Showing posts with label Love. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Love. Show all posts

Monday 7 December 2015

Sending Peace






There are lots of scary and sad things going on worldwide at the moment. Spread love, peace and kindness and remember that a good deed brightens a dark world. 


Monday 7 September 2015

Sharing






Last week my Mom introduced me to a great new blog called commuteblog which each day features photographs and stories of commuters that the author meets on the tube in London. Each post is just a small snippet into the commuters lives however it is so heartwarming that people are willing to share their stories and offer such an interesting insight to struggles and pleasures of day to day living. This week the author of the blog posted the following quote in reference to the recent refugee crisis.







 It really resonated with me and got me thinking about how so many things in life are so much better shared. With that in mind I started to compile a list of my favourite things to share. What do you love sharing? Think about it and let me know.     


Things that are better shared


Stories/Books

Finding a story or book that is so good that you become completely immersed in the world of its characters to the point where you don't want it to end is a rare pleasure... but when you are able to share that with someone equally obsessed with it as you its even better! For me the best personal example I have have of this is the Harry Potter series. My sister and I grew up with the books as they were being released and we absolutely loved them. So many of our games and conversations revolved around the world of Hogwarts - we would dress up in wizard robes, make our own wands, burn paper so it looked like parchment.. all kinds of crazy and imaginative things! One summer we went on holiday to Italy as a family at the exact time when the 6th book was being released (poor organisational/holiday booking skills by my parents ha!) so obviously my sister and I were distraught that we wouldn't be able to get hold of an English copy of the book and may have to wait 2 weeks until we returned to the UK! After traipsing around every book shop in Florence we were able to find just 1 english version of the book and in order to avoid fights we decided we would read it (page by page) at the same time! Whenever one of us wanted to read it the other one would have to as well so that we were always at the same point! 
And actually it wasn't just me and my sister who shared a love for Harry Potter - it involved the whole family! Another summer we went on holiday to New England and spent a lot of time driving from one state to another. Many hours were spent in total silence in the car as we all listened to the recorded version of the Harry Potter books narrated by Stephen Fry. To this day we still love Harry Potter and I love talking to my sister about it and discussing various theories and plot lines within the books!



Music

This is probably quite an obvious and popular choice but sharing music (particularly live music) can be such a wonderful experience. I have been to quite a few music festivals where I have been listening to a favourite band or artist and have then perhaps caught the eye of a stranger in the audience and just without any words or conversation needed have been able to share such a great moment of pure joy and emotion. The same goes for sharing music with friends - sometimes its nice just not to need to speak and just listen to a sound you both love and appreciate.

My top shared music experiences would be:
Bon Iver at Latitude festival
Arcade Fire at Alexandra Palace
Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zero's again at Latitude festival
First Aid Kit at Glastonbury
and one from my teenage years: Bob Marley and the wailers - listened to throughout the summer of 2016 in friends bedrooms and at house parties!


Childhood

I guess this follows on from my first choice but not having shared my childhood with my sister is something that is completely unimaginable to me. I don't think you necessarily need to have a sibling to share your childhood with - many children have lots of friends (real or imaginary!) cousins, neighbours or pets who they are able to play and have fun with. But surely there can be nothing worse than being lonely as a child. I have so many happy memories of growing up and playing in the garden with my sister and no matter what happens to us as adults and how different our lives may be from one another we will always have that happy shared experience that bonds as and we can look back on and smile. I know not everyone in the world is fortunate enough to have that (a point which has been painfully highlighted by the refugee crisis) which is really heartbreaking. Every one deserves to have a childhood shared with friends and family that they can continue to treasure as an adult.


Painful experiences

This may seem a bit of an odd one to include but I think its an important one. There is nothing worse than going through a painful experience or traumatic period in your life and feeling completely on your own with it. I don't really subscribe to the whole "everything happens for a reason" theory; in my opinion terrible and unfair things can happen for absolutely no reason at all. However I do firmly believe that there probably is something you can take and learn from everything, and that bad experiences do help you to become stronger and more resilient. When I have been in a particularly low and desperate state of mind having the support and love of my family has absolutely saved me and I know that facing those struggles alone would have been near impossible. So for that reason I add painful experiences to my list of things to share. I mean obviously ideally you wouldn't have any to share at all but if you have to go through bad times it makes it that little bit easier if there is someone by your side!

I feel like I don't want to end on that one as its a little bit melancholy but this post is becoming quite long and I don't want to ramble too much! 
What do you love to share? Let me know as it would be great to do a follow on post with other people's stories and memories of positive sharing experiences.


If you would like to follow the commute blog you can check it out here:
www.commuteblog.co.uk

other similar and equally great blogs which document the lives and stories of everyday people that I love are:

http://www.humansofnewyork.com

http://www.7billionothers.org/



Thursday 14 August 2014

Finding hope


Lately it has become almost unbearable to follow the news and current affairs; from the terrible fights in Gaza, to the heartbreaking news of Robin Williams death, it seems that everywhere we turn we are faced with stories of tragedy and suffering.

However I feel it is important at times like this to appreciate human acts of true kindness and good will - because if you really look hard enough you will see that these are taking place everywhere too, its just we have come to overlook and dismiss them as we go about our day to day lives.


