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Hello Kate and welcome to March.

Can you feel the shift of seasons all around you?

While you may be grappling with some personal things in your life now (and the world certainly is) the shift of light and temperature always serves to reminds me that the wheel turns. No matter what! Things never stay the same – it’s so darn obvious but I do welcome the reminder from nature when the outward ‘Stagnancy’ starts flowing again when the time is right.

Here in Scotland the crocuses and daffodils are just appearing through the cold…

THINGS ALWAYS SHIFT IN THE END ….IT’S NATURE’S LAW!

A couple of weeks back I did a mammoth meditation process one Sunday morning. It felt big, bold, powerful and a tad over the top even for me. Tears of gratitude swirled down my face and my heart cracked wide open heart. At the end of the process I was guided (audibly by the teacher I was following) to ask for a clear sign that I was on the right track.

I wasn’t specific about the sign, just that I would like one. I left it at that and got on with my day.

I KNOW I can speak for many of you, becaause you have been sharing this with me recently, when I say change is hurtling around in 2023.

Big, bold and brave change!
No turning back change!
Life altering change!
Heart wide open change!
Fearless steps forward change!
Fall on your knees change!

I always remember Jack Canfield saying it takes no more energy or effort to have a big dream than a small dream.

Back in 202O I went through one helluva major rejig and reset of all things – life/ partner/ work/ country of abode all at once. Now, just three years later, with a small home base on the remote Scottish island of Iona (after 6 years of living #LocationFree) I now feel an even deeper rumbling asking for the NEXT phase to emerge.

Deeper
Bolder
Another shift
Scary and exhilarating in the same breath

Do you feel you are being called to YOUR next chapter & phase in life?

This is what we specifically embrace on the unique “IONA: Cutting the Threads that Bind Retreat.” Calling in and welcoming the future by letting go of and clearing out the past.

Putting a full stop where it belongs – end of story!
Moving forward with energy, grace and a lightness of being.

We welcome your crossroads – whether we’ve been through them and need to process them, are IN them right now or intuitively know they are looming up ahead and coming no matter what.

Do you embrace changes or shy away from them Kate?
I typically err on the side of embracing change.
I welcome and celebrate it – or at least do my best to
Moving, travelling and shifting lights me up and energizes me.

This next chapter coming feels even bigger than my last shift a personal level and so …

Back to the Sunday story about the meditation / prayers and how I was calling in guidance in the form of a “sign from upstairs.”

For me and no-one else.
Asking for confirmation about seeking more joy, alignment, abundance and love and what brings me authentic happiness now.

Checking that the possible choices I can envisage myself making to shift direction are truly right for me.
Right for this chapter in my life.
I can get carried away super fast….so I wanted to slow down and check in.
Truly check in and get confirmation from my heart and spirit.

So, a few hours after this meditiation I was out walking with my friend to the far side of the island, to the place of Pilgrimage. We had planned this lovely day out for a possible swim and some delicious dahl on the beach to warm us up after a 6 degree dip. Eeck

SIGN #1
As we reached St Columba’s bay, I was ridiculously overjoyed when I looked down where we stood and saw my BIG WHITE sign. See top pic! I am an avid finder and collector of naturally heart -haped rocks. I have been for about 15 years. I collect them and gift them on….and some stay with me for a while. The simple act of FINDING one makes me smile and connects me to my core. Mostly I take a photo and leave them right where they are!
This is the biggest one I have ever found!

Thank you, thank you I have a sign. You can see how HUGE it is against the front of my big walking boot!

So ….we decided NOT to swim as the sun hadn’t yet come out, the water looked a tad too rough and tricky, and the southerly wind was howling, making the swim dangerous and too cold and we were a long way from home.

“Let’s just have tea here at the little bay and walk back via the other beach on the way home,” we decided. “If the sun comes out and the sea looks more inviting (ha ha its flipping cold so inviting is a loose term) we can have our dip ‘n dhal there.”

SIGN #2
So we moved to the shelter of another part of St. Columba’s bay, and poured some delicious hot steaming tea. We come prepared – this was aniseed and rose tea if i recall correctly? I was drawn to go stand near the waters edge while sipping my brew.

And then I gasped as I looked down and saw what I thought was a piece of Serpentine. The beautiful crystal found only on this part of the island. Then the water schwooshed in fast and I had to run backwards. Mmm maybe it was just kelp, or a lichen covered rock.

Water receded and I step forward
Bent down fast to try pick it up
Doesn’t budge
Whoa this is big!
Water comes in – run backwards – water out – quick rummage

I had to literally dig the piece out of the sand and could hardly lift it with my cold hand in fingerless gloves in winter. Go figure – one hand was holding my tea!

I have NEVER in all my years seen such a huge clear piece of Serpentine
Hello sign #2!
I get you loud and clear universe!

I had tears in my eyes and was giggling and my friend could not believe her eyes! She’s a long term local and agreed it’s the biggest piece ever!


SIGN #3 – IS THERE REALLY MORE?
We left that beach to go to our potentially sunnier swimming beach. The sun peeked out and the water beckoned us in of course. Then with full “dhal” bellies we walked along another stretch of the machair (beach grass) to look for the old shipwreck only visible in certain low tides.

I just burst out laughing when I looked down and found sign #3.

Another huge stone ‘epidote’ heart at my feet. Even bigger than number 1
I mean come on, I was happy with ONE sign. Then TWO.
But clearly I needed THREE to shut me the heck up and leave zero room for questioning the meditation request!

So I’m on track clearly.
Scary – but on track

So how about YOU Kate?

Is there something you are wondering about and can you ask for a sign in any way that works for you? Remember though – that when the sign arrives, be sure to see it, embrace it, thank it and LISTEN TO it as your confirmation!
Signs don’t like to be ignored…otherwise you may just get a fat wake-up call

I’d love to hear your special stories as always -please drop me a line it makes my day, and keeps me inspired to write to you! I will always read what you send and reply personally!

With all my love and March energy

Kate

P.S. Drawn to work with me in some form?
Please drop me line on kate@kate-emmerson.com and we can set up a call via Whatsapp

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Can you also wish upon a star Kate?

Earlier this month I was having tea with someone on Iona who mentioned they see shooting stars all the time. Often. Regularly. Short bursts of them and looong slow ones.
Really?
Nope, not me
Never – well not for 20 years
A baby “harrumph!” uttered under my breath

Then again, I am definitely not complaining as I always look for and therefore see hearts in everything. Everywhere I go! It’s my go-to sign that all is ok and on track for me in life. Yet …after hearing his words, I changed my vocabulary that night to start saying “I see shooting stars!”

I am also saying a resounding YES to new adventures of the heart. Literally two nights later I was on such a “first-date adventure” on the island of Mull and we were walking home from a profound musical soiree. I was telling “Mr. Date X” this same story, saying that I am now choosing to see shooting stars … and you can guess what happened right?

I kid you not! As we were walking back up the hill to the hotel, (now, now – we had separate rooms, take it easy!) overlooking the beautiful Tobermory Bay on a clear winter’s evening…. we both saw a shooting star swoosh elegantly across the sky. I had forgotten just how mesmerizing they are!

