Last week I spent a delightful couple of hours in a Garden to Vase flower arranging workshop with the brilliant Annie Jenkins.
We’d arranged it as a birthday treat for my mum, and 5 of us followed Annie around her garden - finding out all about the different plant varieties, how to cut them, and what to do with them.
We then sat, played, chatted and created in the sunshine. It was a complete treat, a wonderful shared experience, and a fun creative process.
It’s hard to focus when we’re constantly being interrupted.
Notifications, messages, calls, meeting invitations, people popping in for a chat and not realising we’re listening to or working on something.
It’s frustrating - we never get a chance to get into what we need to or want to.
If only there was a way that we could get some quiet focus time…
Oh wait. There are lots of ways!
I love to read - both real books and on my Kindle, a mix of all kinds of things.
I have authors I auto buy, books that come recommended from friends or on social media, suggestions that pop up on an algorithm.
Each may sound like something I’d want to read. I might already like the author, the idea of the book, or the sound of the reviews - so how to decide which to invest the time and energy in?
If I’m not sure, and sometimes even if I am, I Try a Sample. It’s so useful to read the first pages, have a small taste, get a sense of what’s it’s about in real life.
Often it’s just as I imagined and I go onto buy it. Sometimes it’s just not my cup of tea and I don’t. And both are absolutely fine.
It’s such a gift to have tried it and know whether to say yes, no, or maybe later.
