Sensitive people care when the world doesn’t because we understand waiting to be rescued and no one shows up. We have rescued ourselves, so many times that we have become self taught in the art of compassion for those forgotten. Shannon L. Alder Hey, Lovelies. A short post today, to honour my friend Craig Ruddy […]
Another Weird Day In Byron Bay
“I think everybody’s weird. We should all celebrate our individuality and not be embarrassed or ashamed of it.” Johnny Depp So, this happened to me yesterday. I live in an old farmhouse on an organic farm in the hinterland of Byron Bay. Our farm is at the end of a quiet and trafficless road only […]
Announcing Temple of Light Retreat – 3rd- 8th August 2019
“The calm within the storm is where peace lives and breathes. It is not within perfect circumstances or a charmed life… it is not conditional. Peace is a sacred space within, it is the temple of our internal landscape. We are free to visit it, whenever we seek sanctuary. Underneath the chaos of everyday living, […]
The ANZAC Spirit Lives On
“ Even if this spring the dappled leaves should shelter our minds from the moon’s pale echo we would still remember how once they were sheltered by our skulls only from the day’s sun and the night’s stars and never from what we feared and what we remembered ” ~ Dan Davin I live in […]
Are you feeling called to explore your Spiritual and Intuitive side?
“Spirituality is not adopting more beliefs and assumptions but uncovering the best in you.” ~ Amit Ray “Your soul knows the geography of your destiny. Your soul alone has the map of your future, therefore you can trust this indirect, oblique side of yourself. If you do, it will take you where you need to go, […]
Learn to Channel in 2017!
“I suspect everybody has a degree of psychic ability, just as a everybody has a degree of athletic or artistic ability. Some people have special gifts; other people have a particular interest that leads them to develop their abilities. But the phenomenon itself is ordinary and widespread.” ~ Michael Crichton, Travels “Psychic power is the […]
Crazy Wild Weather!
“Suddenly all the sky is hid As with the shutting of a lid, One by one great drops are falling Doubtful and slow, Down the pane they are crookedly crawling, And the wind breathes low; Slowly the circles widen on the river, Widen and mingle, one and all; Here and there the slenderer flowers shiver, […]
Quiet, Tea and Dogs
“A quiet secluded life in the country, with the possibility of being useful to people to whom it is easy to do good, and who are not accustomed to have it done to them; then work which one hopes may be of some use; then rest, nature, books, music, love for one’s neighbour — such […]
Farm Life
“The first supermarket supposedly appeared on the American landscape in 1946. That is not very long ago. Until then, where was all the food? Dear folks, the food was in homes, gardens, local fields, and forests. It was near kitchens, near tables, near bedsides. It was in the pantry, the cellar, the backyard.” ~ Joel […]
Autumn in the Air
“At no other time (than autumn) does the earth let itself be inhaled in one smell, the ripe earth; in a smell that is in no way inferior to the smell of the sea, bitter where it borders on taste, and more honeysweet where you feel it touching the first sounds. Containing depth within itself, […]
The Thrill of Anticipation
“The excitement of dreams coming true is beyond the description of words.” ~ Lailah Gifty Akita I may have done something stupid last night. I may have asked my husband Ben, just as we were going to bed, ‘Are we going for a walk on the beach in the morning?’ I may have said […]
A Morning Walk
“A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal […]
Soul Sanctuary Retreat 2015 – Just a Few Places Left!
“The greatest hazard of all, losing one’s self, can occur very quietly in the world, as if it were nothing at all. No other loss can occur so quietly; any other loss – an arm, a leg, five dollars, a wife, etc. – is sure to be noticed.” ~ Søren Kierkegaard “Self-care is never a […]
Life Returns To Its Usual Rhythms
“The longest way must have its close – the gloomiest night will wear on to a morning.” ~ Harriet Beecher Stowe We decided to come back to the city last night. Ange’s memorial was beautiful, and very Byron Bay. We gathered at the Lighthouse, all dressed in our most colourful happy clothes, as a […]
Will You Join Us For The 2015 Soul Sanctuary Retreat?
