Ignorance and Want

 

Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol' has long been one of my favourite stories. One of the most stirring parts of the tale is the appearance of Ignorance and Want beneath the robes of the Ghost of Christmas Present. 'A Christmas Carol' is relevant and poignant every year, it has helped make me a more generous person and generosity always seem to be something we could do more of along with love, kindness, patience, compassion, forgiveness, peace ...

 

Poetry Therapy

 

I have enjoyed reading and writing poetry since I was little girl. The first poetry I fell in love with was contained in Peacock Pie by Walter de la Mare, in my adolescence I became obsessed with Sylvia Plath and the poems contained in Ariel. From 2000 to 2005 I ran my own poetry group 'SubVerse' which explored 'the Poetry of surrender'. We also ran art events and unassertiveness courses, looking back it was all fun and therapeutic, I kind of miss it.

Moving forward I encountered more poetry as I moved away from Christianity into Buddhism, there was much talk about Rumi. A favourite poem among the mindful is Leisure by WH Davies. Below is a wonderful poetry anthology you can dip into throughout the year, it includes many therapeutic poems including Leisure.

Reality Bites - Time and Space

 

I did my first 6by6 reading challenge in Spring 2019 and really enjoyed the Big Book2Film challenge of 2020 and the Fantastic Reads of 2021.The above books represent the Reality Bites selection for 2022. Below are the history, scifi and journey titles for my Time and Space challenge of 2023. For the time challenge I also hope to read 2 books representing the 2 world wars, Goodbye to all that and Inside Hitler's Bunker.

The Midnight Cat

'The Midnight Cat' is a piece of flash fiction inspired by our cat Maddie. It is part of my flash fiction collection 'Bubble Universe'. This story did not make it onto WattPad, so here it is, in full, on my blog.

The midnight cat by LJ Finnigan

Jasmine couldn’t sleep. She was restless in her bed; the atmosphere oppressing her, the air stifling and the rain beating hard against the window.

‘What a day and what a night. If I don’t get to sleep soon I’ll be late up in the morning,’ she thought, ‘I wonder what the time is.’

She reached over to her bedside table and pressed the night light on her clock.

‘Midnight.’

Somewhere outside, beyond the rain and the wind, a cat’s meow pierced the dark night.

Jasmine rolled over and stared through her rain splattered bedroom windows at the deep grey night, the shadows and the swaying trees. She closed her eyes and the sound of the midnight cat’s plaintive cry broke into her waking dreams.

Suddenly she was outside, following the serene, soothing creature through the stormy night. Her nightie was thin, she should have been freezing, but the cat had an extraordinary presence; an aura of coolness, warmth and calm emanated from it; an aura whose sphere of influence surrounded Jasmine.

She walked on behind the cat; through the sparkling city streets, along the haunted canal, through the lush park and the sparse forest on the edge of town. All the while the cat walked through the weather and was hardly affected by it, its velvet paws hardly touched the ground, yet is senses were acute; seeming to register every light footstep, feint car hum and gentle leaf rustle that stirred in the darkly hostile night.

The motorway loomed and the cat turned to face its follower. Its eyes gleamed a glowing green and transported Jasmine back to her bed. She rolled over to check her clock once more.

‘One o’clock.’

Jasmine sighed, before becoming aware of the soft purring, emanating from the furry mound that now inhabited the space beside her.

(302 words)

Summary: A sleepless girl’s troubled night-time is soothed by the mysterious influence of the Midnight Cat.

Tea Therapy

  

I started drinking tea when I was about ten and have now been enjoying it for over forty years, other rivals have come along like Guinness and Lattes, but they have failed to overtake my love of a good cuppa. I ran the SubVerse Poetry Tea Room from 2000 to 2005 which was inspired by my love of surrender, tea and poetry. Above and below are some of the tea related art I have created over the years.

