Surviving the Suicide of a Loved One: A Path Through Unimaginable Grief
January 21, 2025 No CommentsThe death of someone you love deeply is devastating, but when it’s by suicide, the Grief can take on a complexity that feels unbearable. The suddenness, the unanswered questions, and societal stigma all intertwine to create a heavy and uniquely isolating pain. It can feel like a never-ending storm of emotions with no clear way […]
Read MoreTraces of Me and You and Ju
January 21, 2025 No CommentsI’ve long felt the pull to clear out parts of this house. This big, old French farmhouse has been home for over two decades—a place that’s been deeply lived in. Its nooks and crannies brim with the accumulation of years, despite periodic clear-outs. Multiple clear-outs have happened because of painful deaths. Yes—much of Mike’s stuff […]
Read MoreBreathing-in the New Year – Breathing, in the New Year
January 21, 2025 1 CommentAs we slip into the New Year, I want to share some reflections on the new-to-me, altered state of consciousness experiences I’ve had over the last year. Similar yet also very different from my psychedelic experiences, these have been completely legal, involving nothing more than my body and something it does naturally, almost imperceptibly, day […]
Read MoreMagical Musings
January 21, 2025 No CommentsSome months ago, back in August, I had my first Psilocybin experience – aka Magic Mushrooms. Unlike my previous adventures with expanded states of consciousness – whether legal or not yet legal – I was in the comfort of my own home, lying on my bed, assisted by a dear and capable Medicine Healer guide […]
Read MoreFive Lists for 2025
January 21, 2025 1 CommentAt this time of year, I often come across beautifully crafted intention-setting exercises. They invite us to pause, reflect, and look forward. In the past, I’ve tended to focus on the future—dreaming and planning. But in recent years, I’ve delved deeper, reflecting not only on aspirations but also on the lessons and transformations of the […]
Read MoreA Decade of Decidedly Different Christmas Days
January 21, 2025 1 Comment25 December—a date etched into the rhythm of my life. Christmas Day! Santa! Presents! Yummy food and drink! Family and friends! Almost all of my Christmases have contained these ingredients, and what a gift that has been. I am profoundly grateful. I don’t remember my earliest Christmases in late 1960s Kent or early 1970s South […]
Read MoreThe Spiral of the Eighth Day
January 21, 2025 No CommentsMain image by Alexia François on Unsplash 8th December 2024 Numbers and dates call out to me, loudly and persistently. I remember birthdays, anniversaries, death dates, and the intricate patterns that weave through them. Today is 8th December 2024—a day with resonance all of its own. It marks a cousin’s 60th birthday and a friend’s […]
Read MoreGrief: A Lifelong Journey
January 21, 2025 8 Comments18 November 2024 Main image by K Mitch Hodge on Unsplash I have been invited to write a short piece on Grief. Short? Seriously?? I can’t do “Short” when it comes to this topic. The piece I submit is likely to get well amputated, so here I am placing, with love and tenderness, my full […]
Read MorePresencing Missing Children
January 21, 2025 2 CommentsMain image by Antonio Piña on Unsplash 7th November 2024 There are differing scales of momentousness—if that is even a word. There is the kind that reverberates across the planet, affecting all species, all generations, present and future (think: the outcome of a recent presidential election). And then there is the kind that ripples out […]
Read MoreThe Ongoing Ripples of Childhood Friendships
January 21, 2025 4 CommentsWritten 20 October, posted 27 October 2024 1974, Class of 3rd Primary, European School Brussels I. Photo credits: school photographer. (Approval gained from all those in the photo I am still in touch with, and with all names mentioned in the text below. Gracious thanks to you all for your rich contributions, friendship and trust). […]
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