“The most fundamental aggression to ourselves, the most fundamental harm we can do to ourselves, is to remain ignorant by not having the courage and the respect to look at ourselves honestly and gently.” ~ Pema Chödrön I’m holding a residential retreat from November 28 to December 5, in beautiful Byron Bay. It’s a […]
Being Held By Nature
“The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.” ~ Albert Einstein Here’s a little snapshot of the loveliness that is our retreat venue. The picture above is of the huge crystal grid set up in the middle of our work room. […]
Coming Home
“Now, on this road trip, my mind seemed to uncrinkle, to breathe, to present to itself a cure for a disease it had not, until now, known it had.” ― Elizabeth Berg, The Year of Pleasures I’ve been in the city so long this last stay. It was necessary. Bert needed surgery. Then Harry. […]
Crazy Wild Weather
“From where we stand the rain seems random. If we could stand somewhere else, we would see the order in it.” ~ Tony Hillerman It’s crazy wet in the Northern Rivers right now. It has rained, and rained and rained, and more rain is coming. Yesterday we moved the cows and baby calves from […]
Rain, Mud, Blues and Gumboot Dancing!
“Music has always been a matter of Energy to me, a question of Fuel. Sentimental people call it Inspiration, but what they really mean is Fuel. I have always needed Fuel. I am a serious consumer. On some nights I still believe that a car with the gas needle on empty can run about fifty […]
Homemade Easter Treats
“Hedwig didn’t return until the end of the Easter holidays. Percy’s letter was enclosed in a package of Easter eggs that Mrs. Weasley had sent. Both Harry’s and Ron’s were the size of dragon eggs, and full of home-made toffee. Hermione’s, however, was smaller than a chicken’s egg. Her face fell when she saw it. […]
The Long Drive Home
“When anybody honks at me in traffic, I blush, wave, and shout, “Thanks for being a fan.” Being a celebrity is a 24/7 thing.” ~ Jarod Kintz It was a slow trip from the country to the city yesterday. It didn’t take long to pack the car, but the detours and delays, they were […]
A Day At the Farm
“I’d rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck.” ~ Emma Goldman I slept in yesterday. Til nearly eight am. Pure luxury! I’ve had a month of restless nights thanks to Lyme disease, so to sleep so deeply and completely was bliss. Our farm is a hive of activity right now. […]
Slow Trip Home!
“The road that leads to nowhere for others might just be the road that leads to somewhere for you!” ~ Mehmet Murat ildan The power is back on, the river is down, and so yesterday afternoon we headed out to buy a few supplies. On the way back home, on a meandering one-lane bitumen […]
Washing Away 2014!
“…the great floodgates of the wonder-world swung open…” ~ Herman Melville, Moby-Dick The early hours of 2015 brought the most fantastical storm to our little farm. As I sat with my tarot cards at midnight, doing my traditional reading for the year ahead, the sky lit up with enormous bolts of blue-white fire, and the thunderclaps overhead […]
The Frog Choir
“Then the singing enveloped me. It was furry and resonant, coming from everyone’s very heart. There was no sense of performance or judgment, only that the music was breath and food.” ~ Anne Lamott, Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith It’s been a magical few days here at our little farm. We had a […]
Magic – Byron Bay Style
“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything.” ~ Plato After a few days of being housebound I was looking forward to an early Saturday breakfast yesterday at a favourite cafe, so with the weekend papers tucked under our arm off we went, […]
A Rather Fine Lizard
“I felt my lungs inflate with the onrush of scenery—air, mountains, trees, people. I thought, “This is what it is to be happy.” ~ Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar Just outside the hall where we go each morning to meditate and do our group work is a large rounded rock, with an indentation which […]
Musings on Early Morning Magic
“The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.” ~ W.B. Yeats I am sitting on the veranda of my retreat bedroom, looking out over the quiet, still bay. It’s cool this morning, and cloudy. A ribbon of pink light is beginning to colour the sky, slowly growing […]
A sneak peak at Day One…
“I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.” ~ Mother Teresa “Pull up a chair. Take a taste. Come join us. Life is so endlessly delicious.” ~ Ruth Reichl The picture at the top of this post is a rather large crystal mandala, […]
A Refreshing Pause
“Rainy days should be spent at home with a cup of tea and a good book.” ~ Bill Watterson, The Calvin and Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book “…I don’t just wish you rain, Beloved – I wish you the beauty of storms…” ~ John Geddes, A Familiar Rain I’m so glad that we went and […]
Afternoon Magic at the Farm
“Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world’s great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs. I am haunted by […]
Will You Join Us for the 2014 Soul Sanctuary Retreat?
