‘…if you are writing without zest, without gusto, without love, without fun, you are only half a writer.’ Ray Bradbury I’ve had to reinvent myself many times over the years, sometimes in a way of my own choosing, sometimes it was forced upon me. However it happened, these transitions have always evolved into positive change,Continue reading “Feeling the fear of reinvention”
Category Archives: Mental health
…the collective thought of snow
48. You live in a town that likes to festival. Back in 1861 the first was founded, an agriculture and cheese show that celebrated country life. For a long time it was held in the small show ground within the town, its gentle slopes filled with stalls to supply all your country needs, cattle andContinue reading “…the collective thought of snow”
…the tree: in five parts (5)
41. Part 5 Growth of the whole ‘Most trees have spurts of growth to coincide with favourable climatic conditions. Typically, growth will stop when the weather becomes too cold or dry and the tree will enter an inactive period. During this time, buds are formed to protect the tree’s internal tissues, and once favourable conditionsContinue reading “…the tree: in five parts (5)”
…the tree: in five parts (4)
40. Part 4 Sugar spirit ‘The staple of the tree diet is sugar, which is generated through photosynthesis. Chlorophyll in the leaves absorbs the energy from sunlight, which is focused on the water molecules sucked in by the tree’s roots – splitting them into their component hydrogen and oxygen atoms. The hydrogen is combined withContinue reading “…the tree: in five parts (4)”
…the tree: in five parts (3)
39. Part 3 Crown of emotions ‘The ‘crown’ of the tree is made up of the branches and leaves. In deciduous trees (those that lose their leaves), there can be hundreds of thousands of leaves. The Royal Forestry Society estimates that a mature oak tree will produce and shed around 250,000 leaves each year.’ BranchesContinue reading “…the tree: in five parts (3)”
…the tree: in five parts (2)
38. Part 2 Roots of the mind ‘…trees utilise roots to extract water and nutrients from the surrounding area, as well as to anchor themselves in the ground. While most water is absorbed by the roots nearest the surface, some trees extend a ‘taproot’ deep into the soil. Roots can also play a part inContinue reading “…the tree: in five parts (2)”
…the herb garden
34.After he is gone the loss empties you of feeling, so you stand in the herb garden every night to smoke one cigarette. He was taken away before anything began so you aren’t mourning the loss of what you had, you are mourning what can never be. Except, of course, that’s not entirely true. HeContinue reading “…the herb garden”
…wild silence
33.The wild silence comes with the roaring noise of thought, with words that run and run and run and revel in their cycle, their impatience to go nowhere, their insistence to be heard. The wild silence is neither patient nor restless, loud or hushed, careless or yearning. She knows but will not speak, her emeraldContinue reading “…wild silence”
…teaching in the age of Covid
25.You return to teaching after many months away. But this is not teaching as you know it, sitting around a table with your students to debate, discuss and enquire. Instead you are in your living room, meeting your students on a laptop screen. This is teaching in the age of Covid, and this is whatContinue reading “…teaching in the age of Covid”
…case studies
17.— In 1997 Janis Schonfeld, a Californian interior designer, volunteered for an antidepressant drug trial. She had suffered with clinical depression for many years and was desperate for a cure. She took the drug for eight weeks and felt significant improvement, although she did suffer with nausea, the side-effect of the drug. The EEG recordingsContinue reading “…case studies”
Sally Gander 