I hollered, whooped and giggled with sheer delight.
Closed my eyes and said a prayer!

That annoying adage is pretty much always true…what we are looking for and paying attention to, will usually make itself more visible! Those illuminated sparks are there all the time…I was just looking in another direction.

This was my bright and glittery reminder that wrote itself across the sky.

Want to know how this works in life – YOU PROVE YOURSELF RIGHT!

I have been contemplating this concept a lot for myself as December rolled around this year.
Looking for proof you are not good enough …you will find it
Looking for confirmation you are not loveable – someone will remind you if you let them Wanting to prove the world is a hideous place … you will most definitely find that
Looking to confirm bosses are painful – just go to work for that
Client’s never pay or
People always die or
Lovers betray you or
People can’t be trusted or
Everyone lets you down …ad infinatum

Oh yes, you can have all of this and more proven hundred fold every single awful day!

AND the same is true of the opposite…you also prove yourself right!

Looking for proof of kindness…it abounds everywhere
Looking for love and heart shaped rocks …come view my collection
Need reminding that generosity exists – consume different news
Think the best of people – then the best you will see!
Believe people are generous ….you will witness that daily
Feel grateful for your life …it will keep being kind
Trust that all is working out – it usually does
Know that delays are in your favour – they might just be

And the more you ARE these beautiful qualities, the more you can experience them in return.

Does it mean the hideous, awful, discriminatory reality doesn’t exist – hell no – but we can also choose to focus our hearts and minds on more positive things. In every single moment! Just be also sure to take up the good fight, stand your ground when needed and take action where you genuinely feel called to make a difference. The world needs brave courageous action.

One of the bravest and boldest things you can do – is follow the dreams that are in your heart.
Live YOUR life.
No matter what.
Change where you focus
Change what you look for in others
Change your story – or live into it with relentless courage and honesty
Get help if you need to


It reminds me of this Henry Ford Quote – “Whether you think you can or you
think you can’t, you’re right.”

I am definitely wishing upon stars again after seeing something so sparkly that I hadn’t seen in over 20 years.
Shooting stars are firmly on my radar again!
So is Love
Abundance
Self worth
Dollops of kindness
Lashing of generosity

So – for today, as the year starts winding it’s way to another end. I’d love to share more about December and where I put my focus. I always find it spirals faster and faster to the finality that looms on the 31st December.

HOW DO YOU FACE DECEMBER?

Do you like this time of year?
Love it?
Loathe it?
I personally love it because I harness it as a way to pause and reflect.

I embrace December as a form of permissible do-over.

Sometimes it’s a pat on the back.
Sometimes it’s a bit of a nudge.
Sometimes it’s a slap!
Sometimes it has a sense of humour.
Usually all simultaneously.

I use this time of year to acknowledge what have I done genuinely well, assess where could I up the ante and evaluate what or who I should let go of?

How do you approach December Kate – Dread it or Delight in it?

Lately clients have been asking me to share how I end the year, or close it out.
Do I have any advice for them, etc?

WHAT END OF YEAR INSIGHTS CAN I SHARE WITH YOU TODAY?

Below is a mish–mash of how I am approaching the end of this year. It’s a quick 6 minute read that may spark a thing or two for you to consider as you bring 2022 to an elegant end.

Most of these are quiet inner processes that require deep, heart-based mulling time.
Much more about an essence of being than hustling and doing.

I generally do this intropsection in the quiet of the morning when I awake and the sun isn’t up yet (it IS winter in Scotland!), when I meditate and journal, or when out exploring and swimming on my island. I find the more I keep my heart and creativity aligned, the easier it is to whisk things off the year end TO DO list with a flourish.

39 IDEAS I’M MULLING THIS MONTH

1. Trusting there is another beautiful chapter opening
2. Teeing up heartfelt conversations about longer term ‘footprint’ plans
3. Remembering how much I have laughed all year – my elixir for life
4. Grateful for the professional support I have choose – spiritual healing, osteopath,
homeopath, strategy sessions and global friends
5. Saying thank you to pivotal people who have guided my year
6. Looking for shooting stars of course!
7. Remembering that roses blossom better when pruned ruthlessly
8. Acknowledging Zebras have unique stripes & they never compare them!
9. Tidying up pesky admin from the year – yes, admin schadmin
10. Fulfilling commitments – I made them, so best I complete them
11. Nudging other projects along, notch by notch
12. Staying mesmerized & in love with my “Treasure Trove” Booklets
13. Remaining kind when others cross boundaries, as I see their pain
14. Simultaneously re-considering relationships
15. Staying centered when others are vitriolic
16. Believing in my self worth – I belong here as do you
17.Removing myself off newsletters I’m not vested in
18. Reveling in filling retreats 80% already for 2023
19. Executing big NO’s when time is up
20. Taking some big financial future–based actions
21. Learning “islandgirl” skills weekly! This month it’s how to book couriers to collect things FROM Iona to swoosh around the world for New Year. Earlier this year it was to get groceries TO Iona! Isn’t that a beautiful circle to have closed?
22. Stopping to pat myself on the back at what I have accomplished
23. Taking time to support friends in need
24. Not shrinking back and wishing away the year too soon
25. More 3 degree cold water swims on Iona (see gorgeous pic of me taken TODAY!) Still proudly refusing to wear swimbooties or wetsuit gear!
26. Keeping self care and reflection top of my list every day
27. Starting to date again….oh the ups & downs of that you will definitely hear about after being single for THREE years! (remember my Highland Fling from exactly a year ago?) 28. Putting some big ideas into place for the expansive year ahead
29. Being mindful of how much electricity I consume- playing a game with myself to become more cold resistant
30. Wearing cashmere and wool instead of synthetics
31. Remembering to give back where drawn but not to negotiate my worth
32. Sticking to several hours phone on airplane mode
33.Rewarding intense work with yummy massage
34.Streamlining computer, files and photos! EVERY SINGLE YEAR!
35. Immersing in our final “writing binge” weekend to support our international community 36.Mmmm… very grateful for all chocolatiers and vintners! (aka wine-masters!)
37. Homemade Dhal on the beach after a cold swim
38. Lipstick EVERY day
39. Making sure I get enough sleep and nursing a shoulder injury.

Bit of a random December year-end selection right?

So, how are you approaching December and does something off my personal list spark resonance and lightbulbs for you? What might you contemplate adding or removing this month?

Most of all, I wish you some peace in your heart, a deeper understanding of all that is happening in our crazy world, and some rest and recuperation as the year comes to a close.

Much Love
Kate

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Harp-gasmed!!!    brilliant read as usual. DA
Lemon-drizzle shizzle baby. DW

*********************************************
Where oh where does this daft saying come from?

It was just two weeks ago and I was all prepped and ready to welcome some brave women off the ferry as they arrived on my wee island of IONA for the “Cutting the threads that Bind Retreat.” Getting to this Inner Hebridean island is ALWAYS a lovely and lengthy pilgrimage – no shortcuts, no quick drop-ins…you REALLY REALLY have to want to come here with all your heart and soul. So when it calls you, it doesn’t let go till you have come and greeted this ancient piece of land. It is also why so much love, magic and healing happens here. And Lemons!