“When we pay attention, whatever we are doing – whether it be cooking or cleaning or making love – is transformed and becomes part of our spiritual path. We begin to notice details and textures that we never noticed before; everyday life becomes clearer, sharper and at the same time more spacious.” ~ R. Fields […]
Simple Tomato Salad
“Like all magnificent things, it’s very simple.” ~ Natalie Babbitt, Tuck Everlasting One of my favourite salads involves ripe tomatoes, a little oil and a handful of herbs picked fresh from the garden. Right now my Spring vegetable garden is still in its infancy, and my tomatoes are not yet ripe. But I found […]
Storm Clouds and Other Magical Things
“When you come out of the storm, you won’t be the same person who walked in. That’s what this storm’s all about.” ~ Haruki Murakami, Kafka on the Shore As I finished my meditation this morning, sitting on the veranda overlooking the ocean, a lightning storm began. There was no thunder. The whole thing […]
The Return of Bandit
“Now they return home, their bones bruised and their spirit slightly broken, but they’re still alive, and they will be well sometime soon.” ~ Hannah Nikka Bryan, Soldier’s Descent It’s been blowing a gale all night. The wind chimes have been ringing furiously, and the rustling of the leaves sounds like an orchestra. Add […]
A Busy Weekend of All Things #Books
“What really knocks me out is a book that, when you’re all done reading it, you wish the author that wrote it was a terrific friend of yours and you could call him up on the phone whenever you felt like it. That doesn’t happen much, though.” ~ J.D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye […]
Frosty, Frosty… Penguin!
“If a solution fails to appear … and yet we feel success is just around the corner, try resting for a while. … Like the early morning frost, this intellectual refreshment withers the parasitic and nasty vegetation that smothers the good seed. Bursting forth at last is the flower of truth.” ― Santiago Ramón y Cajal, Advice […]
Music, Smiles and All Good Things
“Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without.” ~ Confucius, The Book of Rites Ben and I ventured to the Mullumbimby Farmers’ Markets yesterday morning. We got there a little later than usual, about 8.30am, because after my pre-dawn meditation I sat down at the computer and hammered out some more words […]
Roadside Bounty and Shared Harvests
“We must give more in order to get more. It is the generous giving of ourselves that produces the generous harvest.” ~ Orison Swett Marden On the back roads around our own little farm, many farmers and those folks with large home gardens have set up roadside stalls to sell some of their surplus produce. I […]
The Wild Life!
“Connecting with the wilderness allows us to live in the flow of a meaningful, joyful life. Embracing this state of connectedness or oneness with other living beings including animals, as opposed to feeling an “otherness” or “separateness” brings a sense of harmony and enables us to be at peace with oneself and the world.” ~ Sylvia […]
A Gentle Morning at the Farm
“Every morning was a cheerful invitation to make my life of equal simplicity, and I may say innocence, with Nature herself.” ~ Henry David Thoreau, Walden Autumn is a magical time at our farm. Gentle showers soak the ground during the night, and in the morning thick mist wraps itself around the mountains. As the sun burns […]
Making a Cosy Nest
“The bird, a nest; the spider, a web; man, friendship.” ~ William Blake There’s a cold change in the air. Autumn is well and truly here at the farm. That means stoking the fire each night, and digging out our jumpers and extra blankets for the beds. A few weeks ago I sat on the veranda, discussing the Bluesfest program with […]
Hooray for friends!
