curling over the edge of the grey duvet they are hiding under. The fingers are in a shaft of bright sunlight. The rest of the picture shows rumpled sheets and pillows, all coloured grey and in shadow. The general impression is one of sadness.

That was the month that was: January 2021

January 31, 2021

This is not the post I originally wrote for my January round up. I foolishly broke one of my own cardinal rules of blogging and wrote the first version directly into WordPress rather than writing it in Scrivener and then pasting it afterwards. The reason you should do that is because when WordPress decides to … More That was the month that was: January 2021

The obligatory “it’s the new year” post

January 9, 2021

I am aware that it is now 9th January and thus the year isn’t exactly new any more. In fact given everything that’s happening at the moment it feels more like we’ve just experienced six months in nine days. Which is … fun. Not. However I am trying not to let myself retreat from the … More The obligatory “it’s the new year” post

A crocheted Christmas pudding decoration (a circle made of brown yarn with its top covered in white yarn appliqué and, two green stitched holly leaves and a red stitched berry) hangs from a pine branch on what is clearly a real Christmas tree. In the background are strands of thin gold tinsel, tiny glass baubles and wire lights.

Outdoor Advent Day 24

December 24, 2020

On Christmas Eve we bring the outdoors indoors! This is our tiny little potted Christmas tree which is small and crooked and all the more perfect because of that. Once the holidays are over this tree will be thanked for its service and planted in the back garden where I’m sure it will be welcomed … More Outdoor Advent Day 24

A close up of some old man's beard (the climbing shrub with seed pods that are long white and furry) next to some bright red berries. Nature doing its own Christmas decorations.

Outdoor Advent Day 23

December 23, 2020

You don’t pass or fail at being a person, dear. – page 239, The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman When I first read these words I had to put the book down and have a bloody good cry. Since then they have been written into the first page of every … More Outdoor Advent Day 23

Outdoor Advent Day 22

December 22, 2020

This peaceful little video of one of the local coots doing a spot of dabbling in the mill pond is for anyone who is having a hectic, frustrating day and everyone who isn’t but would like a moment to just breath. ___________ Today I am the sort of tired that hurts. This is mostly thanks … More Outdoor Advent Day 22

A view of the stream from a bank set on a sharp bend, so it looks as if the photographer is standing in the water to take the shot. The water is dark and muddied, the reflections of the woods surrounding it partial and shaken with the ripples in the water. The banks are a tangle of greenery, the trees bear moss and ivy rather than leaves. In the distance is just possible to pick out the bridge crossing the stream.

Outdoor Advent Day 20

December 20, 2020

The things we want are transformative, and we don’t know or only think we know what is on the other side of that transformation. Love, wisdom, grace, inspiration – how do you go about finding these things that are in some ways about extending the boundaries of the self into unknown territory, about becoming someone … More Outdoor Advent Day 20

A very autumnal corner of the wood, with a leaf strewn path leading away through the trees to the right. The ground to the sides of the path is green as well as as russet orange thanks to the ivy and ground plants mixed with the leaves. Most of the trees are bare but a few have yellow gold leaves clinging on.

Outdoor Advent Day 19

December 19, 2020

I believe that the great stretches of forest in northern Europe, with their constant seasonal changes, their restricted views, their astonishing biological diversity, their secret gifts and perils and the knowledge that you have to go through them to get to anywhere else, created the themes and ethics of the fairytales we know best. There … More Outdoor Advent Day 19

A close up of vivid green fluffy moss growing on a rotten branch. Behind, out of focus, are orange brown fallen leaves and a dark green growth of what might be ivy.

Outdoor Advent Day 18

December 18, 2020

Look to your soul, for that is where you originate. You write the story of you every day with your thoughts, words and deeds. You create yourself. You get to decide your story. No one else. You. – The Twisted Tree by Rachel Burge I’ve said before that change is the human condition. What I … More Outdoor Advent Day 18

Kizzia Mildmay

Word Herder and Yarn Wrangler

Category: Thoughts & Reflections