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Showing posts from March, 2012

Woodpecker

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This morning, I had one of my regular reflexology sessions with Rob Buckle (by the way, if you live in or near the South Birmingham area of the UK, I can highly recommend him for Reflexology or Reiki!). At the end of the session, Rob left the room to fetch a glass of water and as I gazed out of the conservatory into his garden, I spotted a Woodpecker. I've never seen a Woodpecker in real life, but the distinctive bright red patch at the bottom of the body, near the tail is a giveaway. Great Spotted Woodpecker Image from RSPB It's a distinctive and impressive bird. My eye was first caught with the colour - that patch of red is almost luminous, but then the way it moved up the tree, keeping the stance like the image above, was pure Woodpecker (from memories of seeing them on TV). It brought a smile at time when I need a few smiles!

Life, the universe...

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All around me, the signs of spring abound. One of my friends, Sarah , has just blogged about her first nettle and root soup of the season - I want to be 'out there' doing stuff, yet I am caged, kept within myself by events beyond my control. In life, as in nature (because life is nature, is life), there are cycles. Some cycles are perpetual in the sense that summer will follow spring, which follows winter, which follows autumn, which follows summer and so on. Other cycles have a start and an end, and are complete within one cycle, although they are part of bigger cycles that all link up. I am referring to the cycle of life and in particular, to our wonderful canine companion, Albert, who it seems, is approaching the end of his physical days on the earth. A few days ago, he was diagnosed with degenerative liver disease. He's been put on medication to support his liver, which we are supplementing with some herbal tablets, but the vet's anxiety is that he does not

Living without money

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Mark Boyle started an experiment a few years ago - he decided to live without money. Now there are many people who would wish to find fault with what Mark is doing. They will say that he's not really living without money because he uses things that others have given him, and that they used money to buy them in the first place. They might say that working in a pub and being 'paid' in food means that people have to earn money to buy drinks and meals in order for the pub landlord to 'give' Mark the food. Fair enough, but if you think Mark and his book is just about money, then you've missed the point. Mark studied marketing and in reality, he now admits, that he uses the moneyless tag to get people's attention - what he is really talking about is respect for the earth - a new way of living. I read Mark's book at the end of 2010 and it's a really good read. I don't pretend for one minute that I would want to live the life that Mark does, but t

The Simple Life

Growth by ~ SaturnonaStick on deviantART Here's a little collection of phrases advocating simplicity that I found on the internet (can't actually remember where I copied these from - oops!). Through simplicity, we can grow within ourselves, without being weighed down by the chattels of our lives. Simplicity is something we should strive for, but also recognise that a) it's not for everyone, all of the time, and b) it's not necessarily easy! Like Einstein says, "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler". Charles Mingus -Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that's creativity. Hans Hofmann - The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak. E. F. Schumacker - Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius—and a lot of courage—to move in the opposite

Star Child

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We had a short stay in Glastonbury last October. For a variety of reasons, we weren't able to walk the Tor or Chalice Well Gardens, so that'll be for the next time! We did manage a trip round Glastonbury Abbey, which was actually more interesting than I thought! However, one of my favourite shops has got to be Star Child - there is an amazing feeling in the shop, and just look at all the herbs behind the counter...