If you have followed me for any length of time you will know that lemons are always my little talisman of proving I’m on the right path. They appear out of nowhere in the most unlikely of places. Others find feathers or see angels in clouds. Apart from my love of heart-shaped rocks, lemons are my key way of the universe showing up and reminding me all is ok! 

So this whole story tickled me and we created the saying ….JUST LEMON DRIZZLE IT!
As my eager clients arrived at the Green Shed, our beautiful venue on the North Shore…. I finally got to meet each one. Happy, eager but super tired eyes looked into mine and then I heard the news! Traveling from Scotland, West Coast USA, and England …these ladies had ALL come so far. But for the poor lass traveling up on the overnight sleeper train from Devon…. oh my word. It was worse than the trip from the USA! The sleeper train did not have a bed. 
NO BED ON THE SLEEPER TRAIN. WTH? 

So I learned very fast as everyone was settling into their rooms, that while they were all venturing together on the last leg from Oban to Iona – that’s a ferry, bus and another ferry – Ms Devon had declared that all she needed was a cup of tea, lemon drizzle cake (her favourite) and a quick power nap, and all would be ok. She had been “on the hoof” for 24 hours with NO sleep, 3 trains, 2 ferries and a bus! 

Now, on our side of the equation in preparing for this special island retreat, we had created the most delicious, soulful, nourishing menu to support them process, heal and rest. Hatti (chef) and Anne (assistant) and myself had been concocting for months. The sheer logistics of catering and getting stuff here are nothing short of miraculous. In terms of pre-planning, shopping, car permits, traveling, prepping and freezing certain things ahead of time, it’s a LOT to coordinate. Our retreat menu was printed out and up on the board to share our five nights of delicious food meticulously planned with love and care! Day by day.

So what do you think we had planned for tea upon arrival on day 1?

I KID YOU NOT – LEMON DRIZZLE CAKE!!!!! Pic above!

With welcoming SUNSHINE to go with it!

It was like a rainbow drizzle of lemony love had enveloped us all as we realized she got EXACTLY what she wished for – exhausted beyond exhausted, she ate her favorite cake in the whole world, had a nap and was ready to rock our opening session just an hour later! You can’t make this stuff up! We didn’t go and quickly make it, or take it out the freezer….it had been planned all along! The pure delight of life showing up in perfect timing. 

I also knew that the retreat was being given a dose of approval and support from “upstairs” I started using the phrase. …Let’s just LEMON DRIZZLE IT – as my new mantra. Remember last month I shared some stories about special mantras (if you are new to my newsletter you will find the link when you signed up!) 

So this one is firmly at the top of my list now! 

THERE IS WAY MORE THAT UNFOLDED in this lemony tale. 
So we started doing deep emotional work, releasing the past, honoring life, letting go, cutting threads, and creating beautiful connections between the 7 of us. As the five days unfolded we needed to lemon drizzle a few more things FAST.

CUE WEATHER: 
When I had arrived back on Iona a week before the retreat, I started watching the weather forecast with trepidation. October is a totally different ball game from the last retreat in April

One day we always do a special pilgrimage to the far side of the island for one of the rituals. …it’s quite a long, tiring, and emotional 9am – 4pm day out. My weather app was showing me 55-gale-force winds, and pounding RAIN! Not great for us. All week I kept obsessively watching …..the wind started easing up as the storm moved and yet the rain changed forecast every day. I was maybe going to have to move everything around ….but no other day was looking promising either! And the pilgrimage is such a vital part of the process.I just started trusting and affirming I AM LEMON DRIZZLING the weather to myself. 

YES! We got to walk on the right day, and I just had to course-correct once en route to dodge a fast downpour and landed up having a profound experience in St Oran’s chapel (instead of the Nunnery Ruins). We also got to lie flat on a grassy hill listening to music and as we left Columba’s pay with full hearts, threads cut and stones in our pockets we were gifted rainbows from the skies. 

CUE STAFFA BOAT TRIP
As a surprise I wanted to take us all to Staffa. A truly memorable experience to visit this iconic rock close by…but of course it’s always ‘subject to both wind, tide and swells and at this time of year it’s very touch and go. The Staffa trips were only going out about once or twice a week this past month. Arrrgh …….the women didn’t know were going initially, until about day 3. It came out so we could ALL group lemon drizzle focus! I was in daily contact with the boat company to say YAH or NAY and it was a constant process of wait and see. So it sat there as a possibility. We had to adjust the day, and still getting there wasn’t a given yet. But boy oh boy we needed to lemon drizzle that boat for them! We never got there on the April Retreat because of the weather (one reason for those ladies to re-visit IONA) so I was manifesting extra hard this month. 

Lemon drizzle lemon drizzle shizzle baby!

In the final 24-hour window…. Staffa Trips said they could not risk going BUT the other company Staffa Tours with bigger (and therefore more stable boats) was still possibly trying for the next day. That was the last day the ladies would be on Iona! Quick messages back and forth to them to double-check and see if they had space for us. The power of intention! Everyone Lemon drizzle… We got glorious sunshine, tumultuous water, sea birds, seal pups, wild, wild wind and got to experience first hand the reality of the great Atlantic swell swooshing into Fingal’s Cave up close and personal. A little terrifying and exhilarating to hear that water! 

So although we didn’t get to land ON Staffa, we got a very special trip up the east side of the island that I had never seen before. Sweet lemons.


CUE SLEEPER TRAIN TRIP HOME 
So now it was time for Ms Devon to lemon drizzle a bed en route home. With offers of a night in Glasgow, help with luggage or a ride to the airport if plans were to be changed…she lemon drizzled double seat capacity which meant she could at least curl up and sleep properly, even if not horizontally. And we all learned that booking the sleeper train with Trainline does NOT mean you have a bed…remember that when you come to visit me here on Iona soon. Book direct with Caledonian sleeper! 

CUE HARPISTS 
Ms California stayed on for a couple of extra days and we got to spend a beautiful day simply hanging out. En route to the village we were greeted by THREE harpists walking up the road, playing the most hauntingly hypnotic music. We just sat on the bench and both had tears in our eyes at the glory of witnessing it. We followed (ok stalked!) them into the St. Columba Hotel and stood behind them absorbing it all for as long as they played. I was smitten. We asked where else they were possibly playing, but nothing was forthcoming and so, of course, we started saying …We ARE going to LEMON DRIZZLE more harpists. 

That night we lurked back in the hotel lounge for an aperativo in the hope that we would hear them practicing. Within ten minutes, I swear, an angelic voice accompanied by the plucking of strings started drifting from the lounge next door. We just closed our eyes, burst out laughing with glee and soaked it up. Smiling at the ludicrous magic of it. We were so darn determined to hear more harps that day that we had breathed it in and called upon all the lemon drizzle cake in the world to help us. Then a second lady started playing! 

