I’ve been outside a lot lately. The sun has done me good, and I can’t get enough of the life that’s tumbling out everywhere: everywhere green, everywhere dappled light, everywhere colours and pollen… I love how, at this time of year, every view is glimpsed through a window of green, how I can sit at my…
Category: Reflections
Changes
Last week I was able to share with my church and youth groups something that has been very much on my mind over the last few months. After what will be about four years in my job, Andrew and I have decided to move back to our home county of North Devon. We are really looking forward…
A Lesson on Small Things from Ann Voskamp
“Do not disdain the small… Give thanks in this one small thing. The moments will add up.” Do you ever have those moments where you read something and the words jump off the page at you, as if they were written just for you? I’ve been getting that a lot lately. Ann Voskamp’s book, One…
Recipes – Dorset Apple Cake
So far I’ve steered clear of posting recipes on this site, I suppose because I felt it would veer away from what I saw as my blog’s main focus: perspectives on life and what it’s all about. However, more and more, I am seeing the sharing of food as integral to well-lived lives, across all kinds of…
Writer’s Block
At the moment, I seem to be experiencing Writer’s Block. These are my thoughts: I could write another Small Things post, but to be honest, I’m a little bored of them. Do people really care what type of tea I’m into at the moment? I could create another Inspiration Board – but I feel like…
Fairy Tales
On Wednesday I spent a magical evening watching the Royal Ballet’s Sleeping Beauty, which was being relayed to cinemas around the country live from the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden. Everything about the performance was captivating – the music, the set, the costumes, the dancing, and the story. Watching it on screen gave a…
Small Gatherings
I just bought the Kinfolk book, Recipes for Small Gatherings, and have already spent a chunk of my Saturday morning reading it like a storybook whilst drinking copious amounts of coffee. It really does read like a story, as each contributor is introduced in the context of their own home and way of life, and…
The Unseen Things
Those of you who read the Simple Things magazine will know that on the first page, it offers a little summary describing what ‘the simple things’ might be that month… this month included champagne and choux buns and love letters 🙂 I hope they won’t mind me showing this little snap of it, and I…
On Retreat: Small Things
For the last day and a bit, I have been on a retreat with other children’s and youth workers at Douai Abbey. It has been such a helpful, peaceful and affirming time, so I thought for this week’s ‘Small Things’ I would write you a list of the little things I love about being on…
The Week in Words
Most weeks I post a list of ‘small things’ that have made me happy. This week was the week of my 27th birthday, and for a change I thought I’d sum up my goings on in three words… 1. HOPEFULNESS On Saturday evening, we held an event that was basically dreamed up and organised by…
A Little Magic
On Sunday a magician friend visited our youth group and amazed us all by making my ring disappear, fly around the room and reappear in his pocket attached to a keyring. He also managed to demonstrate invisible ‘trapdoors’ in the floor by making corks ‘travel’ through them, and turned the patterns on playing cards from…
Inspiration Boards #1
I mentioned in my This Week… post that I wanted to try doing some Inspiration Boards, as seen here at Penchanting. I think collecting inspiring pictures and quotes is great for helping us to express ourselves, relaxation time, developing creativity, motivation, keeping us both grateful and hopeful, and generally making us happy – so I’ve…
Life Lived 