So my kids have taken up roller skating, which means I have also taken up roller skating. My daughter actually showed an interest in it a few years ago. We went out and bought skates, went to the local rink a few times, she grew out of her skates not long after she fell out … Continue reading Roller Skating as a Microcosm of Life
Blog
Weekly articles full of musings and observations on topics that are capturing my curiosity.
Twins with Different Skins: Race, Ethnicity and Family Lineage
I've been looking for a platform for a while to share a very personal story. This week I have been lucky enough to feature as a contributing writer on WrongSpeak publishing, by author Adam B. Coleman. I first published a version of this story anonymously some time ago. As a beginner blogger, I was too … Continue reading Twins with Different Skins: Race, Ethnicity and Family Lineage
Passing judgement or passing on judgement: when it’s time to take a closer look
Photo by Shane on Pexels.com It is in my nature to try to look for the best in others. It's one of the reasons I became a Probation Officer. If someone cuts me up in traffic I'll reason that maybe they are on the way to the birth of their first child, or if someone … Continue reading Passing judgement or passing on judgement: when it’s time to take a closer look
An Unexpected Gift
My daughter was telling me about a book she and a friend found at the bus shelter today: “It was beautiful, it had gold writing on the cover...it doesn’t look like the kind of book someone would just have left.” They didn’t pick it up, thinking someone must have forgotten it and would surely return … Continue reading An Unexpected Gift
Relaxation is an Art Form
My first thought on seeing my daughter relaxing on my parents dining table was, 'Get off, we don't lie on the table!' Luckily, I'm now much more able to check my immediate thoughts before I voice them. I stopped and took in the view: Stuffed animal as a pillow, favourite soft toy to snuggle, a … Continue reading Relaxation is an Art Form
Trust Issues
I woke up this morning with an old story in my head about my daughter. It’s a story that’s never left me, because at the time it made me feel like a bad mother. In that drifting place between sleep and waking, it occurred to me that this story is part of a much bigger … Continue reading Trust Issues
You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take
This quote is attributed to hockey star Wayne Gretzky. The only ice hockey match I've ever seen was in Mighty Ducks the movie, but the man had a serious point that applies way beyond sport. I've only every had one story published before: a first person narrative which was published anonymously in an online magazine. … Continue reading You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take
Go With The Flow
The elusiveness of creativity For a while I’ve been studying creativity. In particular I’ve been trying to understand what makes it ebb and flow as it does. In the first lockdown, Spring sun shining, novelty abounding, family life felt creative. We did science experiments, made treasure maps, climbed trees, built dens, fashioned a zipwire out … Continue reading Go With The Flow
Lacking direction? Try the death bed exercise
I’m feeling a bit unsettled at the moment. As life becomes increasingly normal, many of the aspirations and possibilities which lit me up during the first lockdown period are disappearing, and I can’t quite explain it. It's almost like the break in the norm gave rise to a feeling that anything was possible, and with … Continue reading Lacking direction? Try the death bed exercise
Work, Worth and the Value of the Ordinary
Two blog posts in two days, unheard of for me, but there’s something on my mind and I can’t let it go. Today I heard a conversation. A woman was contrasting her job (serving food), with that of her husband’s (he was a headmaster). She said that out of the two of them, he went … Continue reading Work, Worth and the Value of the Ordinary
Rae Cod’s Writing 