We left there with big grins, and happy hearts…. And I wanted more. 
I wanted to be “harped!”

I did some more sleuthing, and after I waved goodbye to MS California the next morning, I went to St. Michael’s chapel behind the Abbey. I had heard there MIGHT be something happening there, but it was NOT as a public concert. It was to close off their weeklong harp workshop (I told you magical stuff happens on IONA!). I had interacted with a few of them to be sure they knew my face, and so went 30 minutes ahead of the time to sit in the chapel. I waited and waited and kept saying out loud “ I am lemon drizzle shizzling harpists!” 

And then in she walked, sat down and pulled out her harp. I asked if she minded if I stayed and listened. She smiled sweetly and said of course not. Then another one, two, three, four. Approx. 20 Harpists with shiny faces and gleaming eyes filled the chapel, known for it’s wonderful acoustics! I sat quietly mesmerized in the corner and was witness to their inner circle party of celebration with music, dance, Gaelic poetry recited. Merriment and love abounded

I was “HARP-gasmed” for 90 minutes!!! 

So please borrow this phrase Kate – it’s imbued with love and magic!

Go and find some delicious lemon drizzle cake soon to eat, pray and love that energy in your life. There were so many more special stories from the retreat. …But that would be letting too many lemons, sorry I mean cats, out of the bag! 

I do love and appreciate you so much! 
Kate

WHAT AM I LEMON DRIZZLING NEXT? 
Read more here about my NEW YEAR VIRTUAL RETREAT done anywhere in the world with a bespoke LIMITED EDITION bespoke ‘advent’ guide couriered to your door

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Spring is springing forth in all it’s glory in the Southern Hemisphere and the blossom was beckoning in this glorious garden as we took a “pink” selfie.

I am sharing the above picture as it was taken a few days ago in Barrydale, a very small village on the Route 62 where I lived for over a year back in my early 30’s!
It was this same part of the Klein Karoo that gave me two of my most important “mantras and prayers” that still stay with me and strengthen my heart. 
My go-to self soothers
Reminders that all will be ok
There is a bigger plan for each of us
To this day, I will often wake up repeating these prayers / mantras/ powerful sayings. They have a way of connecting me directly into spirit and are a form of self-soothing when I feel anxious or a little out of kilter. They are my go-to when I need to talk myself down from the stress spiral, to boost my energy or more importantly to calm my heart and know that all in all …..everything really is truly going to be ok! 

Karoo Mantra #1
That powerful baby dropped into my heart when I was moving cross country. I was literally parked under a sign that said ‘Barrydale 10 km’ just after the Lemoenshoek turn off on the R62 that slices across from Mossel Bay to Robertson. I screeched my gun-metal silver convertible VW beetle to a halt to take stock of the magnitude of the moment. 
To pause. 
To honour the long journey. 
Why? I was 32, and had just packed up ALL my belongings, and driven cross-country from Durban KZN, to Barrydale in the Klein Karoo. That’s about 1500 kilometers as a young woman travelling solo. I pulled over to the dusty side of the road, and as I looked at myself in the review mirror and popped some lipstick on, I knew this was an important moment to acknowledge. This is what “dropped” into my heart…
Oh infinite spirit I am willing to experience the truth 
of my divine plan!YIkes that’s a goodie right?I was filled with a deep trust and curiosity, as this little village had literally pulled at my heart strings from the very first time I had heard its name uttered the year before. I had a measly 116 ZAR (about10 dollars) to my name, yet a heart filled with hope and trust in the process!

I had been invited to stay with my two dear friends, moving between their B’nB room and their bedroom floor when it was occupied with guests. As I looked at myself and took a deep, dusty Karoo breath, I knew I had to be right here, right now. Whether I landed up staying in this small village for a day, week, month or year, this was where I had needed to travel to. 

Hey presto …. 
Within a week I had three jobs! 
I lived there for over a year, and still return to visit when I can! Like this month.
It’s one of my soul homes. 

I helped those dear friends out a bit in the tea garden which means I got to meet local people FAST! I got offered a part time position in the local Cafe on the R62, I got the Saturday morning job at the local winery (major bonus points for giving me wine to take home at the end of my shift) and then my prayers were answered as I was offered a fabulous position to look after a retreat centre that was being built. Complete with a self contained cottage for the caretaker. Aka ME! I landed up finding a community of love and healing 22 years ago! 

This month, as I greet the village again, I had the opportunity of bumping into two folk I met back then that I haven’t seen since ….and had an instant energy exchange of love, compassion and connection. It felt like a full coming of circle, of revisiting important people that crossed my path. I also got to visit the property I had taken care of and witness it’s exciting transformation into an ultra modern 5 star retreat centre. 

So many of experiences for the past 30 years are framed and held together by that powerful mantra that dropped into my heart at the side of the road that day.
Oh infinite spirit I am willing to experience the truth of my divine plan! 
Feel free to use it if you love it 
Karoo Mantra #2After eventually leaving Barrydale I started a business as one of the very first professional life coaches in South Africa back in 2003, and set up life in Johannesburg. My soul sister (who now lives in Barrydale!) called me up one day and invited me on a walk. Of course I said yes, and only then discovered it was a ten day ‘pilgrimage’ across the Klein Karoo. Cutting across the back end of no-where along dusty farm roads, sleeping in rural farms stays and carrying all our luggage like snails traversing the land. Reading the land. Listening to the messages from the earth. 
Day after day. Huffing and puffing up hills and dancing in the streets. Yoga en route to stretch aching limbs. A lot like the camino pilgrimage in Spain. 

We had 2 guides – a physical guide to get us to our physical destination every day, and then our more “spiritual guide.” Every morning before we set off the latter guide gave us something written to ponder and ruminate on while we walked. It was a sacred heart pilgrimage taking shape for each of us.
On the fourth day this is the mantra that “landed” and leapt into my heart.
Padam Padam 
Prati Padam
Arharti Iti
Praati PadikamUm….yes Sanskrit! So here is what it means in English…Step by step
At every Step
There lies Waiting
Quite still
That which is appropriate 
To that step!
I have used this mantra over and over again as a part of the Keynote talks I delivered globally in my career. There is something very lyrical and soothing about the Sanskrit version, even when not understanding its complete meaning. The cadence and energy of the rhythm invokes an immediate connection to the present moment. 

“Padam” shares its root with the English words ‘pedestrian’ and ‘pedal’ and so the essence of this mantra is simply ‘one step at a time’. The heart of mindfulness – present moment – in many of today’s teachings center around being here now. One of THE hardest things to master is simply to be on the step we are on. 

Not a moment wasted being stuck in the past, lugging what’s behind us into the now. And equally, not a moment dashing far ahead, prematurely anxious about the future and the possibility of what is or isn’t coming our way. Making peace with the past and feeling delight about the future is the point of power within us. Be
Here
Now

Step by Step!So Hatti I am wondering if YOU have a favourite prayer, quotes or mantras and how do you use them actively in your every day life? Please flood my inbox with what keeps YOU buoyed through tough times – perhaps I need yours to land in my heart today! How do you keep them alive in your heart?
I wake up gently whispering them, usually crossing my arms over my heart as I am lifting out of sleep and into the day. A few quiet repetitions of these ease my heart and get me started on the right footing before I bounce out of bed.