This week I have a personal story of kindness that I wish to share:

I have recently taken an interest in bees and beekeeping, and since I am about to embark on the third year of my art degree, I have decided to make this the theme and focus of my work. Over the summer I have been researching and gathering information about all things bees - from scientific information about all the different species, to ancient bee keeping traditions, folklore and myths. 

During my research I found some pictures of these beautiful bee skeps, which were traditionally used to keep bees in as well as moving swarms of bees back into a hive. The bee skeps are made by hand using straw and cane, however it is something of a dying craft as modern wooden hives are now more popular and skeps are not used so often.



I have a fondness for traditional crafts and therefore was delighted to stumble across the comprehensive website of Martin Buckle - an experienced bee keeper and talented skep maker. I decided to email him and enquire about doing some work experience or a one to one skep making course with him. I was keen to not only learn how to make a bee skep - but also to gain an insight into the life of a craftsman and how his beekeeping and skep making became more than a hobby but a way of life.






To my surprise Martin not only agreed to offer me one to one tuition in skep making, he also kindly offered for me to stay in his home with him and his wife for a few days instead of booking into a hostel.


I intend to write a separate blog post with lots of pictures and examples of the skeps and other creations I made during my stay with Martin, but for this post I just want to focus on how kind and gracious Martin and his wife were to me. I was not expecting him to offer me one to one tuition - however not only did he provide that, he also graciously welcomed me into his home, sharing his stories and endless wealth of knowledge and experience and sent me off equipped with tools and materials and plenty of inspiration  for continuing my work. 

Getting to know Martin and his wife Pam was an absolute pleasure - they were such an interesting couple and we found plenty to talk about. They refused any offer of payment for my stay or the tuition and materials that Martin gave me, insisting that it had been simply nice to have me there.

Experiences like this may be rare but I really feel that if everyone became a little more open to trusting the kindness of others, to making the effort to share and connect with someone you may initially have thought you had nothing in common with, then we could all gain so much.

It is important in times of darkness to hold on to every moment of joy and wonder. A smile from a stranger, a conversation with a shopkeeper, hearing the laugh of a child or having a hug from someone you love - these tiny, overlooked snippets of hope and love should not be dismissed, should not be overlooked. Just because they do not speak to us as loudly as some of the shocking headlines of the news it does not make them any less important or valuable. Appreciate every act of kindness, reflect on and soak up every brief flash of happiness, even if it last just second - it is precious and should be treated as such.





Sunday 10 March 2013

Mothering Sunday







"What is a Mother but the sunshine of our days and the north star of our nights?"

Robert Braun



To a special Mom  who keeps hope in her heart for me when I have none, gives the best advice and always knows how to make me smile.

I love you, Happy Mothering Sunday xx

Monday 25 February 2013

Sea of Love




Happy Anniversary to my parents - this is the card I made them. Unfortunately they are going to get it a day late as I  missed the post on Saturday...

Tuesday 12 February 2013

A Package Of Love.... DIY


Many people seem to hate Valentines Day and find it depressing - but I reckon it's a good excuse to show all those you care about that you love them instead of just your partner. I put together a little package of love for my Grandparents to give them something to smile about on Thursday. 






The package included a card, lots of patterned paper hearts, some hand made heart hand warmers and instructions of how to use them.



Making the hand warmers is really easy:

1. Pick pretty fabric and cut out two heart shapes, pin right sides together and sew (leaving a small gap)

2. Turn inside out and fill the heart with rice. I also put some dried lavender in mine so they smelt nice too!

3. Sew up the small gap and voilĂ ! All you need to do is pop them in the microwave for 20 seconds or so and then put them inside your gloves to warm up cold hands! 



Friday 25 January 2013

An untouched apartment in Paris...

Hm I have been a bit slow on the blog posts this week which I can only blame on my own laziness.  This is an article that a friend posted on Facebook that really appealed to the hopeless romantic in me though so I thought I would share!


A few summers ago, A Parisian apartment that had been abandoned and untouched for 70 years was discovered in the quarter of Pigalle. It's owner - Mrs. De Florian left Paris just before World War 2 broke out, locking up the apartment for good and eventually passing away in the South of France at the grand old age of 91. When her heirs called on professionals to take an inventory of The Parisian apartment, it was unlocked and the treasures inside re-discovered.


The team described unlocking the dusty apartment as an experience similar to 'stumbling into the castle of Sleeping Beauty'





To further add to the romance of this story, a painting of a beautiful woman dressed in pink was also discovered. One of the team members suspected it may be of some value and was proved right when an expert historian confirmed that the calling card left alongside the painting was that of Giovanni Boldini - one of Paris' most prestigious and important painters of the Belle Epoque. 



Alongside with the painting was a stack of old love letters tied with coloured ribbon. They revealed that the woman in the painting was Mrs de Florian's Grandmother, Marthe de Florian, who had been a famous French actress and socialite. She had been Boldini's muse and lover (in spite of him being married!) 

The story inevitably caught the attention of the art world and later sold at auction for $3 million!


Overall an enchanting and intriguing story of two women and the revelation of a great love affair. Of course there are many questions that remain a mystery in spite of the room being now unlocked. Why did Mrs de Florian flee such a beautiful apartment never to return? What other secrets did both women keep locked away?

Original article found here
and in The Telegraph here