“A friend is someone who knows all about you and still loves you.” ~ Elbert Hubbard Isn’t this the most colossal bucket of flowers for ten dollars? They are grown and sold by two elderly brothers who live up the road from us. You can read more about that here. I’ve had a lovely time […]
Wise Birds Come Visiting
“One day you live somewhere, you call dat country home. Smell like dis place. Earth. Sea. But make you happy again. We send all dem black fella birds remind you your promise. Remind you your story. Then you know it’s time. Time to be dat story. Live dat story in your heart. Live your true […]
Rebirth of a Tenacious Tree
“Often it is tenacity, not talent, that rules the day.” ~ Julia Cameron, Finding Water: The Art of Perseverance When we moved to this farm there was a hulking squat skeleton of a tree near the clothes line in the back yard. From its furthermost branch clung a few twisted and misshapen leaves. Piece by piece […]
Sunshine, Earth and Dancing Orbs
“You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves. Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine. Meanwhile the world goes on. […]
Quick Apple and Blueberry Tart
“Cut my pie into four pieces, I don’t think I could eat eight.” ~ Yogi Berra This simple berry and apple tart is quick to make and tastes fruity and delicious. I use variations of this recipe all the time to whip up a speedy afternoon tea or dinner-time treat. Shop-bought pastry means all you need […]
My ‘Sunday Markets’ Outing
“All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost. From the ashes a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring; Renewed shall be blade that was broken, The crownless again […]
Coming back to myself
“There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered.” ~ Nelson Mandela I am sitting in a cafe at Byron Bay, and it feels like a small miracle. After my six-week fever broke last night, and a powerful meditation shifted me past most […]
The Baby Who Knew Me!
“Hope is the thing with feathers That perches in the soul And sings the tune without the words And never stops at all.” ~ Emily Dickinson “Really important meetings are planned by the souls long before the bodies see each other. Generally speaking, these meetings occur when we reach a limit, when we need to die […]
It’s Friday – You’ll find me at the Mullum Markets
“When you wake up in the morning, Pooh,” said Piglet at last, “what’s the first thing you say to yourself?” “What’s for breakfast?” said Pooh. “What do you say, Piglet?” “I say, I wonder what’s going to happen exciting today?” said Piglet. Pooh nodded thoughtfully. “It’s the same thing,” he said.” ~ A.A. Milne It’s […]
Was it all a dream?
“Yesterday is but today’s memory, and tomorrow is today’s dream.”~ Khalil Gibran It’s 5am. I woke this morning in my own bed. The cool dawn air from the windows flung wide is fragranced with lemon blossom, jasmine, green grass and rich earth. It’s a lush smell. A rich smell. So dense I can almost hold it […]
Down at the River
“Earth and sky, woods and fields, lakes and rivers, the mountain and the sea, are excellent schoolmasters, and teach some of us more than we can ever learn from books.”~ John Lubbock There’s a place I go, here at my farm, when I need to think or meditate or to ease my worries. I go […]
Favourite Things
“Sunday is the golden clasp that binds together the volume of the week.” ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow It’s Sunday, and for me it’s a day of favourite things. Meditation first, before the sun comes up, with my Mala beads and Tibetan Bowl. A short walk around the farm with Harry while we wait for the rest […]
The Joy of Guerrilla Art
“Art is not a thing; it is a way.” ~ Elbert Hubbard I went to my local Library in Byron Bay yesterday, and was delighted to find a small house made entirely of books (used in such a way that they were still readable) displayed prominently in the middle of the room. The librarians had found it […]
The Anzac Spirit – Alive and Well
“The really important kind of freedom involves attention, and awareness, and discipline, and effort, and being able truly to care about other people and to sacrifice for them, over and over, in myriad petty little unsexy ways, every day.” ~ David Foster Wallace I live in the picturesque Byron Shire – a million miles away from […]
My Friday Morning at the Mullumbimby Farmers’ Markets
Excitement! I went on a short outing today to my favourite local Farmers’ Market at Mullumbimby. After the last few horrendous days of Lyme herxing I appreciated the fresh air and change of scenery… My first stop was an excellent breakfast from The Nomadic Kitchen – Rice, banana and tomato sauce, and fried egg. I can’t […]
Rain is better than drought…
I love a sunburnt country, A land of sweeping plains, Of ragged mountain ranges, Of droughts and flooding rains. ~ From ‘My Country‘ by Dorothea Mackellar We endured eight hard years of drought at our old farm – a cattle property in the Lockyer Valley. Slowly the grass turned brittle as straw and the dams […]
What the Frack?
