On Saturday my lovely adventure buddy Penny and I did a beautiful 7 mile walk through various green bits of London, some of which were familiar to us and some not.
We’ve walked a lot together before - mini adventures finding our own way from home to Buckingham Palace, and from Battersea Park to home.
This time we followed someone else route - a section of the Capital Ring - where there was a particular way to go and markers to help us stay on track.
I started writing a weekly reflection back in October 2022. As well as sharing them here, I created a blog page on my website where they all live.
The vision to was to create a useful resource, both for me and others. A kind of library - a place to store and structure what I was writing and learning about, for the benefit of me and anyone who wanted to access it.
Except I never put a filing system in, so it became less of a library and more of a disorganised and increasingly large pile!
If only there was a way of grouping and organising them to make them searchable. Ah, Categories and Tags - the things I’d ignored since the start…
The first half of May has mainly been about the Lake District, first on a family trip, and most recently at the Fred Whitton Challenge in Grasmere.
It’s an event that my husband has done solo for the last few years, first as a rider and most recently as an artist, but this time I went with him.
What a gift.
Time in a gorgeous location, a fun shared experience, a super friendly event with incredible community spirit, the loveliest people - plus, witnessing the true power of a support system.
Over the summer I’ve been listening to the Books, Beach & Beyond podcast, where all kinds of writers are interviewed about their journey to where they are now, what they write, how they write, and why they write.
I love it.
A question the hosts often ask is this one: Are you a plotter (plans out everything in detail before they start writing), or a pantser (starts with an idea and lets it unfold as they go)?
The answers vary hugely. Both types exist and are successful - there’s no right way or best way - but they definitely know which one they are.
It feels like this question is useful in so many more contexts! How do we like to approach the story of our lives? Our work? Our play?
For 3 days recently, part of my daily commute was a walk from London Victoria to Marble Arch, through a sunny Hyde Park.
It’s not a route I’ve done before, and it’s safe to say I’m not a natural navigator. I’m terrible at finding my way to new places on my own the first time (and often a few times after that!).
In the past I’ve judged myself for this. It felt like a weakness I should be able to fix.
Now I use Maps.
Does it feel like you need to have a detailed plan when you’re at the start of a new adventure?
Perhaps a switch of career, or a new job, or a sabbatical, maybe even a gap year.
So you don’t have to sit with the uncertainty.
And so other people don’t worry about you?
When we think about what we want to create in our lives, and how we can get there, it can be super tempting to try and create a straight line between here and there.
If we can’t see all the steps it can feel like we’re not going to make it.
And so our brain really wants to decide on on a plan, and stick to it.
To create it all before we start.
It’s a really common way to help us feel safe and in control. And yet…it’s impossible to do.
“Where do you get your ideas from?”
I was asked this recently, and I replied that I see ideas everywhere.
I’ll notice something - a visual, a sentence in a book, a view, a part of a conversation - and an idea forms in my brain. Sometimes it’s just a fragment, and sometimes it seems to download, fully formed.
And I then realised that wasn’t the whole story.
When I reflected on it further I realised that I’ve been increasing my capacity to have ideas over time. I’ve been building a habit.
It’s a practice, not a gift.
…how can you let the rope do the talking?
Last summer my sister and I spent a day in London with my mum, celebrating her 75th birthday.
It was a complete treat. A proper afternoon tea and The London Eye, with a visit to Covent Garden in the middle to visit the Charlotte Tilbury store and find a great lipstick.
The experience was magical.
Fabulous service, feeling spoiled and laughing a lot, leaving with absolutely the right thing.
But first, waiting to be invited in.
Most Friday mornings you’ll find me walking our dog in the park with friends.
We’re all mums of teenagers, and share experiences, learnings and hacks for the various challenges and situations we face. It’s good to get it all out and leave it in the park!
They are ‘friends who get where I am now’ – and form part of a wider support system that has evolved and grown as I have.
When I reflect on who else is part of the system, I can see how varied it is – and how far it stretches.
