…to this space…to feeling like I just might have the headspace and energy to write here more regularly. I’ve wanted to for so long, but with all the writing and sharing I do at Wisteria & Sunshine, my designing and then the usuals that we all do online, being in front of the screen again hasn’t beckoned.

But one of the many realizations I’ve had during my gentle January, when I slowly slowly sift and sort through my life, is that I do have certain thoughts and sharings that will fit very nicely here. I now have a pocketful of them, gleaned from the past year’s notebooks, in the new notebook I am creating from bits and pieces I already have.

Yet…I am not ready to begin. January continues very quiet and cosy and unhurried, as I like it…as I intentionally make it, as much as I am able. The tiniest of colds keep coming around after several days of actually accomplishing the work and well-being rhythms I gently set out for myself. Today is one of the those days when focused work feels impossible, so I am leaving this little note for you to find and probably won’t manage much else that is productive.

I’ll leave you with a few tidings from the past week…

~There is a new film over at my youtube, long and peaceful.

~I’ve put all of the papery things back in my shop. I’m not feeling quite ready to fill orders but I know some didn’t place their orders before I closed shop in January, so I’ll nudge myself to get back in studio. : )

~And I wanted you to  know that you are receiving this because it sends automatically to everyone on my newsletter list because that used to be linked here. If you’d rather not receive these blog posts in your inbox, please feel free to unsubscribe below. You will still receive my newsletter emails.

I’ll probably be here again in early February, when my body and spirit will likely begin to wake up a bit more. But for now, back to my cocooning. Probably some tennis-watching on the living room sofa and then some reading by the fire on the kitchen sofa…and a very belated breakfast.

Hoping your January is gentle,

Lesley

xo

Hello again…

I last wrote to you in early summer when all was fresh and lovely and pared down. And in the usual way of life, autumn’s beginning finds most everything feeling the opposite. It has taken me days to get this missive started, as I am in the midst of few weeks of feeling very fuzzy and headachy and wobbly. My doctors and I are going with the idea that it is a long flare of the worst of my menopause symptoms, but it makes my days very slow, with an unpleasant layer of worry. I was going to put on a brave face of it to you, but it is better to just be real. So let’s just say I am struggling, but persevering…quietly.

This month would usually find me deep in designing next year’s Daybook, and I am making a small start, but it is slow-going. I am pouring most of my creative energies into Wisteria & Sunshine (my membership haven) and we have much goodness to look forward to this month…

~A reading circle for Circle of Stones (some deep work that I felt in need of after a challenging summer.)

~Monthly make-alongs . October’s will begin next week!

~Some of us are reading A Year to Clear (daily readings) and there will be occasional conversations about it as we delve more deeply into simplicity.

~And this week we will choose a cosy novel to read together for our first real book club.

Company has felt important and needed as we step into the darker months of the year, but it also makes these sorts of pursuits more cheerful and good. So I am weaving togetherness into more of Wisteria & Sunshine than I have before, tho’ it is always optional and our rooms will always be places of peace. If you’ve been tempted to join, now is an especially felicitous time to do so! The picture below my signature will take you to the new sign-up page, which includes a peek inside our doors.

Solitude is essential to me, but I had it in plenty most of the summer, so a low-key sociable season for the beautiful autumn months is my plan. As soon as I feel clear enough, that is. I hope your early autumn days are abundant in the hushed and lovely spirit of the season, and that this finds you well, or soon so.

xo

Lesley