A Daily walk

How often do you walk or run?

I do try to walk Lily just about everyday. Sometimes in the warmer months I will endeavour to walk 🚶‍♂️ her twice. I often don’t walk her when it is extremely windy, because of my asthma I find it really hard to breathe in such wind. I like walking her early in the 🌄 morning , before I need to go out and do my errands for the day. Lily is happier to be left at home 🏡 if I have taken her for a walk.

Walking Lily is something that is pure pleasure 🙏 for us both, and deepens our bond.

A LEADER

Do you see yourself as a leader?

I don’t know whether I consider myself a leader, but I guess other people have labelled me a leader for the work I undertook in the mental health system here in Victoria. I know I helped a lot of people on their journey, by using my own experience as a guide. I educated a lot of people about the realities of mental health issues, and taught empathy and compassion by displaying those qualities in myself.

I think by writing ✍️ a blog I educate even more people and lead the way for people like myself to express themselves creatively.

GRACE

What’s your favorite word?

My favourite word in the English language would have to be GRACE. I love it in particular for what it means, becomingness and attractiveness of demeanour, the way a person carries themselves with a sense of GRACE. The GRACE of God is something I truly 🙏 love because living with Gods grace is something wonderful 🙏.

I have a niece called Grace and she lives up to her name in her demeanour and attractiveness and definitely carries herself with a sense of Grace. She is beautiful and compassionate and it has been a joy to watch her grow up to the amazing lady she has become.

Grace is definitely my favourite word.

May we all know the Grace of God.

BEING REACTIONARY OR QUICK TO ANGER.

What personality trait in people raises a red flag with you?

I really had to sit with and think about today’s topic before I wrote a blog post 📫 about it.

What raises red flags with me, and makes me cautious and wary is when someone is very reactionary and responds angrily or negatively without thinking about their words and actions and the impact that has on the person they are responding to.

I find myself becoming fearful 😰 of these people and definitely become wary of them. I have learned from experience to be mindful of this in myself, and should I be put in an unpleasant situation where someone has treated me badly I have trained myself to not react on the spot, but to go away and contemplate what is the best way to approach it, and respond only after I have given lots of serious thought about things. I may approach and speak to some fellow empaths in my life for their advice and take on things, before I again approach the person whom has been inappropriately reactionary.

My Ideal Week

Describe your ideal week.

The mornings of my ideal week would be sunny, fresh and crisp, the most lovely weather to walk Lily in.

I would have a lot ofW time in this week to focus on my writing ✍️ as a priority, as well as having the motivation to continue spring cleaning my unit.

I would catch up with family and friends in this week. I would get to spend quality time with my nieces and nephews. I would go opshopping with Kathryn and pick up some vintage bargains.

I would sell several copies of God Bless Our Dogs and have Dance Of The Emerald Dress 👗 ready to self publish.

What I like about this daydream week is that it can definitely possibly happen. It is healthy to daydream about your goals.

Lazy pyjama time

How do you relax?

Relaxing is something that I love. When I want to relax I put my pyjamas on and lay on the couch with Lily lying on me and I either read, write or watch television. To be honest I do this a lot and there is nothing I like more, after an active day, to put my pyjamas on and relax in that way. On rainy 🌧 days, that I don’t have to go out, I love just staying in my pyjamas all day, with Lily close by my side. It is just so peaceful and relaxing. Ah bliss.

God The Ultimate Finder Of Lost Things

Today something truly amazing happened that I know is a sign that God exists 🙏 and definitely moves in mysterious ways.

Years ago, long before I was a blog writer and still living with my Mum I wrote my first short novel. It was a tine slip fantasy for pre-teen girls called Dance Of The Emerald Dress. I self published 4 copies of it and paid a friend of a friend to do a couple of illustrations for it. The goal was to one day have it published on a large scale.

When I was married things went sour in my marriage and my thoughtless ex husband threw all the copies of it out, because he didn’t like the story and he thought writing was a pointless thing to do. He was never encouraging of me writing ✍️.

I had resigned myself to the fact that the novel was lost forever, and put it down to a harsh learning experience.

Today of all days I was cleaning out a cupboard in my unit and miraculously found a copy of it, complete with the illustrations.

I am so over the moon that I have found it intact. It is a whole other piece of writing that I can have published. I know when I moved here I did not have a copy of it, so I believe it is a God thing, that God kept a copy of it, to be found when I could best use it. The possibilities are endless.

Thank you God,, you truly do work miracles. To my readers look forward to Dance Of The Emerald Dress 👗 being published on a bigger scale ⚖️ sometime in the near future.

Hong Kong

Share a story about the furthest you’ve ever traveled from home.

The furthest I have ever travelled from home was in 2004 to a work conference in Hong Kong. At the time I was working for Richmond Fellowship Victoria ( now called,Mind). I was working in a peer support role in mental health and Richmond Fellowship is an organisation in many different countries eg Australia, India Malta etc. I was privileged to be able to attend this conference. One day before the conference began we were able to travel to mainland China to spend a day shopping at Schenzeng. It was amazing,, one of the most significant experiences in my life. I had a dress tailored and bought some clothes. The day before we came home, we were taken shopping at designer clearance shops in Hong Kong, which isn’t normally for tourists but where residents would shop for clothes, jewellery etc..

It was altogether one of the most amazing times in my life especially hearing what good works were being done in mental health by Richmond Fellowship and forever gracious and grateful 🙏 that I got to be a part of it.

An old cottage

What does your ideal home look like?

My ideal home would be an old cottage that has been renovated somewhere around the Sunbury, Romsey, Woodend area. It would be cosy and have lots of character with a small yard that Lily can run around in.. It would be quiet and peaceful and in a location that family and friends can visit easily. It doesn’t have to be big, but must be cosy.