I love the ritual of this SACRED PAUSESending so much love to you today while staring out across the Klein Karoo in Barrydale)
Kate

The post Padam Padam Step by step: My mantra for 20 years appeared first on Kate Emmerson.

I do find that if I skip a month of sharing my musings with you, it’s that much harder to get back in the swing of it again. So here I am mulling over what to share as we head into the last month of summer.

What keeps coming up for me today, is a profound 2-week experience I had in Italy. After our summer writing retreats were all done and dusted, I met with 2 girlfriends for some R&R in NW Italy to discover the Ligurian coast – an area I had been wanting to explore.

I probably should have gone for some solo rest and restoration after hosting the retreats– but life had other plans for the three of us.

We found ourselves sharing a gorgeous apartment in Genoa. Tall ceilings, marble floors, gorgeous balcony doors, and the piece de resistance…..a huge outdoor terrace up some precarious stairs! We had the unique experience of exploring a new city together, basking in the gilded era of Baroque, tasting the yummiest pesto in the world, ogling at all the delicious “karpusis” (our inner circle code word for gorgeous head-turning Italian men) and diving into the Ligurian water in hysterically minute cove-type beaches.

We also had some major heart-wrenching events unfolding in each of our lives back home.

FALL IN LOVE WITH STAYING AND FEELING!
A few days into our trip – we sat with the question of “should we all just leave and get on planes to be with other people who need us right now?” I was ready to pack up in a flash.

Yet we found ourselves staying together for the full length of time, each sitting it out patiently, watching it unfold in each of our lives. Holding each other tenderly. Not making any sudden moves. We were poised at the ready if need be – but it wasn’t meant to be. And to be brutally honest, I really didn’t fall in love that part of Italy so much, so leaving early was actually preferable for me. The trio knew my feelings, sorry Genoa – but you will forever be etched in my memories now!

SIMPLY BEING WITH EACH OTHER ON THE TERRACE was a massive metaphor for life. All of us were patiently waiting, being where we needed to be.

Sitting
Talking
Sharing
Crying
Staying
Feeling
Laughing
Crying more
Drinking
Eating
More tears
More questions
More heartbreak
More of everything for us all
Late night calls
Messages around the world
Job offers not coming
Then coming
Phone calls not coming
Then coming
Some kept breathing life
And some didn’t …
Funerals
ICU

And still there was a city to explore
Life to be lived
Hearts beating
Feet aching
Blisters peeling
Candles lit
Singing storytellers clank clank clank on the guitar

THE TERRACE TALKS

We dubbed our daily morning ritual The Terrace Talks – over copious cups of strong coffee. And a hangover or two sneaked up there too. Love, friendship and vulnerable honesty was witnessed in our merry yet complicated trio.

Surrounded by the sweet swallows constantly swirling and dive-bombing our triangle while church bells rang loud and clear all around us as we poured our hearts and tears out.

We were each other’s sacred witness in a foreign land. Removed from life yet deeply steeped in the messiness of it.

So why does this tale feel important to share with you?

I guess it’s a reminder to embrace life amidst death, trust the hearts of whom you are with and when, and welcome honesty to the communal table with deep vulnerability.

It could have, and realistically probably should have, gone pear-shaped – three gals, two bedrooms, one bathroom, and a LOT going on emotionally between us! We had never traveled together before and here we were traveling in an expensive foreign currency and no language literacy. Yet there is so much you can do with a smooshing together of pigeon French, English, Greek and Italian along with hand gestures, google translate and the occasional fluttering of eyes thrown in. And always smiles even amidst the bleary tears. We could go from howling tears to screeching belly laughter in a rapid flash. Whether in public or in the safety of our terrace. We were each seeking to make sense of mammoth and bewildering transition points. We each arrived with different burdens and tales weighing on our hearts, with diverse interests and loves to explore, varying reasons for being in this city and a multitude of travel desires to fulfill. Three strong independent women were able to bear witness to each other.

It was a gift never even imagined, yet offered to each of us in the bittersweet moment that life threw at us.

I was the common “glue” between the three of us and had called us together on an Italian adventure. Northern Italy was on my radar to explore as a possible second home one day. But the trip kind of came together at the 11th hour, very close to the time. I kept thinking it wasn’t really going to happen. “C” and “D” only met each just other a few weeks before traveling, at the visa office in South Africa. Next thing we were on the train platform together making a “joint kitty” for our spending money.

SACRED WITNESS

Faced with everything from healing broken hearts, managing life and work chapters ending, emotional exhaustion, anticipating somewhat terrifying beginnings, love affairs unfolding and unforeseen tragic deaths and countless ICU discussions in our circles – we had to face it all on the terrace! Daily terrace talks. Many a candle was lit for protection and prayers in the gazillion of churches we explored with blistered feet together.

We covered it all…
Demons
Desires
Dreads
Doubts
Dreams
Disappointments

Always coming back to holding on to the dreams in our hearts …

There was no judgement – just plenty of compassion along with honest, tough love delivered in a flash when needed. There was heartfelt sharing, honesty, exposing and probing. We were all on the receiving end of hugs, humour and perfectly timed eye rolls before shrieking with laughter with each other. Not at each other. No emotion was spared the terrace.

WHAT IS IF ALL GOES RIGHT?
Have you ever declined an adventure ‘cos you thought it could go terribly wrong? Because you simply didn’t know each other well enough? Well, what if it all went strangely right – and your cohorts and perfect Terrace Trio awaits you?

For those 2 weeks of my life, C and D were the only two women in the world I was meant to be with. Even when life was cruelly pulling us all in other directions. I am stronger, more resilient, and filled with memories of a lifetime from saying yes to our trio. Even when I have never loved 3 folk gathering together – go figure I have 2 siblings lol!

Wishing you a lifetime of ever-expanding friendships that show up in unexpected terraces near you.

Yours in light,
Kate

PS: FANCY SOME ISLAND TERRACE TALKS?
Could your midlife transition benefit from some sacred witnessing with both tears and laughter at the same time?

Imagine a delightful island version of these Terrace Talks around a fire on IONA?

Join this intimate group of brave like-minded women where it’s all about shared experiences, compassion and vulnerable sharing as we release some debris from our hearts and souls once and for all. Next one April 2023!

 CUTTING THE THREADS THAT BIND

[image error][image error]

The post THE TERRACE TALKS! SUMMER BLOG EDITION appeared first on Kate Emmerson.

SUMMER BLOG EDITION

I do find that if I skip a month of sharing my musings with you, it’s that much harder to get back in the swing of it again. So here I am mulling over what to share as we head into the last month of summer.

What keeps coming up for me today, is a profound 2-week experience I had in Italy. After our summer writing retreats were all done and dusted, I met with 2 girlfriends for some R&R in NW Italy to discover the Ligurian coast – an area I had been wanting to explore.