Walking with nature

 

I first discovered the joy of nature walking in August 2019 when I visited our local House Gardens in Hillingdon. By March 2020 we had found six special nature spaces we could visit on the bus.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Covid 19 and the national lockdown meant we had to find nature places within walking distance. Thanks to Google maps we found a different local nature walk for every day of the week.

In Summer 2020 we were able to return to our original six places and we found even more green spaces to explore in the Autumn. The Winter brought fresh restrictions, but our nature walking continued, nearly every day, which really helped us through this very difficult time.

When Spring 2021 arrived, I was determined to visit the House Gardens at this special time of year. We managed to visit them once in March, once in April and twice in May.

It has been good to visit all our special places in Summer 2021, they have been very important for our mental health and wellbeing over the trying times of the pandemic and beyond. I hope we will continue with our local nature walking well into the future.

 

Momento Mori

'Remember you must die'. I find the idea of Memento Mori strangely comforting. One thing I don't like is the thought of leaving my daughter. I enjoy solitude and thought it might be selfish, but now I think it might help people cope when I'm not around anymore. Whatever way round you look at it, we all lose the people we love and we all die. Putting it into the context of our solar system dying and our earth being burnt to a crisp by our dying sun, puts a better perspective on the matter. Above and below are artworks produced by myself and my daughter concerning The Grim Reaper.

Horror Therapy

My daughter was quite sceptical about Horror Therapy being a thing. I think it is a good way to face your fears. I have enjoyed all these horror films over the years, they are possibly not too scary, especially if you have watched them as often as I have. I think the portmanteau horror films are my favourites; Dead of Night, Tales of Terror and From Beyond the Grave. From Beyond the Grave is my most favourite; it stars Peter Cushing as the shop keeper and inspired my poem The Antique Junk shop.

Seaside Reflection

 

It occured to me, a few months ago, that if we managed to get to our 2021 holiday destination of Felixstowe then we would be able to celebrate twelve consecutive years of holidays by the sea. During these twelve years we also managed a trip to Brugge which included some time spent on the Belgium coast and my visit to New York City which included an outing to Coney Island. I love being by the seaside and it has been good to focus on these special times which help me through the darker, colder days of winter.

Autumn Term Therapy

September is traditionally the start of a new school year. Even when school is but a memory, September can be thought of as a chance for a new beginning, of developing ourselves, starting on new paths of self realisation. You can begin therapy at any time, use it to help you. You have one life, you didn't ask to be here, be kind to yourself and do what's best. Therapies for the Autumn Term involve writing, whether working on my blog or writing poetry, facing fear through horror, Edgar Allan Poe or Dr Who, or just contemplating higher realms through tea or spirituality.

The Missing Links 2021

Covid19 has continued to wreak havoc with planned visits this year. These are the places I have been concentrating my efforts on getting to in 2021.

The House Gardens in Spring

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We didn't visit the House Gardens at all in Spring 2020, due to the first Covid19 lockdown. I was determined to visit them in Spring 2021. We visited them once in March, once in April and twice in May and very beautiful they were.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Crane Park

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I visited this park when I was very young. It lingered in my mind and I was very pleased to revisit it in 2021.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Belfast

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One and a half years since first booking our Belfast trip, it was a relief to get there in June 2021. I found Belfast to be enjoyable, intriguing and slightly old-fashioned. I particularly enjoyed the Titanic quarter by the River Lagan and the sightseeing bus tour.

 

Japanese Garden @ Regent's Park

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We visited this place on a summer’s Saturday in June. It was very crowded and a bit fraught. But I was pleased to have made it here at last.

 

 

Westfield Park, Shepherds Bush

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We used to go to Westfield just to look at the shops, but on recent visits I have become intrigued with the urban park that is being developed there. Plus, we can enjoy a latte in one of the many cafes and visit a real life book shop.

 

The V&A Museum

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amy and I both agreed that the V&A was our favourite museum in London. We hope to enjoy an unrestricted visit here before the end of the year.