It’s easy to assume we’re asking the same question because we’re using similar words and facing similar issues. Yet, if we listen more closely, we may notice the difference. Nuances that indicate we may not be asking the same thing. Take the simple ‘How do we get from A to B?’ I can think of … Read more
Dew on the ground is magical. Whole worlds are captured in each drop. Yet a few degrees colder at night and frost offers us a different world entirely. The cast on the landscape shifts from light sparkling reflections to a silvery pall that evaporates more rapidly as the sun strides across the hillside. A few … Read more
All week, I have been drawn to Wendell Berry’s poem, Sabbath I. It wasn’t because I was exhausted and in need of physical relaxation. Yet, sitting with his words, I realised my need for a deeper rest. And gave in. Letting a poem speak to your soul is profound because it does not simply offer … Read more
If we are looking for certainty and solid ground beneath our feet, we might be here for a while. These aren’t the days for singularly enlightened destinations and crystal-clear choices. Instead, we face the option of gloriously uncertain possibilities, an array of non-binary decisions. And the invitation to create paths on the water. Because we … Read more
Over the years, we’ve had several delightful Welsh Springer Spaniels. And they could always tell where we had been. Their sense of smell was so acute that they could track our footsteps long after we had passed that way. I wonder what our trails would say about us? Sometimes, I think mine are simply circles. … Read more
What good can a pause do? In the face of wars and violence, it feels very small. Yet the more of us who intentionally stop and breathe deeply as a collective act, the more we enlarge our capacity to be carriers of peace in a broken world. PAUSE It’s counterintuitive because, in it, we recognise … Read more
Yesterday morning offered a beautiful gift in the early sunlight. ON ANOTHER GOLDEN POND Ripples –overlappingcircles of life. Drawing togetherand fading awayas each seeks for foodin the lake’s storehouse.Comfortable in eachother’s company.Not scurrying away, nor fear in waterycompanionship.One swan,two little grebes,a family of moorhens,the bevvy of ducks.And then me.Smiling. + Sue Heatherington Pause. See differently. … Read more
The fall of autumn has been a gentle affair. Shades of yellow through to rich chestnut browns have made their gradual progression over a longer arc than usual. Allowing us to get used to the skeleton exposure of trees without the shock of nakedness. And what about us? Are we yielding to the draw of … Read more
Being seen and heard is a precious experience. And every person needs and deserves to feel this way, at least at some time in their lives. It is part of what enables us to be fully human. Yet, we know this is not a universal experience. People do not feel seen and heard for many … Read more
Yesterday, I wandered up the valley where the small conifer wood drapes the hillside, echoing its contours. Instead of going to my usual place, by the watergate, I was drawn to stand on the green path below the trees. And listen to the water tumbling down from a neighbour’s spring across the valley. Why am … Read more