I probably should have gone for some solo rest and restoration after hosting the retreats– but life had other plans for the three of us.

We found ourselves sharing a gorgeous apartment in Genoa. Tall ceilings, marble floors, gorgeous balcony doors, and the piece de resistance…..a huge outdoor terrace up some precarious stairs! We had the unique experience of exploring a new city together, basking in the gilded era of Baroque, tasting the yummiest pesto in the world, ogling at all the delicious “karpusis” (our inner circle code word for gorgeous head-turning Italian men) and diving into the Ligurian water in hysterically minute cove-type beaches.

We also had some major heart-wrenching events unfolding in each of our lives back home.

FALL IN LOVE WITH STAYING AND FEELING!
A few days into our trip – we sat with the question of “should we all just leave and get on planes to be with other people who need us right now?” I was ready to pack up in a flash.

Yet we found ourselves staying together for the full length of time, each sitting it out patiently, watching it unfold in each of our lives. Holding each other tenderly. Not making any sudden moves. We were poised at the ready if need be – but it wasn’t meant to be. And to be brutally honest, I really didn’t fall in love that part of Italy so much, so leaving early was actually preferable for me. The trio knew my feelings, sorry Genoa – but you will forever be etched in my memories now!

SIMPLY BEING WITH EACH OTHER ON THE TERRACE was a massive metaphor for life. All of us were patiently waiting, being where we needed to be.

Sitting
Talking
Sharing
Crying
Staying
Feeling
Laughing
Crying more
Drinking
Eating
More tears
More questions
More heartbreak
More of everything for us all
Late night calls
Messages around the world
Job offers not coming
Then coming
Phone calls not coming
Then coming
Some kept breathing life
And some didn’t …
Funerals
ICU

And still there was a city to explore
Life to be lived
Hearts beating
Feet aching
Blisters peeling
Candles lit
Singing storytellers clank clank clank on the guitar

THE TERRACE TALKS

We dubbed our daily morning ritual The Terrace Talks – over copious cups of strong coffee. And a hangover or two sneaked up there too. Love, friendship and vulnerable honesty was witnessed in our merry yet complicated trio.

Surrounded by the sweet swallows constantly swirling and dive-bombing our triangle while church bells rang loud and clear all around us as we poured our hearts and tears out.

We were each other’s sacred witness in a foreign land. Removed from life yet deeply steeped in the messiness of it.

So why does this tale feel important to share with you?

I guess it’s a reminder to embrace life amidst death, trust the hearts of whom you are with and when, and welcome honesty to the communal table with deep vulnerability.

It could have, and realistically probably should have, gone pear-shaped – three gals, two bedrooms, one bathroom, and a LOT going on emotionally between us! We had never traveled together before and here we were traveling in an expensive foreign currency and no language literacy. Yet there is so much you can do with a smooshing together of pigeon French, English, Greek and Italian along with hand gestures, google translate and the occasional fluttering of eyes thrown in. And always smiles even amidst the bleary tears. We could go from howling tears to screeching belly laughter in a rapid flash. Whether in public or in the safety of our terrace. We were each seeking to make sense of mammoth and bewildering transition points. We each arrived with different burdens and tales weighing on our hearts, with diverse interests and loves to explore, varying reasons for being in this city and a multitude of travel desires to fulfill. Three strong independent women were able to bear witness to each other.

It was a gift never even imagined, yet offered to each of us in the bittersweet moment that life threw at us.

I was the common “glue” between the three of us and had called us together on an Italian adventure. Northern Italy was on my radar to explore as a possible second home one day. But the trip kind of came together at the 11th hour, very close to the time. I kept thinking it wasn’t really going to happen. “C” and “D” only met each just other a few weeks before traveling, at the visa office in South Africa. Next thing we were on the train platform together making a “joint kitty” for our spending money.

SACRED WITNESS

Faced with everything from healing broken hearts, managing life and work chapters ending, emotional exhaustion, anticipating somewhat terrifying beginnings, love affairs unfolding and unforeseen tragic deaths and countless ICU discussions in our circles – we had to face it all on the terrace! Daily terrace talks. Many a candle was lit for protection and prayers in the gazillion of churches we explored with blistered feet together.

We covered it all…
Demons
Desires
Dreads
Doubts
Dreams
Disappointments

Always coming back to holding on to the dreams in our hearts …

There was no judgement – just plenty of compassion along with honest, tough love delivered in a flash when needed. There was heartfelt sharing, honesty, exposing and probing. We were all on the receiving end of hugs, humour and perfectly timed eye rolls before shrieking with laughter with each other. Not at each other. No emotion was spared the terrace.

WHAT IS IF ALL GOES RIGHT?
Have you ever declined an adventure ‘cos you thought it could go terribly wrong? Because you simply didn’t know each other well enough? Well, what if it all went strangely right – and your cohorts and perfect Terrace Trio awaits you?

For those 2 weeks of my life, C and D were the only two women in the world I was meant to be with. Even when life was cruelly pulling us all in other directions. I am stronger, more resilient, and filled with memories of a lifetime from saying yes to our trio. Even when I have never loved 3 folk gathering together – go figure I have 2 siblings lol!

Wishing you a lifetime of ever-expanding friendships that show up in unexpected terraces near you.

Yours in light,
Kate

PS: FANCY SOME ISLAND TERRACE TALKS?
Could your midlife transition benefit from some sacred witnessing with both tears and laughter at the same time?

Imagine a delightful island version of these Terrace Talks around a fire on IONA?

Join this intimate group of brave like-minded women where it’s all about shared experiences, compassion and vulnerable sharing as we release some debris from our hearts and souls once and for all. Next one April 2023!

 CUTTING THE THREADS THAT BIND

[image error][image error]

The post THE TERRACE TALKS! appeared first on Kate Emmerson.

Happy MAY

This insider musing comes hot on the heels of completing my first every group retreat held on my beloved Iona this week. Oh, my heart is full! A challenging theme that requires deep personal work from everyone who made the long journey for “Cutting the Threads that Bind.” It played tribute to the concept of “Build it and they will come” and I am forever grateful to the seven of us who gathered. New dates will be opening soon, so keep an eye if that appeals. 

So on to this month’s INSIDER MUSINGS …..and of course, I’ve been laughing out loud on the train writing this for you as I fly south to my mum.

It’s an 11 min read, so grab that coffee or wine and come laugh at /with me!

Have you ever been stuck in a crazy place, HISS-ing at yourself and the world, ready to burst into flames or tears with all the perceived stress…and then you somehow manage to flip the switch.

As always, I’m sharing life lessons only with you as a loyal subscriber (and not splayed over social media!) that involve me being super vulnerable about what’s unfolding, re-telling something daft that’s happened to me, or sharing life from my perspective. Sharing things in the simple hope it helps you see something differently one day. 

I’ve decided that mid-life post 50’s is truly glorious, and so much happens that gives me insights, lessons or little love slaps from the universe to crack on with life.

