'There's a Woman in My Mirror ...'

 

Art by Lisa Asiata

There’s a woman in my mirror

And she looks a lot like me,

Though there’s lines around her eyes,

And her hair is wild and free.

She is plumper than myself,

And she is definitely grey.

Did I miss the day this happened

Has she always been this way?

And this woman in the mirror

Has an air of something calm,

Like a tide that’s going out,

And a beach that’s soft and warm.

She has seen the world in colour,

She has learned to know the truth.

There’s a wisdom in her wrinkles,

There’s a knowledge brought from youth.

And she seems to move more freely,

As though released from earthly binds.

Is she made of something lighter?

Perhaps the weight she left behind.

Like the press of expectation,

And the need to yield and bend.

I like this woman in the mirror,

She’s fast becoming my best friend.

Donna Ashworth

From ‘to the women’:

https://amzn.eu/d/0j4xR15k

The In-Between Days

 

We're in those in-between days.

It's no longer Christmas although our homes are full of good food, decorations and gifts that have not found a home yet.  We don't quite know what day it is, let alone which of the leftovers to have for our lunch today.

The world seems to have tilted and left us slightly discombobulated, made all the worse if you are also feeling the after effects of illness of any kind.

We went out for a coffee and a bacon butty for Alan, and a coffee and a couple of crumpets for me at Booths this morning in at attempt to claim back some normality ... and drop off the misappropriated shopping basket.  We finished it with a detour to the bungalow to see if my befuddled workings out at fitting ensuites into both bedrooms is a viable plan.

Somehow having a few days away from the bungalow has ended up saving us quite a lot of money, as we have found a way of not having to build a porch on the side of the house or knocking part of one exterior wall down to fit new double doors.  This is the plan as it was before I planned the ensuites, less wasted space and a lot less doors.  It's all starting to come together.

I knew there would be some benefit to my brain taking a few days off.  😄

Sue xx

Not the Christmas That We Expected ...

 

We've not had the Christmas we expected, but we had a Christmas and that's more than some have.

Santa left us a dose of flu each.  Alan started on Tuesday and me on Christmas Eve, we did manage to pick up the Christmas food order from Booths, but Alan wasn't thinking straight and accidentally brought the supermarket's shopping basket home with us still carrying the food in the boot of the car.

  We will return it, sheepishly and apologetically when we are both thinking and walking straight.

We didn't forget the gravy ... we somehow cobbled the Christmas dinner together between us, and manfully and womanfully ploughed through as much of it as we could.  It was the one meal of the day we could manage, it's been leftovers ever since.  Thank goodness for fridges.

The best news of all, none of the Christmas chocolate or alcohol has been touched ... so it should be a good New Year.

I do hope your Christmases were good.  🎄

Sue xx

Blogmas Day Nineteen - Pocketfuls of Peace

 

Artwork by Ann Baratashvili

This Christmas...

You don't have to be full of joy

All merry and all bright

You don't have to force festive cheer

If you don't feel alright

No, you're not obligated

To be jovial and jolly

To string the lights and sing the songs

Or deck the halls with holly

Perhaps you're missing someone

And perhaps they miss you too

Perhaps you're feeling burdened

By how much you have to do

Perhaps the bleak mid winter

Leaves you feeling rather cold

Perhaps it's hard to drive

December's darkness from your soul

Perhaps you'd rather hibernate,

Let Christmas pass you by

But remember; it's not long ‘til you

Can bid this year goodbye

For now, don't paint a smile

Upon your teary, tired face

Instead, find quiet moments

Where this season gives you space

And recognise that songs

And decorations cannot hide

The flurry of emotions

Overwhelming you inside

Yes, find those little moments

Where the lights don't feel so bright

Where you don't have to keep pretending

Just to be polite

Where you can breathe in peacefully

Away from all the noise

Away from expectation

That you're full of festive joys

‘Cause when the day is over

And the lights are taken down

When it’s another year

Before next Christmas rolls around

Yes, when the joy is fading

And the merriment has ceased

You’ll be so very grateful for

Those pocketfuls of peace

Becky Hemsley 2023

Blogmas Day Eight - Know Yourself

Art by Lisa Aisato

Know yourself they say

and don’t be led astray

but how can I know who I am

when I’m different every day?

Some days I’m the smart one

with the answers people need

and some days I’m the strong one

standing up to take the lead.

On other days I’m sure

that if the wind blew me too hard

I would shatter like a glass

into a million tiny shards.

And on those days I cower

and I hide out from the world

waiting on my inner child

to blossom and unfurl.

