Corona birthday

So it turns out I’m now 45! I’m pretty proud of that! Today I am happy to be alive; it wasn’t always so. Today I delight in my body, its health and strength and adaptability; it wasn’t always so. But I’m not really looking back at past darkness. Nor am I extending my hopeful vision... Continue Reading →

April 19, 2020 3

Resolution on tiptoes

So is it time for a review of those new year's resolutions yet? I don't usually make any, I dislike the whole 'new year, new you' rhetoric, as if life isn't hard enough as it is, as if being me (fully me) isn't a life-long resolution in itself. The attempt to do that is pretty... Continue Reading →

March 1, 2020

Counting the days

I like to think I'm a pretty organised kind of person. So why does Christmas seem to take me by surprise every year? It starts so early in the shops, after all, and I seem to dwell in the self-righteous opinion that they're spoiling the season by over-exposure -- until all of a sudden it's... Continue Reading →

December 5, 2019 0

School of unlearning

I spent a lot of time recently with a colleague at work and I noticed she always sat with one foot tucked under her. We're pretty close so I couldn't resist suggesting to her that she might want to alternate her sitting position every now and then. We talked a bit about body imbalances caused... Continue Reading →

November 13, 2019 4

Food for thought

I went to the supermarket today, something I don't do very often. Groceries usually come to me by doorstep delivery, supplemented by a weekly fruit and veg box and some small scale supplementary shopping by Hubby. I hate supermarkets. In truth I find them slightly overwhelming. Everything seems excessive -- quantities, choice, variety of brands.... Continue Reading →

October 6, 2019 4

Building a life

While I was on holiday in Rome I visited the place my mum used to live many years ago, when she was a lot younger than I am now. She asked me to see if I could find it and it turned out the road was not too far away, just the other side of... Continue Reading →

July 25, 2019 0

Tourist manners

It's funny being such a tourist for a while. I'm not very used to it. Childhood holidays were pretty low-key affairs and usually in quiet, more rural locations with only occasional forays into the larger towns to see the museums and cultural sites. Now I'm in central Rome in the height of summer. Everywhere I... Continue Reading →

July 20, 2019 0

Rupture and continuity

One of my best friends nearly died recently. A ruptured appendix, a bungled diagnosis and delayed surgery. I've been visiting her in hospital, feeling helpless in the face of drips, oxygen, and the indignity of surgical gowns. She was weak and confused. I'm not sure she remembered if I'd been with her or not; she... Continue Reading →

May 16, 2019 0

Running wild

When I first started Rolfing, my homework was about skipping and leaping, encouraging me to find a bit of joy in simple movements. I did my best, feeling a little foolish, needing to force the movements rather than finding them arising naturally. More recently my Rolfing homework has been about my effervescent ears. Same underlying... Continue Reading →

February 16, 2019 2

Metaphorical work

I haven't written in an age. Did you notice, really? I haven't felt drawn to share much. A web of physical pain and some emotional (let's call them spiritual) entanglements and confusions, some quiet disillusionment about modern yoga -- all threatening stagnation in my practice but ultimately providing shitty fertilizer which has allowed for some... Continue Reading →