“Take a hike.” It’s a phrase usually said with frustration, a way of telling someone to back off or give you space. But what if we borrowed it for something a little gentler? What if we said it to the voice inside us that never quite lets up - the one that points out our flaws, questions our worth, and measures our days against impossible standards? That inner critic so many of us know well. Imagine taking it for a walk. Not to silence it completely, but to listen differently

I’ve been thinking recently about how much time we spend keeping accounts in everyday life. We check bank balances, manage bills, and make sure everything adds up neatly on paper. From an early age, we’re taught that being “in credit” is a sign of security, while being “in debt” is something to avoid. But what about our emotional accounts? The quiet tally we keep of energy given, care offered, time spent, and feelings held? Many of us are diligent emotional accountants. We ke

Sometimes I think life is a lot like punctuation. There are times we need a comma  - a pause to breathe, to take stock, to rest before continuing. The world moves fast, and it can feel as though we must keep going, yet the comma reminds us that pauses are part of the sentence too. Then there are full stops . Moments of ending. They can come through loss, change, or decisions that close one chapter and make space for another. Endings can be painful or freeing, sometimes both a

Light reflecting on water creating patterns As I settle into my second week back at work after my holiday, one quiet moment keeps coming back to me. I remember sitting in a walk-in pool, half-submerged, simply watching. The water moved gently, creating ripples that shimmered and shifted in the light. Shadows played across the surface, the sunlight dancing and refracting in ways that felt both calming and hypnotic. It struck me how mesmerising something so ordinary could be -