As we watch the sun go down, evening after evening, through the smog across the poisoned waters of our native earth, we must ask ourselves seriously whether we really wish some future universal historian on another planet to say about us: “With all their genius and with all their skill, they ran out of foresight […]
Platypus Dreaming
I have a special place down on the river where I go to meditate sometimes. I walked down there this morning, just as the sky was softening with the first gentle fingers of light. There were still stars twinkling in the sky, and the cows called to me as I walked by. I settled down […]
Simple Baked Camenbert Recipe
“Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art… It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival.” ~ C. S. Lewis Our little farmhouse is as popular as any Byron Bay bed and breakfast come weekends,especially on Market Weekends! I’m returning home this morning, after a very big […]
Farmers’ Markets – Nom Nom Nom!
“Don’t eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food.” ~ Michael Pollan Have I told you how much I love food? I do, you know. Food is one of life’s great joys for me. There is nothing better than fresh food – from produce grown with love and care. Good food is medicine for the […]
Koalas in My Backyard! or What is Biodiversity?
We must be the change we wish to see in the world ~ Mahatma Gandhi One of the hats I wear in this lifetime is ‘Organic Farmer’. My husband and I have a strong commitment to food production that nurtures and values the land, and that uses no chemicals or harmful practices. We […]
Grounding Myself in Life Again…
“Go to foreign countries and you will get to know the good things one possesses at home.” ~ Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe I’ve spent the past five days running a meditation retreat. It was a fabulous course, and I was totally absorbed in a world of ritual, magic and spiritual connection. But today I […]
Meditation with whales
For the next few days I am running a shamanic meditation retreat at Byron Bay. My blogging ability will be limited to what I can do from my iphone. But at least I can still keep in touch with you! I have five days of delicious meditation with my group. It’s a wonderful time for […]
The Mullumbimby Chocolate Shop
Not far from my farm is a wonderful place which comes straight from the realm of childhood dreams. It’s the Mullumbimby Chocolate Shop, and it’s dear to my heart for many reasons. I sometimes pay a visit and get a little bag of lollies, and then sit outside at a local cafe and write, sipping tea […]
Breathing in Life…
“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” ~ Albert Einstein Yesterday was wonderful from start to finish. And yet it was also the most ordinary of days. I didn’t win lotto, there was no major excitement, no […]
Dr Sketchy – Beautifully Burlesque
“Have no fear of perfection, you’ll never reach it.” ~ Salvador Dali My brain is still in a post-virus muddle. Clarity comes in fits and starts, and then fog washes over me and my brain disappears entirely. Trust me, this is not conducive to writing. So, what should a writer do when they’re in […]
What does Happiness look like to you?
In our age of overwork, stress, social isolation, time pressure and exhaustion, it is increasingly important to know what fills you back up again, what makes you smile, what brings joy and happiness into your life. What does happiness look like to you? If you don’t know, make it your mission to find out, and […]
Byron Bay Bluesfest – An Easter Tradition
“If I should ever die, God forbid, let this be my epitaph: THE ONLY PROOF HE NEEDED FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD WAS MUSIC” ― Kurt Vonnegut “One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain.” ― Bob Marley Sorry, I’m late posting today. Big night out for me last night, and there […]
Everybody needs a place to call home, or, my little farm and what it means to me
One’s home is like a delicious piece of pie you order in a restaurant on a country road one cozy evening – the best piece of pie you have ever eaten in your life – and can never find again. After you leave home, you may find yourself feeling homesick, even if you have a […]
Wild Dogs and a little Philosophy
My morning meditation was interrupted by a sound no farmer ever wants to hear; the barking of wild dogs. It was still dark, and I could hear them close on the ridge behind me – quite a large pack in the paddock where my cows and their young calves are grazing. Not long after, the […]