Soulfull living musings

[With thanks to Glennie Kindred and her book: Sacred Earth Celebrations from where much of this information is taken. Extracts are in quotes.]

Imbolc is one of the 8 Celtic/Pagan Sabbats which honour and celebrate the changing seasons as we move through the 'Wheel of the Year'.

"This festival celebates the reawakening Earth and the potential of manifestation inherent at this time.... It's important that we listne to our intuitive selves, the inner wisdom we have gained during the winter months, as move into the more active phase of the year..." 

Imbolc falls at the end of January/beginning of February and this year (2025) will be celebrated on February 3rd.

"Candles are lit at this time to represent the return of the light as the Sun's energy begins to increase. In Celtic tradition, the Triple Goddess has become her virgin self again, known as Bride, Brigid, Brigit, the Maider, Keeper of the Sacred Fire".

The underlying energy of Imbolc

"The days are beginning to lengthen. It...

Musings with grief… no. 2

I shared last time my insight about heart-broken = heart-open.

And I wrote that it opens to let your unused love flow out, which I know many people feel.

But… I’ve had another insight on this!

It’s not new though, I just didn’t really feel it to the depths it can be felt in the past.

I’ve often shared Rumi’s quote: “The wound is the place where the Light enters you”

And I thought that I *knew* what that meant…. And I did…. I ‘knew’, but that isn’t what Rumi was writing about – in my humble opinion.

I ‘knew’, because I’ve experienced much heartache from loss in the past (through death and the ending of relationships) and my heartache had lead me to my spiritual path and to understanding myself better, knowing what makes me, me etc.

BUT what I now *feel*, with every fibre of my being, is that when our broken hearts fully OPEN it’s not just to...

Musings with Grief..... no.1

As I've been exploring my grief this last almost 3 weeks (following the death of my ex partner
and soul-friend), I’ve received a great many insights which I've decided to share here in the hope that it may help you too... here's the first.

'Heart-broken', when you can truly and deeply lean into it is really ‘heart-open'.

Your heart opens to let your over-flowing love flow out …. more on this next time.

Your heart-ache lets you know that you're still alive, you are still here, you still have things to achieve, perhaps something that will change the world, who knows?

Your 'heart-opening' comes to propel you forward, but you mis-interpret it and it often passes as a missed opportunity.

We've usually been taught to squash it, especially through the 'British - stiff upper lip!'.

When my mum died, not long after my 20th birthday (in the summer), my personal tutor at Uni said to me (when I went back in the autumn) - 'We'll give you until...

Have you stopped to consider the gifts of the 'lockdown'?

I am highly aware that everyone's experience of restricted living is different. Some of you, like me, may find that life isn't much different. I work for myself from home so am used to being at home a lot, used to structuring my own time, and perhaps most importantly, used to living on my own.

I consider myself extremely fortunate.

Yes, I have had to pivot my healing practice online, but this is a space that I feel very comfortable in too.

Again, I feel very lucky.

So I know that this article won't resonate with you so much if you're now juggling working full time with home schooling children and checking in on older relatives who are now isolated, or perhaps now have them living with you.

But, hopefully, it will speak to those of who need to read it just now.

I have been pondering the gifts of this virus for a few weeks now.... as I'm sure many of you have too.

And the really big one, to me, is the chance to allow yourself...

I am deliberately mixing up existing definitions in my use of collective consciousness.... but stick with me!

Admit it..... how often in the last few years, or months even, have you wished that the World would stop so that you could 'catch up with myself'?  I know I often thought it, and my life is fairly 'slow' compared to many.

For the  majority of us .... the 'collective'.... the pace of life over the last generation (yes, that long!) has got increasingly faster and more pressurised. Often from an internal drive to do more, have more, get more. Also, in turn, from external pressures of work, to earn the £££ so that you can do more, have more, get more.

And I'm not just talking about 'stuff' like houses, cars, gadgets, but also about experiences.... which have been my guilty pleasure over the last many years. I am not writing this about 'you', I am writing this about 'us'.

And over these last few years, how many times have you wished for a 'time-out'? ...

World Kindness Day couldn't have been more timely if it had tried.

Here in the UK we have heard over the weekend of the suicide of Caroline Flack, a TV presenter, winner of Strictly Come Dancing and host of several other popular TV shows.

I was only aware of her through 'Strictly' and didn't know much about her life except that I remembered that I shared an article back in December 2018 from The Independent which was a story about Caroline using Hypnotherapy for anxiety.

I've just re-read that article and in that she shares how she used hypnotherapy for anxiety and that she gets more anxious when she isn't working. Perhaps the signs were already there that she was struggling? 

We all go through struggles in life. It's how we respond to them that makes us all different. Some of us will turn to friends, family, professionals. Other's will turn to food, alcohol, sex, drugs, work and try to 'numb' their way through it. Or, more likely, we resort to a combination.

And sometimes when...