Encouragement.

This weekend I left country air and travelled to London to support my brother-in-law who was running the marathon. He did amazingly. I’m so proud that he achieved what he set out to do. Run the race and raise money for the British Heart Foundation in memory of his dad, John, who died in 2022.

He returned home with a medal.  I returned home cradling another treasure.

Encouragement.                                                       

What a joy it was to be in a city full of encouragers. Everywhere - handwritten banners, personalised t-shirts, flags, whistles, drums, cheers, claps, whoops. Such exuberance. People had travelled from all corners to be there. Bags bulged with picnics and snacks.

We appreciate the effort that goes into running a marathon before and during, especially when the sun’s out and expectations are high. We know our presence on the sidelines will make a difference to their race and we do what it takes to be there.

We can’t tend blistered feet or administer first-aid, we can’t run a mile on their behalf or offer a picnic break. They must keep going, run themselves.   

We can only encourage - but we know how powerful that is, before and during.  

Encouragement sparkles with light and energy. It radiates warmth and smells of soothing balm. It communicates love and care, makes you feel seen and valued, accepted and celebrated.

It’s precious.  

On Sunday, I saw encouragement fill lungs, oxygenate cells, lift tired legs, release tears, distract from pain, soften hearts, bring joy.

Encouragement expands the giver and the recipient.

Precious encouragement dwells in shimmering pools within us. We scoop it up and splash it about, scoop it up and offer it out. It’s more refreshing than even the best beer on a hot summers’ day.

I’d go again just to see that!

The crowds of encouragers.

PS. Whilst encouraging others, I realised how little I encourage myself. My self-talk is often very negative and zaps my spirit.

Clear goals, a sense of distance travelled and a focus on the euphoria of the finish line are essential for achieving any dream. But encouragement makes the journey enjoyable.  

I’ve not come home inspired to run couch to 5k. I have come home inspired to encourage myself.

Struggling to clarify our goals, an inability to gauge our progress, and the finishing line feeling so far off are common to us all. A few life-coaching sessions can ensure we’re running the race we’re passionate about and help us step towards that euphoric finishing line.

If you’ve a goal you’d love to realise do contact me.   

Gift.

Do you need more words today?

Or do you need to step outside?

Turn your face to the sun, bask in its warmth, breathe deeply, feel the day surround you.

See Spring is unfolding right in front of you.

Look up. Look out.

Join in.

Joy.

I’ve been pondering the words on this card I brought last week.

Handpainted by @Artbykat77

Isn’t it beautiful.

“Joy is not in things it is in us.” I’ve been wondering, is that true?

We’ve now had a week of glorious sunshine and what a treat it has been. Does the sun bring the joy or does the sun after such an absence bring out the joy that has been dormant within us?

As I’ve pondered … the spring bulbs have been emerging from the soil around me. The gently bobbing heads of the pioneer plants of spring, the snowdrops, made my heart skip in February. I’ve marvelled at the little lakes of purple crocuses that have sprung up from the grassy verges and anticipated the trumpet yellow of the first daffodils. In feeling those first warm bursts of sunshine I know they are soon going to be issuing forth their song, and it lifts my spirit.

This week has been utterly glorious. Crystal clear skies, frosty sunrises, a new moon, Venus still visible, super tides, very gentle breezes or still days. It’s been like listening to a sublime symphony after straining for a faint melody. Around me people are being transformed. Faces open issuing forth smiles and greetings. Celebration is in the air, along with a collective exhale. We are softening and surfacing from our winter.

Winter may not be fully passed just yet but for now, for now, let us savour, linger, lap it up, inhale, take it in.

For it is in the stopping, the noticing, the marvelling and wondering, the celebration and rejoicing that we really receive it and take it in. As we do ‘joy’ awakes, uncurls and surfaces.

I’ve had the picture of joy as a tiny dormouse. Sleepy and safe in that precarious looking nest that is so often elusively out of sight.

What awakens the dormouse ‘joy’ within you?

Clearly the sun does it for me.

Yet the sun is a thing, does the sun not bring and give joy? This card suggests not, inferring something about the sun awakens the joy already within me, drawing it out of it’s nest into the present moment allowing me to delight in it’s presence.

Perhaps you’ve felt somewhat joyless in the last month. Politically there’s been a lot that’s clouded our days. Perhaps you’ve noticed joy curling up tighter within you, feeling more distant.

If this card holds truth, joy remains within, never absent though often dormant.

So, I wonder, what about the sun’s presence has enabled joy to emerge?

The light its cast has renewed my sight everything is more visible in the light. The warmth its brought has encouraged me to fling wide the doors and windows allowing air to travel freely, blowing in freshness. Out walking, benches have become invitational, knowing I won’t get chilled when stopping. Witnessing joy emerging in others has increased a sense of connection and solidarity.

Pondering this suggests I could create some of those conditions when the sun is once again obscured by cloud. I can wrap up and step out into freshness and relish a windy day to blow my internal cobwebs away. I can take a flask and blanket out to linger on a bench. I can seek the company of others and do things together that make us feel connected and united.

Even when the sun’s hidden, I can choose to stop, choose to look and notice, choose to marvel, wonder and celebrate. I can choose to spend time in the company of those things and people that allow joy to awaken, however sleepy she may seem.  

Do leave a comment with your thoughts...