As inspired by Kathleen and The Happiness Project.
(Kathleen also inspired me to choose my word of 2010 which will be “mindfulness” – but more on that later)
–

One: I am Rachel.
Not anyone else’s perception of Rachel,
Or an imitation,
but true to myself.

Two: I will accept
that not everything will always go to plan.
I will accept
that this is just the way things are meant to be.

Three: I know my strengths.
I know my weaknesses.
I embrace them
and am honest with myself about who I am.

Four: I will be conscious,
I will be mindful and alive
with all of my senses
at every moment.

Five: I will accept
my limitations as part of who I am,
and work
with them rather than against them.

Six: I will learn
to receive as well as give,
to be inspired as well as to inspire,
to be kind to myself as well as to others.

Seven: I will love
with every ounce of my being.
I will say
“I love you” more often.

Eight: I will accept
my past self as part who I am.
I will no longer
be ashamed of past actions.

Nine: I will always remember
that living is so much more than getting through the day,
and only I
am responsible for my own happiness.

Ten: I am not my scoliosis.
The reality is much deeper within
than even my own spine.
It cannot hold me back.

This week has been all about work, work, work so I guess I’m thankful I have a job (although I am looking forward to work being not quite so busy!)

I spent half the week in training about new Government objectives in funding for people with disabilities. So I am thankful to live a in a country where people with disability and ill health do get finanicial help and opportunity. I am also thankful for the life I have.

The rest of the week was spent putting the final touches to a fundraising art exhibition which I have organised. It’s been incredibly hard work and ridiculously frustrating but watching it all come together for the grand opening yesterday was awesome!

And a couple of other little things that make me smile right now:-

• Lovefilm sending me the first season of Frasier – I had forgotten how funny it is!
• Working out holiday plans which include going to see the new nephew.
• Finally owning a vinyl player again, which means that I can dig out all my old vinyl from my parents’ attic. It also means I can listen to 125mph again (which never made it onto the remastered CD for some reason – master tapes lost I presume?)
• My dad’s 71st birthday today (which he always reminds me with much delight is also the anniversary of Margaret Thatcher’s resignation in 1990!)
• A shot of JD over ice before bed.
• Florence and the Machine
• Yoga every day.

Good thoughts for a lovely new week for one and all – I have a very good week coming up!

It’s a grey damp morning out on the fens and after a restless night I’m finding it hard to uncover inspiration for much…. and then I came across two articles that made me smile.

Firstly, a good friend shared this one about the writer’s Bad Sex Award. It made me smile particularly because I found the sex scene in Sebastian Faulks’s Birdsong that it talks about one of the most cringemaking scenes ever. There is little I despise more than gratuitous sex wrapped up in literary merit.

I find sex scenes difficult to write and I’m a big fan of the “less is more” approach. The insinuation of sex is far sexier than graphic description. My favourite poem, Byron’s “when we two parted“, is always thought to be the ultimate break up poem. Which it is but to me it also invokes sex that has been and gone with such breathtaking and spinechilling accuracy that there is no need for description. And this dear readers is why I find the old ones to always be the gold ones!

Secondly, this article about getting to know your characters reminds me of happy afternoons in Waterlow Park, chatting away to one or other of my protagonists. I need to start some of those conversations up afresh I think.

Share your inspirations dear readers and have a beautiful weekend