The secret of life is balance, and the absence of balance is life’s destruction – Hazrat Khan
Once again, Hospice UK is promoting Dying Matters Awareness Week, this year between 6 and 12 May 2024. All over the country, events are popping up to raise awareness about the importance of conversations around what’s important to people at the end of life, whether for yourself or for someone close to you. You can Continue reading
The beautiful hawthorn blossom is almost synonymous with May Day, also the day known as the festival of Beltane. Indeed, another name for it is may blossom. Its snowy white flowers are strung like garlands throughout our hedgerows right now, while its delicate scent drifts on the breeze – though don’t be tempted to bring Continue reading
Imbolc has passed, and with it the darkest part of Winter. As the light returns, our thoughts turn to what we plan to plant ready to harvest later in the year – it’s the time of infinite possibilities! Whether we’re looking at what to put in the garden or what to manifest in our lives, Continue reading
I love this time of year, watching Nature put herself to bed for a long, well-earned rest. Trees gently drop their leaves, forming a blanket of nutrients on the ground below. Squirrels scurry around busily, gathering and storing nuts to keep them going through the less abundant Winter, before curling up in their nests. Plants Continue reading
Over the last few months, I’ve been part of a team working together to create the next Kicking the Bucket Festival in Oxford. The last one was in 2016, which unfortunately passed me by! However, last summer at a funeral, I was walking back to the reception centre with Liz Rothschild who’d been the celebrant, Continue reading
Last week I was delighted to be invited to speak at Knowledge Day, a staff wellbeing day, with a focus on end of life care for residents, at PJ Care in Milton Keynes. I have worked closely with this amazing company since 2017, and am always grateful for the welcome they give me, and the Continue reading
We are currently in the middle of Dying Matters Awareness Week, an annual occasion in the UK where people and organisations across the country hold events in their communities to raise awareness about death and dying. The campaign aims to work with people everywhere to create an open culture where we feel comfortable to talk Continue reading
Spring has definitely popped her head up over the horizon! It feels as if she’s been particularly shy this year, emerging with gusto, only to retreat behind yet another flurry of strong winds, torrential rain or overnight freezing temperatures. I’m grateful for her endless efforts, and the joy that her blue skies, sunshine and Spring Continue reading
Losing a loved pet can be heart-breaking, and yet not always recognised. When my children’s pet died it was the first death they’d experienced. We sat down together and created a memory book. Looking back they weren’t particularly fazed by Coco’s death, and yet it gave us the opportunity to talk about dying within a Continue reading
Technically we are in the depths of Winter, a time for rest…I wonder how many of us feel rested after the recent festivities…! Last year I was conscious of this ideal time for rest and recuperation and allowed my budding ideas around the lost art of simple dying to percolate slowly, before taking the bull Continue reading