Midsummer small joys

Finding small joys

We are at Midsummer. The time to celebrate the sun resting in her nest for 3 days, a time for outward joy, the light at its peak. Making flower crowns, collecting 7 flowers at sunrise. The Joy Bringers full at work hiding sparks for us to find and a time for us to be joyful and dance and sing and laugh and platy to create sparks of joy to flow out into the world for others to find. (The theme of my last book The Joy bringers)

After the utter exhaustion of moving house and all the stress that went with it, we are slowly settling and unpacking. The reality of moving was not like it was going to be in my head! Unpack a room a day, and then hang out and get a feel for the place and then settle to work after a couple of weeks off. HA!

What I have really wanted to do is potter, wander in the garden and get a feel for it. Sit in rooms and feel their presence, how they want to be, what colours they might like to be, which walls want light and which want books. Feel where I might like to sit in the garden, just be in a space quietly and feel how it is to be here. To rest and settle.

But the reality is I need to work or there is no money, and tribe memberships were renewing which is a super busy time of organising and spreadsheets and making up packs, so when I would have liked to take a couple of months off and move and be in the new space, I had to work and do everything else and it was exhausting.

It took so much longer than I imagined and we still have a room with boxes in it, the new-shed-in-the-house still is not unpacked and I am tripping over boxes, it has rained a lot so the garden remained unexplored, the dog is unsettled and following me round like a little black shadow 24 hrs a day, the cats couldn’t go outside so the doors had to be shut when it wasn’t raining.

I fell down the slope into our new pond which is, I discovered, very deep indeed and knackered my knee in. I had a weekend away for the Tribe gathering event and there has been a lot of unpacking and sorting to do whilst hobbling around.

BUT I am not here to moan at you because the reality has found such wonderful small joys around the edges and silver linings galore.

I had preconceptions. One was my excitement for walking the mountains and moors around here. I couldn’t wait to drive up to the bigger hills and walk there, but with a knackered knee and a nervous dog not sure where he now lives, I have been just walking from our house to a beautiful area just 5 mins up the road.

There are big ponds and an area of woodland that was planted with local native species with EU funding. The woodland is about 30 years old now and really beautiful. They are still planting new fruit trees along the entrance too with old Welsh species.

Little winding tracks through them that wander around the ponds. The ponds have coots and their cheepy babies, swans and lots of ducks. I am told there are herons too. I have made new horse friends too.

My knee has meant I could not go yomping over the moors too far behind the ponds and woods, but actually I have discovered how much I look forward to seeing the pond each morning. Saying hi to the Coots and laughing at the mum rolling her eyes at the mum mum mum mum cheeping away behind her, watching the movement of water. I love water and have always wanted to live by the sea, but these lakes are feeding that watery beauty I crave, the ever changing view with them. I am grateful I was made to slow down and explore locally and not go off exploring.

It was the right thing to do. I am getting the feel of the land from our house and where we sit in it and I love that. We are starting to meet people walking dogs the same time, a nod and a chat and the Welsh like a chat! So grateful to be shown the way to slow down a little, not to rush to do everything all at once. We are not going anywhere, it can wait. A wise lesson though I wish I didn’t need to tear ligaments to learn these things!

I am starting to feel at home as we bump into neighbours at the shops, or in the street or a car beeps and a wave out the window. How wonderful to feel part of a community so soon after moving in. I’ve never lived in such a friendly place.

I come home from a walk and there is a bunch of rhubarb on the doorstep from our neighbour. Small Joys. So many small joys.

Another small joy is having more space. Unlike most people our age, we upsized! The house is bigger, more space to be. The cats are loving having rooms apart to snooze. The new-shed-in-the-house is much bigger a space which meant I had space to get my sewing machine out and space on the floor to cut out fabric to size. So we now have kitchen curtains! Such a joy. (I found the fabric in the Ikea sale a little bit of Sweden in my Welsh house)

Going to Compton Verney for The Tribe of Chokliteers’ annual gathering was also a huge joy and much hilarity was had. I had an idea for a game where you won a prize that was really rubbish, and wanted people to bring a terribly disappointing prize with them wrapped up for someone to win. I hoped others would understand the joke and find it as funny as I did and thankfully pretty much everyone did! I cried with laughter at some of the prizes and I had a night and dinner with a group of friends too which was utter soul filling joy.

Due to all the above, I have not been advertising that I have opened up tribe memberships to new members just now.

Once a year there is a month where people can join the tribe (so we all renew at the same time) after that you can get a digital membership for the rest of the year. It is one of the things I am most proud of in my business.

We have created a really lovely community. We have a facebook and discord group for those that want to chat, friendships have been made and members meet up locally with each other. You get early access to collections and I do a live video chat each week called the Sunday Ramble. I chat about my week in the shed and sneak peeks at new things being made etc and everyone chats to each other in the comments. A cuppa with friends each Sunday. You get a membership pack with a bar of choklit and a badge and gifts depending on the level you choose. Some levels you get an animal and birthday card sent to you on your birthday, others have smaller gifts like keyrings and books or you can do a basic online only version. It is what you make it, early access to creatures, or a community of friends.

I feel we need these links to others these days in these times of disconnection. Not all are lucky to live near friends and family or have lovely neighbours to chat to. Do take a look if you fancy joining.

I only meant to come on to tell you about how much I am loving walking round the ponds, but here we are me blabbing on for ages again.

One last thing before I go. I am off to London on Friday to do two events at the London Children’s Literature Festival. I am looking forward to the events so much, but a bit nervous about London and the big city and the heat. I have not been there since 2012 and I have to get undergrounds and trains and there’s a LOT of people there! I don’t really do cities, but the event is in Barnes ponds so I think I will feel at home a little bit.

Please do share the events with anyone with kids that you know in London, I am rarely there so a good chance to say hi to me and the creatures. We will be celebrating the Gift Gatherers and making little Old shrew book of joys.

I really need to get making animals. I christened the new-shed-in-the-house with a little old shrew and made a commission being patiently waited for, (does that make grammatical sense? I have no idea, you know what I mean I hope) and now I really do want to get making. I have an idea for a lovely summer collection inspired from the ponds but I need to unpack some copper and find some wool! There are a few lovelies in the New collection page waiting for homes if you have a need while I get sorted.

I hope you are all doing ok and finding and making small joys for Midsummer.

I am hoping once settled to write more often to you, but maybe not as long (phew i hear you cry!)

With much love from the new-shed-in-the-house which will find a name soon that isn’t The Office!

If you read this far, please do leave a comment even if just say can I have lift back up to the top please Bernard, I’m a bit knackered now. It is nice for me to know people are actually reading to the bottom.

Karin x