And each day I’m surprised

by the newness that I see

the things I’m finding out

the complexity of me.

So how to know yourself

when you’re all things rolled in one?

you simply must decide

to love whatever you become.

Donna Ashworth

From ‘I Wish I Knew’

Sue xx

Maybe ...

 Earl Grey Day by Lucy Almey-Bird

Maybe the real happy ending is falling in love with the simplest parts of life.

Maybe it’s savouring that first sip of coffee in the morning, or losing yourself in the smell of freshly baked bread from home or the bakery, or even the bakery section at the back of the supermarket.

Maybe it’s driving down familiar roads with the car windows down, letting the wind mess up your hair while your favourite song fills the car. Taking longer than usual to reach your destination.

Maybe it’s relaxing on a quiet afternoon, reading the pages of a book you’ve put off for far too long. Or one that you've read a hundred times before, letting each word wrap around you like an old friend.

It's these moments ... the ones that seem so ordinary ... that hold a kind of magic that fills the cracks that we sometimes forget are there.

And maybe, just maybe, it’s finding moments of joy in the small things that we often take for granted. The laughter that comes out of nowhere, shared with a stranger in the supermarket or at the bus stop.

Or the quiet relaxing comfort of a cosy night at home, wrapped up in a blanket on the sofa, watching a show you’ve seen a hundred times before but that still brings a smile to your face.

It’s these little things that pull us back to life, that remind us of just how blessed we are, not because everything is perfect but because we find beauty in what we already have.

Inspired by - Mj Blossoms

Sue xx

Let It Be

Art by Sophia Love Storey

Let it be.

Right here, right now.

The breath rises, the breath falls,

and nothing more is needed.

Let it be.

The world moves, the clouds drift,

the sun warms, the rain falls,

all is unfolding as it will.

Let it be.

No grasping, no pushing, no wishing it different.

Just this moment, exactly as it is.

Let it be.

Hear the silence between sounds,

feel the space between thoughts,

rest in the gentle pulse of now.

Let it be.

And in letting go of all else,

find the tender hush of now,

a cradle for the weary heart,

soft, open, and enough.

~ 'Let it Be' by Spirit of a Hippie

Mary Anne Byrne

Too beautiful not to share with you.

Sue xx

 

Autumn's Softer Rhythm

 

Art by Paco Yao

 Autumn's Softer Rhythm  

Relaxing in autumn

feels like sinking

into a softer rhythm,

the world slowing

beneath drifting leaves.

The air carries

a gentle crispness,

cool enough to wake the senses,

calm enough

to invite stillness.

Colors glow warmly,

as if the trees

exhale their final breath of beauty

before winter’s quiet.

Beside me,

a steaming cup of coffee awaits,

a good book rests open,

companions to the hush.

In this season,

to sit,

to breathe,

to simply be,

feels like enough.

~ ‘Autumn’s Softer Rhythm’ by Spirit of a Hippie

Mary Anne Byrne

Shared because I loved it so much, I hope you do too.  💛

Sue xx

A New Beginning

 

September 

- from my Lucy Almey-Bird calendar.

A new month, a new season and a new beginning.

Well that's how it always feels for me at the start of Autumn.  For all the people that love the Summer, I am instead one of the fewer number that love Autumn rolling in with all it's 'mists and mellow fruitfulness'.  

Coming back off our holiday where we had had a week of sunshine and warmth, to the heavy rain of Saturday and the much cooler temperatures of today, made the first day of Autumn even more special somehow.

  I went on holiday knowing that I would be using it as a reset to a lot more than just the weather.  As you all know I have been running down the cupboards and the freezer, using up all the foods that I wasn't really wanting to carry on eating.  I had drunk all the wine that I had in the Lodge, not all in one go I hasten to add!!  😄 

But over the last couple of weeks it had all been drunk and enjoyed.  When Alan reached to pick up a couple of bottles last time we were in Aldi together I told him firmly to 'put them back'.  Don't worry, I wasn't banning him as he rarely drinks wine, but he has the habit of always having bottles in his fridge and cupboard to offer to me when I'm at his in the evening.

So the last evening of our holiday was my last day drinking any alcohol, at least until Christmas, or I may just have a single glass on our wedding anniversary in December, but none until then at the very least.  I have done well eating my way through the the freezer, although it's now messy, as is my inventory, and both need sorting out.  The fridge is looking sparse and sparkly white now that I am back home and cooking for myself, and I am about to really start to make inroads into the cupboard store of food, especially all the out of date and things dated for this year in the top section.

