Our home is starting to feel like the Durrells’ place: full of eccentricity and animals. Like Gerald Durrell, I loved animals as a child. My parents signed me up for the RSPCA’s Animal Action magazine, which, as a true 90’s kid, I loved. I pored over the little quizzes, fact pages and letters. I entered…
Tag: writing
When it is time to finish
He had been so happy playing with the ball, watching it bounce again and again, out in the Autumn sunshine. When the adult told him it was time to come inside, time for Circle Time, he found it hard to register her words fully. The ball was still there, big and bright and bouncy. He…
The Hill
I sat on the monument and leaned back. I felt the wind lifting my hair and cooling my face. There are few places where the birdsong is so bright and clear, and I listened. I watched the birds swooping and soaring over the fields. Autumn colours spread out before me. I looked out, across the…
Wild and Precious
Last week was the end of the holidays. For me, it mostly consisted of errands, “DIY”, planning and sorting. Perimenopausal hormones were getting me down and the children’s school anxiety was steadily building. It was a transitional week, a return to work and focus and the normal demands of normal life. I listened to an…
Holiday Notes 3
The summer rolls on. There are leaves turning now; the blackberries are ripe; we are collecting apples, and I am switching gears. Now is the time for running errands, getting things done around the house and preparing for a new term at work. We are still enjoying plenty of rest and play, but the transition…
Small Things
Perhaps I will one day drive a camper van and go on road trips with my family. Maybe I will, at some point in my life, have a golden retriever to walk along the beach, before returning to my coastal cottage for a coffee. Perhaps I will one day achieve the dream of having an…
Writing Prompt: Freedom
When the furthest I can go is the local garage to buy milk, freedom is listening to my favourite music, putting the window down, and driving the extra minute to see the way the sun sparkles on the river. When those minutes in that car are limited, freedom is soaking in every moment, all the…
January
January has a bad rep, as months go. Known as the long, cold, dark month, January can also be a time when we force ourselves into a new year with a range of self improvement goals, which can feel exhausting. This year, I’ve been reading the thoughts of several writers about this notorious month. All…
Dear 2025 (featuring a few of the books I read in 2024)
Dear 2025, Well, here you are, another year! The world carries on spinning and, frankly, it can all be rather dizzying. As you arrive, 2025, there’s a whole lot of madness going on. Good leaders are few and far between, and in almost every country, things are being allowed to happen that are troubling. This…
Life Lived 