The path to the future is made by walking.

The path to the future is made by walking.

I’ve been finding it hard to sleep lately. Maybe you’ve been the same. I’ve had to start rationing my time on Twitter, not so much because of the big black ‘X’ and other changes to the platform, but because I follow a number of climate scientists. They are, frankly...
On creativity and connection

On creativity and connection

I’ve been thinking and reading about water, time and connectedness a lot recently. But a piece of the puzzle has been missing: where does creative practice fit in to this story? We can think about how beauty is necessary even in times as full of trouble and foreboding...
Rest is resistance

Rest is resistance

When I gave a presentation to the Open University a few weeks ago, I spoke about my practice of drawing water as one of deliberately slowing down in order to inhabit time with more awareness and presence. One of the questions I was asked in the (unrecorded) Q&A...
Puddles or portals? Another world underfoot

Puddles or portals? Another world underfoot

We’ve had a couple of weeks of fairly relentless rain and wind here in Orkney. One day last week we had such a downpour that our track was awash with run-off from the neighbouring fields, shin-deep in places, and we spent lunchtime digging little sluices and trenches...
on the tyranny of goals and targets

on the tyranny of goals and targets

In the correspondence I have with the wonderful people I work with as coach and mentor I am often struck by how harsh they are with themselves, how much their confidence and wellbeing seems to hinge on achieving this or that creative goal. Indeed, the wider world of...
These are Trying Times

These are Trying Times

It’s fair to say that these are trying times. Each news bulletin seems to bring more evidence of the madness, destructiveness, greed and mendacity of those who hold power. My Twitter feed is full of righteous anger, denunciations and calls to action to fight for the...