Summer is still toying with us a little here in the UK. A week of flip flops and suncream is followed by gusts and woolly socks. Given that it’s June though, it’s probably safe to hail Spring goodbye and call it Summer. So, a look back on the last season:

Read

This article about how art is advertising for what we really need: we aren’t always adept at remembering what is important. Art can remind us, put our values back to the forefront of the everyday:

“These were all acts of justice, not condescension. They were much needed correctives to the way that what we call ‘glamour’ is so often located in unhelpful places: in what is rare, remote, costly or famous. If advertising images are to blame for instilling a sickness in our souls, the images of artists are what can reconcile us with our realities and reawaken us to the genuine, but too-easily forgotten value, of particular bits of our lives.”

This story of home coming.

Margaret Atwood’s reflection on what ‘The Handmaid’s Tale means in this current age. I love backstories, so welcomed this insight into how her writing is formed as well as what it means today. The TV series of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ has finally arrived in the UK. Looking forward to seeing a book by one of my favourite authors brought to the screen.

I joined our local library and have been enjoying lunchtime trips to swap books for nighttime reading. ‘A Little Life’ by Hanya Yanagihara is possibly the saddest book I’ve ever read. Beautiful and completely tragic. Read it.

Went

Two launches:

• Mission 2020: a new campaign spearheaded by former UN climate change chief Christiana Figueres to incentivise critical action on climate change before 2020. It was a reminder that we cannot be late in taking action on climate change. I wrote more about it here.
• Buy Me Once: a website, community and antidote to fast and disposable shopping. More in a blog post to come.

Old haunts: work and church family, all in one manic weekend. It was like a childhood toy rediscovered – comforting but no longer my every day.

New cityscapes: five nights in Paris inspired us for our own capital. A day trip to Brighton returned us to the sea. We’ve not perfected it but have sought to be explorers of our own city too, taking in Tall Ships along the Thames, and city farms that inspired us for our own garden.

Saw

Urban wildlife remains a fascination – foxes fight in the close on Friday nights. Heron gather on our local playing fields on Sunday evenings. I like to imagine they’re playing wide games.

I’ve been dipping into Dave Erasmus’ open-hearted journey to live gently on the land – building huts, growing vegetables, learning what it means to live a bit more intentionally and sustainably. It’s inspired us for our own garden efforts.

Voted

I love voting. I feel a genuine thrill putting my ‘X’ beside my choice. It’s been a strange time – voting in another topsy turvy election but I’m grateful for that freedom to do so. I don’t take it for granted.

This is part of a regular series on the things that spur me on to keep going with intentional living. What has spurred you on recently?

Today’s soundtrack: Bryde // EP2