Tag Archives: music

My 12 days of New Year Today’s Treasures

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Special moments to treasure every day #mentalhealthin2018

Day 1:  A free range egg for breakfast from #happy #hens #mentalhealthin2018

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Day 2:  Herbal tea made with fresh #herbs – camomile, mint, hyssop, thyme, sage will all grow in windowsill pots #mentalhealthin2018

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Day 3:  Watching the wild #birds eating the food I have put out for them #mentalhealthin2018

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Day 4:  Eating fresh fruit #mentalhealthin2018

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Day 5:  Walking in the #sunshine – even if it’s not sunny – fresh air helps clear your mind #mentalhealthin2018

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Day 6:  A vase of wild #flowers or winter berries on the kitchen windowsill I can look at whilst washing up #mentalhealthin2018

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Day 7:  A smile – smiling makes you feel better, sharing a #smile makes two people feel better #mentalhealthin2018

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Day 8:  Listening to the birds #singing especially the robin – beautiful, mellow, liquid notes #mentalhealthin2018

 

Day 9:  #hugs – everyone needs hugs – if you don’t believe me just try it with an open #mind #mentalhealthin2018

 

Day 10:  #music – but especially sharing live music #mentalhealthin2018

 

Day 11:  #sunset watching the sun go down #mentalhealthin2018

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Day 12:  Writing helpful happy #tweets and posting pretty pictures on #twitter #happiness #mentalhealthin2018

Today’s Treasures – Blackberry Fair

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Blackberry Fair – Ten Glorious years!

This is the 10th year that Whitchurch has been transformed into a living, breathing festival of music, song, dance, poetry and street theatre, complete with Lost Luggage (below) – the metallic beastie from a long lost planet – and The Urban Astronaut – bringing hope to a dying world.

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When I arrived, Urban Astronaut were just positioning their lifting machine ready for moving into action outside the Civic when someone spotted a mouse hiding in one of the speakers.  Much to the amusement of onlookers, he was carefully rescued and set free before they trundled off down the High Street to save the rest of the world.

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Sustainability is what Blackberry Fair is all about – a carnival filled with the rustic spirit of nature, growing things, Meres and Mosses, the Wild Zone, scarecrows, recycling, herbs and herbalists, the Fairtrade town becomes a magnet for artists, poets, actors, dancers, singers and musicians; a haven for food lovers, real beer drinkers, nature lovers, photographers and writers.  It inspires, fires the imagination, screams innovation; young and old are all captivated, drawn in to the spirit of sustainability, saving the earth – mesmerised by Urban Astronaut’s street theatre.

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The afternoon culminated in the Carnival of Plenty, celebrating the spirit of harvest with Morris dancers, stilt-walkers, and fire breathers – and the music carried on into the evening with incredible poetry and music and dancing into the night.

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See more photos at www.blackberryfair.co.uk

Published in the November edition of the Whitchurch Gossip

How to be Truly Happy

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How to be Truly Happy

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If someone asked me what common  theme my Twitter account has then it would have to be ‘Things that make me Happy’.  My glass is always half full – there’s absolutely no point in looking at life any other way.  I collect beautiful pictures, bluebirds and daffodils, great sayings: “There’s no point looking back ‘cos that’s not the way you’re going.”  Funny video clips and happy tunes – I absolutely love ‘Room without a Roof’ because everyone dances to it and I love sharing happiness.

John is the same – and has finally published a book which is full of happy pictures and inspirational words – you can download it from:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00V6Z5PYE?*Version*=1&*entries*=0

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I have had bad times, days when I just couldn’t face getting out of bed, mornings when just the thought of cleaning my teeth was too much effort – but I’ve always found something to focus on, some reason to carry on, something I love – and on those days I have found if I can just get outside and feel the sun on my face and the breeze on my skin, the scent of primroses and a robin singing, life is suddenly wonderful again – even if it’s just for a moment when ‘a chaffinch sings on the orchard bough’ or ‘a crowd of golden daffodils’, and you stop and immerse yourself in nature and forget everything else.

Many people find meditation helps – and is often much better therapy than drugs for lots of stress-related conditions, like headaches, insomnia, IBS, indigestion and phobias.  Sleeping and eating are a vital part of every day and our bodies need a regular balance of both or they start to complain.  www.meditationalstate.com has some beautiful music and images.

Running a business, working for yourself, can be really hard sometimes – but if you love what you do then it’s like having a hobby 7 days a week – and if you do have a bad day where everything seems to go wrong – it’s just one bad day – and you know you’ll be doing something you love doing tomorrow.

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