Living on Iona as my official base camp now, I am of course part of the local Facebook IONA STUFF community group for residents only. It’s where I post about my local writing group, and stay abreast of all sorts of local updates, requests and information. Vital for navigating #islandgirl life on a remote island.

Since taking on my wee flat, I have been gathering some beautiful things to make it into a very special base for myself, and to share it as a reflective writing and retreat space for clients. I have been replacing some things that were not appropriate for the space and its new way forward.

A large black couch, a traditional slatted single wooden bed, several blinds, two chairs and some carpet needed a new home.

My plan was that upon coming back to Iona after a #citygal break, Mrs M and I had decided we would put them on the IONA STUFF group to offer them to someone who might make use of them. Great!

Recycle and re-use! I had just returned to the island, and that night someone posted about how they were coming to work in the Abbey for Historic Scotland and they have secured a house for three of the staff that’s totally unfurnished. Immediately I reply -offering up these things and approved my Mrs M. Yippee, the stuff has a much-needed home. 

The only thing is they are not arriving for a few weeks until their official position starts. Mrs M agrees the huge couch can stay in her shed, and I manage to store the other stuff in my small space and jammed into the very tight squeeze of a boiler room.

But being a clutter fundi and wanting clear light space, I say to the girls ideally they need to come and collect it the day they arrive, on Iona as I too am leaving for the city again and want it all sorted before I leave. The due date looms a couple of weeks away, not too far in the distance.

I’m fine to keep walking around the two extra chairs in the passage when my new comfier ones arrive, but I can’t sort the boiler room to store all the cleaning stuff and extra linen yet, so am super excited they are coming to collect it all in just a couple weeks.

PICK UP PLANS
So a few days before the due arrival day I make contact and the girls say they are trying to borrow a tractor to trundle around the island gathering everything offered to them (yes a tractor, not a truck). I think they could start a guesthouse by this stage – such is the island’s generosity of things donated to them. In fact within two minutes of offering them our slatted bed base, it has a mattress to go with it! They magically furnished their house with excess within 24 hours or so. 

Proposed collection day from me was April 1st (haha yes!). 

I didn’t want to get all their stuff out the boiler room until I knew for sure they were coming. I know how tricky just getting to the island can be, let alone trying to move in and trek across the village gathering up their offerings. So I organized that they let me know before they were coming. That would give me about 20 minutes to get it all out the cupboard, half expecting it not to be Friday 1st as anticipated. I knew if I dragged all the stuff out the boiler room and it wasn’t collected, I’d be tripping over it all day, or worse it would be stuck there till I was back from my city break.

I was just finishing up with a client on the phone when I hear a voice, “Hello – Kate – Hello.” Miss B appears at the bottom of the stairs by my front door. Not able to get the tractor yet, I already knew her dad was only on the island for a few hours to move them in and grabbing the last ferry, meaning there was a very short window of time using his car to collect the stuff that will fit in the back boot and seats. We had already decided that the couch might have to be collected another day with tractor, trailer, quad, boat or transported by coos if necessary.

So I immediately say, somewhat surprised, “OH, you are here – I thought you were going to confirm a time so I could start getting the stuff out for you to save you time now!” Alas, island signal being what it is ……she was foiled at that attempt and was suddenly at my door – quite naturally – to collect the stuff. I start with the chairs in the passage by hurling (ok, gently passing!) them to her for her dad to pack, and rapidly attack the boiler room. I fling the door open hell-bent on not wasting their time on precious move day and getting the stuff as swiftly as possible.

That annoying old saying – more haste, less speed is just too darn true!

Miss “QuickShift” here kicked into gear with a vengeance. I yank the first length of the slatted bed out (it’s broken down into head and footer, and two sets of slats bound together.) Tick. 

I put my hand in the tight squeeze to go grab the next piece, the larger headboard and hear a very loud THUNK as I try to lift it up over the boiler. 

Ah, it must be the other slats moving I think, not even missing a beat. Yank yank it out the tiny gap in the tight cupboard. Still tut-tutting that I didn’t have a heads up time-wise!

BLUE DISASTER
So as I pull out the headboard from a weird angle, I see it’s ….oh no

Splotched with blue?! 

Huh? 

It’s wet too?

Gloopy blue paint! What?

Moroccan Mint Blue! 

Pic below of the beautiful colour I painted on my walls!

Thank goodness modern paint is thicker and more rubbery even though it was PVA. I remember paint as a kid being a thick liquid, rather than jelly-like? 

Scrunched up my nose, confused forehead all wrinkled and HISS-ing profusely, I look at my hands now covered in mint blue gloopy-de-gloop paint. It takes me a few minutes to realise what has happened. In the meantime, I try getting the wooden piece to the kitchen while sparing the brand new carpet en route. I look in dismay to see the beautiful rich wood now splattered everywhere with blue paint. 

I am cursing like a sailor, hissing and repeating and winging – I wish you had told me you were coming. I was sweating, swearing and this poor young lass with wide eyes must have regretted being the one to collect the stuff from this banshee woman.

I grab paper towel and furiously start wiping – only to smear it and make it worse. Do you perhaps have a wet towel, politely asks Miss B? I grab the nearest brand new tea towels – I don’t yet have any old rag-type fabric as I’ve only recently moved in so pretty much everything is new. Leaving her nursing the headboard I dash back to the boiler room to pull out the next item – a black blind. 

Well, a partially black and wet sticky blue blind. 

I’m cursing and HISS-ing. Embarrassed and cursing some more! 

Then some bed slats – not soooo bad …

Then another blind – ugh blue blue blue

Another blind …..I shove those quickly in the shower to get them out of the way! 

Then another set of slats – bugger-roo –blue too.

Oh F$%^!

I’m still HISS-ing when the dad appears to see what’s taking so long to get the stuff downstairs. He hadn’t wanted to bring mud upstairs- but it’s already soaked in mud from the wet day and I say more curse words in five minutes than in the past few months, all in front of a young lass and her dad. Next, I start apologizing while still HISS-ing in front of him. There are NO snakes on Iona you might know, so I’m first in line to restart the population! I think I’m more embarrassed than anything to be honest – that I was hastily daft, that I’m swearing and annoyingly HISS-ing so much, that I’m wasting their time and they cannot put wet paint in the car. 

We keep trying to wipe off the gloopy blue.

I try to look in the boiler cupboard properly, having not quite clocked yet what had happened? The entire 5-litre tin of paint that “miss decorator” here clearly had NOT 100% secured the lid after using 1/10th of the tin painting my final bits…had tipped a$$ over tit and was now oozing over everything.

All I can think of to be grateful for is that I hadn’t yet opened and used the dark blue ENAMEL paint I’d bought!

SMURF WOMAN
My new carpet was somehow miraculously spared as we moved stuff quickly to the kitchen. Of course, I was also wearing my FAVOURITE big cowl neck silver jersey, and my best work trousers, as I had client calls that morning (and I do NOT subscribe to wearing PJ’s on the bottom layer for video calls even though the world does). I happened to catch myself in the mirror, and realize I’m a silver and blue-haired disaster. In my exasperated, embarrassed and HISS-ing state, of course, I had swept my hair off my forehead a few times. So I’m looking back at a mad SMURF woman with blue hair, hands, face and clothes. 

