Relax, refresh... and find equilibrium.

'How do you relax?' is a question I'm often asked. 'After all, you can't do reflexology on yourself!'
Actually, yes I can - and I do. I am reasonably flexible, so I can cross one leg over the other and reach my soles. Reflexology is brilliant for refreshing one's sole - and other parts too!

However, it's not the only way I relax. I paint in watercolour,  write fiction and also meditate. All three take me away from the stresses of this world, which yes, of course, I encounter. These practices help me deal with them.


Meditation teaches me to take a step back, to watch my own thoughts and realise that they are indeed just that, thoughts. Be they good or bad, they will pass -  and thoughts do not define the real me. By taking a step back, I do get to see the wood for the trees - and that helps me to plan a strategy for coping with life's little surprises. Finding a way through the wood, past the trees, if you will.

Is there a way through? You betcha!

Painting allows me to create a world of my own.  I like to paint things which attract me, they are usually things that make me smile, and some are filled with light.

Delicious! I can taste it all over again.

Crystal glass, so enchanting. Chocolate and fruit too. It's all good!

In my fiction, again I create a world. It has twists and turns and the odd 'misguided' character; but on the whole, my world faces the sun, being bathed in light.

My own created world.

However, in all these things that I love, you'll notice that there is no balance. Everything I love is sedentary. Back in May, I wrote about finding the balance. So now there is activity. I walk my dog, and now that she is older and not able to do the long walks, I speed walk a minimum of a mile a day. (That's fast walking to me, not the type where you throw your hips out and walk heel to toe.) It is surprising how well that clears the cobwebs from your mind, especially when you do not allow any one type of thought sway. I've stopped and seen some beauty in my surroundings while this was happening.

You walk, I'll snooze!

Just waiting for me to discover

These are my way of relaxing, refreshing and restoring my own equilibrium. They are not the only way. You'll find ones specific to you. I'd love to hear all about them! 


Time - or more correctly, lack of time - is the reason I hear for most people not doing similar. The accountant in me says audit your time. Write down what you want to do, where your time goes and see where you can find the time to relax and refresh. Most of all, find the balance. Otherwise you may find yourself visiting me in a professional capacity. Which is quite a journey, for some of you!
That brings me to my last point: laughter. Humour. It neutralises a lot of angst. Make use of that fact. Laugh frequently.

Laugh. Got it!

Latest news on Sanctuary's Gate and All in the Leaves

Good morning friends,

I'm pleased to say that after a brief spell of being 'not currently available' in the Kobo bookstore, 'At Sanctuary's Gate' is now back on sale! (here)

All self published books had been removed by Kobo, after it came to light that there were some very unsavoury books that would have displayed on an innocent, everyday search term, such as 'daddy'. Until each book was checked for content, all self pubbed books were removed.
Mine carries no such content, so is now back on sale!

In other news, All in the Leaves went off to the ebook partnership earlier this week; now they will work their magic in converting and distributing it. All in the Leaves will be available across all reading devices. I'll let you know when it's out there! You can all come to my virtual launch party :)

Presenting.... the cover of my book.

Good morning Friends,

I'd like to present to you.... the cover of my book!

It was designed and illustrated by the wonderful Teresa Palomar Lois - whose website is HERE

Do you like it? If you saw it in an online catalogue, would you click on it to read more? Please leave a comment and tell me your thoughts....

Reflexology .... or something else entirely?

This morning on Twitter, a question was asked about reflexology.
Given that it has been around for so long and developed so much, should we change the name?

My personal opinion was that some people are barely aware of reflexology as it is - so I would prefer to see widespread recognition before a name change.
Of course, me being me, I did suggest an alternative based on Latin - pesalus.
Meaning: foot and health/well-being.

Why am I putting this in a blog post?
Because I'd like some opinions - have you heard of reflexology?
What does it mean to you, if you have heard of it?
I'm looking forward to reading your replies.

Open House weekend and meeting a fabulous Sculptor

I recently went to visit Fairkytes Arts Centre, who were taking part in the Open House Weekend - and holding an art fair on the same day.
The history behind Fairkytes goes back a long way; Joseph, the son of the prison reformer Elizabeth Fry lived there. Prior to its use as an Arts Centre, it used to be a library.
It's also the place where I go to art every week - so I can say from experience how wonderful, how helpful the staff are.

Having had a look around the building, I proceeded into the marquees, both out front and in the back garden.

I had a wonderful surprise awaiting me in the back garden - the work of a sculptor which was awe inspiring! His name was Otis, he put together all of these sculptures, using nuts, bolts, washers and spanners.

I was privileged to have a talk with Otis. We sat at a table and talked about his art, while a jazz band played in the background. Otis told me he'd trained as an electrician, but he had this incredible creative streak. Incredible is my word, because seeing these sculptures up close was an experience like no other. They called to me and my senses delighted in them. Otis kindly showed me some photos on his phone of a full size American Quarter Horse he is currently making. Those pictures were awesome! I'm looking forward to seeing it in real life. The saxophonist from the jazz band came over to look at Otis' sax - and he was very complimentary, saying it must have been modelled on a treble sax - I didn't even know there were alto and tenor saxophones!
If you'd like to see more of Otis' work, take a look at his website: HERE

ART, and what it means to me.

So, when I say ART, I guess you all think of my paintings?

For me, ART has two meanings - and yes, painting is one of them.
The other one is Advanced Reflexology Training.
I first qualified in Advanced techniques, over ten years ago. I've found them incredibly useful, time and time again. I was fortunate enough to have been trained by the originator of the techniques, Tony Porter.
He has a website HERE .

So when I think of ART, I think of these wonderful reflexology techniques - and I also think of painting.

Both of these great loves of mine come together in this painting:
The Art of Reflexology

My free hour is coming to an end and I must away, to work.
If you get the chance, try a session of reflexology. If you want to try an advanced trained reflexologist, there's a register on Tony's site.

I am writing.

Good morning friends!

The summer weather seems to have disappeared and we are left with cooler temps, wind and rain.
Missy and I go for walks, talk to the neighbours and when we return, I am writing, while Missy has a snooze. She's never far from me, as you can see.

That's my netbook in the photo, upon which I write my stories. It's very portable, quite small, but just the right size for my dainty little hands!

In story news, I'd like to say thank you to everyone who's bought 'At Sanctuary's Gate (Seven Short Stories)'  I hope you all enjoyed it.

'All in the Leaves' my first novel is with the editor, soon to be passed on to the company who'll be sending it all around the world. We're still on track for a 31st October publish date.

My second novel 'Leaves for Chloe' is just over half way written!
When I've finished this blog post, I'll be dreaming up more adventures and tapping them into my trusty netbook.

I don't know if any of my readers are dyslexic, but if you are, I recently found a free font called Open Dyslexic. My dyslexic hubby downloaded it and he has found it so useful. It has made reading a pleasure for him - which is no bad thing!
Have a wonderful weekend, whatever you do.