TEN YEARS OF BLOGGING - LOOKING BACK AT A DECADE OF SHARING MY JOURNEY

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TEN YEARS AGO....

Back in November 2014 I was at a bit of an impasse. I was in my early 50's and felt a bit lost and unsure of what middle age had to offer. It all just seemed a bit grey and dull, with very little to recommend it. Work was tedious, my life was a little blah, the kids had left home and were happily settled and independent..... Who was I now? What was there to look forward to? How do I process it all?

I had this idea that I needed to write it all down somewhere to work it through, and hopefully I'd figure things out. But where do I do that? Completely out of left field, I decided to start a blog. I didn't know anyone who blogged, I didn't really even know what blogging was, but I googled it (as you do) and I was off on a new adventure.....
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LOOKING BACK AT A SUBLIME SPRING

 
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LOOKING BACK AT THE SPRING THAT'S BEEN

I love Spring - I think I even prefer it to Autumn. It's so nice when the cold, rainy Winter days start to slide into warmer, sunny times. It's wonderful to get up on a Spring morning and to take a stroll around the neighbourhood, seeing more people out and about, flowers blooming, and the sun shining - it just feels joyful.

It's been three months since I wrote my last update and today I wanted to share a few of the highlights from the family, the blog, and life in general - I hope you'll enjoy them too.....
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4 THINGS I WILL NEVER DO AGAIN NOW I'M IN MY 60'S

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A TURNING POINT WHEN TURNING 60

When I turned 60 I wrote a post about the things that don't matter anymore. That was a couple of years ago and I've realised that I've become even firmer in my boundaries and expectations since then. I've always been prone to accommodating other people and putting my own needs second, but now I'm drawing a much deeper and wider line in the sand when it comes to what I'll accept and what I will never do again.

Today I'm sharing a few areas that I've noticed I've become stronger in and more committed to.....
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IT'S MY BIRTHDAY TODAY - AND HERE'S SOME GIFTS I'M GRATEFUL FOR

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ANOTHER YEAR OLDER AND MORE TO BE THANKFUL FOR

I can't believe that another year has glided by, it feels like I'm in a stream that keeps flowing and taking me along with it. Every year brings with it some new lessons, some thoughts, and some changes in perspective. I truly believe that the first third of life is about discovering yourself, the second third is about establishing yourself and your family, and the third third is about introspection, gratitude, creativity, and investing into others.

So, as I sit here with my morning coffee and think back over the last year, I thought I'd share a few things I'm grateful for.....
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YOU DON'T GET TO CHOOSE YOUR AGE, BUT YOU DO GET TO CHOOSE YOUR ATTITUDE

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AGING IS INEVITABLE

No matter whether we feel our age or we feel a couple of decades younger, the reality is that we are aging and there is a process that we need to come to grips with. We can accept it, we can fight it, we can deny it, we can resent it, we can complain about it.....or we can choose to make the best of it.

I've passed the 60 milestone and my mind sometimes finds that hard to believe. I don't feel "60" and I don't feel like I'm heading rapidly towards becoming a senior citizen, but it's a fact that I can't change or reverse - I can only accept it and decide what I want to do about it...
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LIVING LEAN AND LIVING CLEAN - HOW TO LIVE A CLUTTER FREE LIFE

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LIVING LEAN AND LIVING CLEAN

I'm not sure why, but I've never been a big spender and I don't tend to get caught up in wanting to buy the newest gadgets, fashions, or fads. I guess I'm a bit of a "less is more" kind of girl, and that's been a bonus when it comes to keeping down the clutter in our home and maintaining a tidy environment.

What I've noticed though, as the Western world has seemingly become more and more affluent, is that many people with spare cash tend to spend it on possessions. They fill their homes with furniture, gadgets, clothing, shoes, beauty products, and so much more. I think "less is more" has been replaced with "more is more" these days, and it all takes time to maintain and organize. Recently I received an email from one of the lovely women who read my blog that said (in part):
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THE ERAS, SEASONS, AND CHAPTERS OF MIDLIFE

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MIDLIFE CHANGES

Midlife brings with it so many discoveries, challenges and changes. I can't believe how much I've learned about myself (and others) over the last decade or so, it's like the blinkers came off at 50 and I've just found more and more layers to peel away or develop.

I've come to see that it's not a switch that gets flipped, but a series of stages that we grow through - different eras (a Taylor Swift reference there if you missed it) that link together to create a new way of being. Today I thought I'd share some of those eras, seasons and chapters.....
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COLLAGING, AN ALTERED BOOK, AND FOUND POETRY - CREATING NEW FROM OLD

Discovering the interconnections between collaging and found poetry - reframing art and literature in my own way.

FINDING MY CREATIVE SIDE

For those of you who read my blog regularly, you'll know that when I retired I tried my hand at lots of creative pastimes to see if any of them resonated. I'd never seen myself as even remotely "artistic" so it was quite a challenge to put that longheld belief to one side and to see if I was drawn to anything creative. 

Retirement has given me the time and space to dabble in lots of different areas and to discover what appeals and what was "one and done" for me. Some of the things I've tried (with a link to each at the beginning) include:
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EMBRACING CHANGE AND LIVING WITH A LIGHTER HEART

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LOSING THE HEAVINESS

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about a few issues that had weighed me down and the last two are still recent enough for me to know how heavy they've been to carry. I feel like they've been niggling away at me for months and they'd dragged my natural buoyancy down. When you have unhappinesses in your life you can feel like things are bigger and more important than they actually are.

What I've begun to notice is that, as I accept change in my life, I'm starting to feel lighter and more at peace, and I wanted to share that positivity today after a long period of feeling a bit flat....
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THE ART OF LETTING GO: HOW TO SIMPLIFY AND DECLUTTER YOUR LIFE

cresting the hill

 THE ART OF LETTING GO

Over the course of our lives we accumulate so much in the way of clutter - notably, our possessions, commitments and even our thoughts. So, in a world where less is often considered more, it is a good idea to simplify and declutter all aspects of it on a regular basis.

The best way to do this is to let go of everything that is holding you back. If you don't, you can start to feel completely overwhelmed. But, if you do, it can be quite a liberating and invigorating experience.

But how do we kickstart the process of letting go enough to actually be able to simplify and declutter the complexities of our lives? And what does that actually mean?

Today I have a collaborative post that puts the spotlight on the art of letting go and how you can create the physical and mental space you need to live your best life.

 

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