Two tea towels, and a roll of paper towels and half an hour later, Miss B and her wide-eyed dad leave with most of the stuff in their car.

Then I’m left to myself.

Time to rescue the oozing paint!

I’m now imagining how the paint will start oozing through the bottom of boiler room straight onto Miss D’s piano – she lives in the flat beneath me. Now I am dithering – I can’t think whether to try to clean the blinds, my clothes, the oozing paint in the cupboard or myself first.

I realise that if the paint dries on my clothes they will never be blue-free again, and I can handle them properly later. So I submerge them quickly in warm water.

TICK –my brain seems to be working! 

So now you have a vivid picture – clothes soaking in bathroom basin, and Missy here standing in her unmentionables. The front door is still open, there’s blue paint smeared on the kitchen floor, blue oozing blinds in the shower, and I’m a hissing Smurf.

Let alone that I needed that tin of paint to do some touch-ups on the wall…so I’m also HISS-ing I’ll have to replace the whole tin at 20 quid AND get it to Iona!

Ok – so now what the hell do I do with this gloopy paint? I can’t get IN the boiler room, as it’s a minute gap next to the boiler with the larger space opening up behind the small gap. I can see blue gloop everywhere.

I’m wondering how to clean it up as I know it won’t dry properly like that and I can only reach it by stretching my hand inside the cupboard about half a meter.

Still mad at my own hurried clumsiness and the fact that she hadn’t let me know final arrival time (which means I would have had time to get the stuff mindfully out the cupboard) I’m in full irritated and blame mode – you can tell right?

Ok, Kate – focus!

I kid you not – my only thought was to use a spoon. I grab a dessert spoon and start ladling the paint back into the tin, spoon by blue spoon. I’m stretching my hand through the small gap between the wall and the boiler, when I realize I am not picking it up fast enough.

HISS. HISS! So next I try the paint tin lid that’s lying innocently next to it. Nope – far too awkward and clumsy in the small space. I’m going to dislocate something.

APRIL 1st MADE ME DO IT

I’m trying to do things with relative speed here, to prevent any leakage below. The best option now is to become one with the paint and immerse my whole hand in it of course and start scooping it up!

So there I am, bent over, most of me covered in blue (as it went through my clothes) and my hands smeared the rest – I swear it was like Smurf wrestling personified. At least it was pretty matching Italian underwe@r – in BLUE! 

I then do THE UNTHINKBALE! 

If I’m going to be daft enough to use my hand I had better look more closely at what I’m doing – in case there are some splintery pieces of wood under the blue gloop. But I can only JUST get my head through the gap.

I don’t stop to think it through – NOOOOOO I just push my head in, don’t I? Like a baby who sticks their head through bars and then turns its head, not able to back out, I now swiftly realize my daft predicament.

My head only just went through the gap, because I kind of forced it through, but panic hits me as I realize exactly what reversing out entails.

Ears!

CALENDAR CONTRIBUTION
I instantly feel my adrenalin kick in as the reality of getting wedged here lands on my brain. Instant Panic. But I somehow flipped a switch as I realize that if I stay in panic mode I’m gonna be in real trouble. So I start getting HYS-terical with laughter. The ludicrousness of it all and the image of the local firemen volunteers having to dash up the stairs and rescue send me into guffaws of laughter. The entire of Iona and Mull would know what my #smurfblue skin and underwear contribution for the annual calendar might look like! 

I started gasping for air I was laughing so much. Then crying.

HYS-terics!

Tears of laughter streaming down my face was making blue streaks mixed with sweat running through my cleavage. I somehow managed to pull myself towards myself and back out – yanking my poor ears in the process.

The cartilage had to bend forward as I reversed, but no serious damage was done! Only ego got hurt in the process. 

I’m was now weak with the panic and the laughter but it was time to have a shower with the three blinds. At the very least I wanted to rescue them if possible and remove the fast-drying gloop and get them to the girls. I had promised them blinds, and I was going to deliver them! Next, I wash my clothes on a hot machine wash, and set about cleaning the kitchen. I still had blue paint on my skin two days later when I went for a swim!

The only downside – I never stopped to take ANY pictures for proof. But the boiler cupboard is forever blue. I just didn’t want to stick my head back in to get the pic for you! Every now and then I find little specks of blue – on a mug, a cupboard door and I did find a small speck on that new carpet. I think there is forever blue paint on their headboard on the other side of the island as a reminder! 

The whole escapade that should have taken just ten minutes to hand over some stuff, took me well over two hours. Later on, I walked to the village and bumped into the dad again – and met the mum – so one again I apologise profusely for swearing and HISS-ing so much in front of their poor daughter and slink off sheepishly, remnants of blue everywhere, laughing to myself.

So, if you have read this far – I hope you got a good laugh at my blue expense.

WHAT’S THE POINT Kate?
Why did I even decide to share THIS laugh at myself with you this month?

It’s a tool that has served me well throughout life – to find the funny side of things, to seek out and witness the ridiculous even amidst the pain. To roar with laughter and guffaw at things I see. Because I spend a lot of time traveling on my own for work, I have even learned to be able to do this solo – I can sit on a train and burst out laughing at stuff. Like today writing this out for you – laughing away to myself. If I can’t find myself amusing, I’m not living right! I simply don’t care what others think. Rather than noticing it’s funny, and politely chuckling internally, I prefer to let folk wander what is amusing me so much by chucking out loud.. 

Can you laugh out loud next time? 
It shifts your energy lightning fast. I Promise! Just like babies who shift in and out of different states of being – one minute giggling, one-minute eating, one-minute crying, and the next laughter. 

It’s my favourite remedy. Life is tough, stress is real, and loss is imminent, but our point of view can re-frame anything. The next time YOU are deep in your own version blue-gloop, I wonder if you can flip your switch from HISS to HYS and find a faster way out?

It’s why I am so excited to be traveling to Greece this week with my Mum – we always land up crying with laughter together. A Lot! Then I get to hang out with my dear friend and business partner Sarah while running our writing retreats as we offer three back-to-back retreats in Greece and Italy this summer at last (there is ONE spot left if you pop me a mail) 

It’s been two long years since we gathered together- and the thing I miss most is just how much we laugh together! 

I wish you tears of joy, the ability to get deliciously HYS-terical when required and find a lighter way through life, no matter what.

I wish you sweet joy and lightness.

Kate

IF YOU WANT TO WORK WITH ME….
PRIVATE CLIENTS: 
I’ll be opening up my next mentoring slots and virtual retreats at the end of July again. Why so far away?
I am not taking on any new private clients so I can immerse myself and nurture the folk flying across the world to write with us. I prefer to stay focussed and not spread myself too thin for better results for YOU.

IONA IN AUTUMN: 
If you follow me on socials I will also be opening up the next IONA retreat soon, on the back end of the first one just competed this week! Bookings are not open yet!

[image error]The Moroccan #Mintblue[image error]

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