A few years ago I heard about Providence Youth Club in Battersea, London, welcoming a group of farm animals from The Shallowford Trust’s Dartmoor farm to a local city carpark for a week. Londoners could come to see the calves, lambs and pigs in the straw in pens just across the street from shops andContinue reading “Concrete Cows”
Tag Archives: Nature
New Encounters
Art and nature – how they interact, how they benefit wellbeing together and apart – are integral to my Medley arts for wellbeing initiative. So when I heard about Nature In Art, an art gallery, I obviously wanted to learn more. Located 2 miles outside Gloucester, this is none other than the world’s first artContinue reading “New Encounters”
Earthbound?
In a basket where I keep cards and letters, I recently found a greetings card sent in 2009, with a very striking image. It’s entitled “Trees Amid The Waters Near Taponas, Rhone, France” and it is an aerial photograph taken by Yann Arthus Bertrand during the floods of March 2001. Seeing this image made meContinue reading “Earthbound?”
In The Bleak Midwinter
Midwinter has descended. Darkness falls so early and cold and ice refuse to clear. Next week sees the winter solstice, then Christmas. How do you see winter and darkness? Do they feel to you dismal, hopeless, a struggle? Or do you see them as a chance to recharge? Many of us see winter and darknessContinue reading “In The Bleak Midwinter”
The Garden Shed
People like to joke about men retreating to the shed to escape a nagging wife or household chores. But there’s a positive side to this too. A shed can become a refuge, a haven, a space away – to enjoy solitude or gardening or woodwork maybe. It’s an outdoor shelter. And it’s spawned an entireContinue reading “The Garden Shed”
Climbing On Camera
Imagine mountain climbing and photographing your way around the world and you have some idea how US climber Jimmy Chin has spent the last twenty or more years. I first heard of Jimmy Chin last year when he published There and Back, a photographic book which also shares his life story. Photographs and documentary filmsContinue reading “Climbing On Camera”
Call Of The Wild
Awe, wonder, empathy, caring – just a few of the ways you might respond to animals. Maybe you like interacting with them. Stroking an animal’s fur, grooming a horse or feeling a pet or companion animal’s warmth beside you can all be reassuring and therapeutic. It’s interacting with another living being, a feeling of connectingContinue reading “Call Of The Wild”
Under The Microscope
Maybe you too have seen the dazzling images just released from the James Webb Space Telescope, and wanted to discover more? When connecting with nature is recognised as a powerful way of boosting wellbeing, then experiencing and learning more about science could also do just that. It’s a way of deepening nature connection, but it’sContinue reading “Under The Microscope”
Wide Awake
If art, nature and music can all boost health and wellbeing in the daytime, as they do, then why should they not also help insomnia? I think there are three ways they could help: as a way to spend time, as a way to try and still your mind to sleep, and as a toolContinue reading “Wide Awake”
A World Of Its Own
Taking part in No Mow May this year (although only in my back garden, so it’s hidden from view!) I’m enjoying seeing just what grows. There are flowering grasses which wave in the wind; dandelions growing taller than usual to reach the light; and some bush vetch and dove’s foot cranesbill add colour. It’s allContinue reading “A World Of Its Own”
Medley 