The change in the weather, from miserable and grey to blue sky and hot sunshine, may have something to do with it. Or perhaps it’s just a new cycle. But I think what really broke my tense mood was the opportunity to just rest and be. Our friends in Norfolk gave us a lovely weekend. We [...]

I always knew this was going to be a tough time. Once Alex stopped working full time, everything was going to change. And lots of change is not something I naturally deal with very easily. I like predictability and routine. In the last couple of weeks, Alex has been making a start on renovating his dad’s [...]

I am so tired. We had an epic pilgrimage across England this weekend. Most of it in our blue Landrover that we affectionately call the TARDIS (it’s a big blue box and it growls – hence). It really was an adventure, with trials of mismatched locks and keys and punctured tyres along the way. I did [...]

I’ve just spent a few days with my mum in Belgium. And I learned something about my dad I never quite realised before. If my dad had had the chance, if he hadn’t had to give up all of his independence to Multiple Sclerosis, he would have been an organic fruit farmer. The fruit farmer bit [...]

In Harrow, my roots are well established. I know the texture and feel of the earth. I am acquainted with the spirits who guards the land, and I intimately know the spirit of that soil. I call her the Mother Clay. She is generous and forgiving, she holds and nurtures so much: a great city, [...]

Today is Westacre Day minus 200, and this week exciting things have happened. Things to make me dream and plot and plan and really get into the spirit of things. I bought two books about permaculture and related things. One is huge and scary and implies that I need to know about things like phosphates and [...]

The flowers in the garden were just waiting for some warm weather to show their colours. In the last week we’ve gained elder flowers, roses, and yellow flag irises. And those buttercups shine their golden faces to the sun. This is what I call the flower tide of the year, the time when our plans [...]

Things have been slacking a bit around here. Ever since I got back from that awesome OBOD camp, my spiritual practice has been lacking in consistency. Especially getting out there on time in the mornings before work has been hard. So I promised myself that after last night’s new-moon-with-solar-eclipse, I would start doing it right again. [...]

Imagine camping in the rain, in a muddy field, for a cold week late in April. Sixty odd people living closely together, seeking shelter from the wet. Imagine a central fire that turns into a central water feature after 36 hours of incessant rain. Imagine sucking mud, and boots that start to all look the [...]

One of my passions in life is ritual. Couldn’t do without it.  Being in a Sacred Circle, present to every movement of Spirit, balances, heals and inspires me. Ritual. It’s an interesting word. It has a certain flavour to it, heady and dangerous. I resisted the word for years, preferring to call what I do ‘ceremony’. [...]