Today though is all about making my home look, and hopefully feel a bit cosier, taking a smidge of inspiration from the picture above my desk.  It's very chilly at the moment, and while the heating hasn't been switched on yet, I have dug out a jumper to wear over my t-shirt and the immediate cosiness feels very welcome.  

So today, after a warming cup of coffee and a trip around blogland, my little vignettes on the sideboard and radiator shelf will be changed slightly, highlighting books in different colours and taking away some of the cooling look that has been in place over the Summer months.

I haven't shared any of my holiday photos as I'm not sure if you would like to see them, and those of you on Instagram have already been bombarded!   Sometime other peoples holiday snaps can be slightly wearisome, if however, you would like to see a few images of our hotel and some photos of Stratford Upon Avon let me know in the comments and I will happily oblige later in the week.

Sue xx

Let someone love you ...

Carl Holsøe - Woman near the Dinner Table, 1900.

"Let someone love you just the way you are .... as flawed as you might be, as unattractive as you sometimes feel, and as unaccomplished as you think you are.

To believe that you must hide all the parts of you that are broken, out of fear that someone else is incapable of loving what is less than perfect, is to believe that sunlight is incapable of entering a broken window and illuminating a dark room."

Marc Hack

It might be easier said than done, but it's something to aim for for sure. 💗

Sue xx

Let the noise of the day soften ...

Art by Sophia Love Storey

Slow down. 

Let the noise of the day soften, the urgency fade. 

Take a moment to simply be, not to do, achieve, or strive, but to exist with gentle awareness. 

Breathe deeply, and with each breath, allow yourself to arrive more fully in this moment. 

Look around you. 

Take in your surroundings, the delicate play of light or the quiet grace of a passing breeze.

Notice the small things: the texture of a leaf, the distant hum of the world, the way your body feels when you let go of tension. 

These are not distractions, they are life. 

The richness of your existence doesn’t reside in distant goals or constant motion, but in the quiet, often missed spaces in between.

When you slow down enough, even the simplest moment becomes meaningful. 

In that awareness, you reconnect, with yourself, with the world, and with the quiet, lasting peace that comes from simply being where you are.

Written by Spirit of a Hippie 

This really resonated with me, so I'm sharing it with you. 💝

Sue xx

A Backstage Tour

 

A cosy book corner. 💖

Sue xx

'There will be moments ...'

Art - Vincent van Gogh - Allotment with Sunflower  1887

'Till the Sun Rises Again

There will be moments, days even,

when the sun doesn’t seem to rise in your sky

and the breath feels sucked right out of your lungs.

When food has no taste, the world has no joy

and everything seems like an effort too far.

Yes, my friend, there will be very painful moments in your life.

But you will get through them,

‘This too shall pass.’

Because life has a way of throwing you a rope,

just at the very moment when you thought,

you couldn’t swim another stroke.

All you have to do is grab it.

And one day, as is the way of this life,

the sun will suddenly beat down on your face again

and the air will feel fresher than it ever did.

And there will be laughter.

And love.

And joy.

So much joy.

And life will be sweet, like summer after a long winter.

A winter that was so dark each colour that appears,

feels like the first time you are seeing it.

This is when you must live, really live.

For, just as the bad times do not last forever,

neither do the good,

‘This too shall pass.’

But that is life.

So, embrace the joy when it comes and let fear slide away.

And when the dark times come around again,

and they will,

remember you have what you need to survive.

And you will survive my friend, you really will.

Keep the important people close,

focus on what truly matters

and you will find yourself dragged to safety,

each and every time the storms come.

And on those days,

when your sun is high in the sky

but you notice another facing bad weather,

you drop your raft and you go to them.

And if they won’t climb in with you, to safety,

you simply stay with them in the stormy water,

till the sun rises again.

And it will.

it always does.

Donna Ashworth

from To the Women

Thank you for all your kind words yesterday, you were my raft in a storm and I appreciate each and every one of you. We also really appreciate all our fellow dog walkers and our neighbours for their kind words.

The lovely folks across the road who own one of Mavis' little friends Ralfie, popped this card through the letterbox last night, after taking some goodies from the box of Mavis' things that we shared with everyone.

We are taking everything that is left and all of the dog beds, towels and blankets to the local dog rescue centre tomorrow.

It's been a tough week and I am glad that tomorrow is the first day of a new month. March here we come, lets hope for some sunnier and slightly warmer days in the weeks ahead.

Again, thank you so much for yesterday's comments. 💖

Sue xx