Gathering flowers, making a warm drink, lighting a candle, going for a walk-It’s the simple things that make this moment pass.

I cannot believe I started a blog called A Life with Joy when I’m grieving the loss of my mother during lockdown. It was something that was in the pipeline for a few years, and I just never had the time to give to it. Then when my mother passed I dived in the deep end, probably to cover my grief, but slowly, I’ve found there is no escaping that whirlwind of emotions. I have cried more times than I have felt the bubble of Joy but the thing is, grief is grief and loss is an emptiness that is solid in your soul. The blank spaces that filled up so much of my life are gone and there’s nothing or nobody that can fill that void. It just takes time.

Do what needs be to soothe a rambling heart. It’s okay to be a little frail today, cause tomorrow there’s a new page to start. 

This walk changed my day. The fast moving sky of rain showers and sunlight. Puffs of white clouds moved across the landscape creating deep contrast in colour and light. I could almost feel them lifting my sadness away. In the distance, rain showers added shafts of deep blue. It was magical! 

LIFTING THE LAYERS AWAY
Yesterday when it all felt raw I wished things were normal and that I could meet a friend for a cup of tea and a chat face to face. Instead, I headed out for a walk and I picked some daffodils. I chatted to my mum as I plodded along (cause I miss our chats so much) Soon I felt a soft change slide in and move the heaviness away. The wind was frisky, and the birds were more alive than ever, swooping up and down across the field. I felt the air on my face, my lungs inflate, and I was smiling again. Nature always brings me back to myself. It lifts the layers away, exposes the emotions and with a willing heart releases them. Nature never fails me. There is beauty at every turn, even in the fragile petals of a windblown daffodil.

That flower does not fight with the breeze that moves it.

They really are little sunshines. I couldn’t stop photographing these daffodils and could easily have taken a hundred photos. I loved the way the sunlight caught the edges of the petals.

HEALING HABITS
When I returned from my walk, I made some golden milk, (recipe below) I lit a candle and I placed the daffodils in a vase. The scent of the daffodils was like spring in a defuser. There is such elegance, beauty and detail in a single daffodil and its colour, like the rays of the sun, lighting a space in our home. I carried the daffodils with me to my writing table, where I wrote two poems. Words I couldn’t hold in. These small things brought a little light to my day and I am okay. Even on sad days there is the wave of love and joy outside and you can bring a little touch of that inside.

I know we all have to go through days like this in our lives. We all grieve in different ways, and there are many forms of grief. It may be a person who has passed, but it may also be a diagnosis, a life that never got the chance to bloom or something that never happened or didn’t turn out as you had imagined it would. It may also be grieving all the things covid has taken from us.

Grief is grief, and while we can’t change everything, we can find a way through it. We can be here for each other and hold each other when we need to be held. Even if it is a lockdown version. Grief is real, and it’s normal, and it’s natural. Not every day will be full of the joys of life, but in each day, if you spend sometime outside among nature you will find at the very least a speckle of Joy to carry you to the next day.

For a little pick me up, a cup of this golden turmeric milk is full of goodness. You can adjust the spices to your tasting. The black pepper increases the beneficial properties and absorption of curcumin in the turmeric. I like to sprinkle cinnamon on top.  

THE GIFTS OF SPRING

I know lockdown is dragging on and taking its toll on everyone, but right now we are blessed with the gifts of spring and each day there is something new creeping into existence. Buds are already bursting through and colour is about to explode into our gardens and hedgerows. Take the time to breathe in the outside world and embrace the spring sun. Allow your body and brain rest from the news of the world. Small things like this can have a positive impact on your day.

ENJOY THE FLEETING MOMENTS OF SPRING BLOOMS

Bring some of the outside world into your home. I love to pick a bunch of fresh flowers and loosely arrange them in a vase, a tumbler or even an old teapot. Anything can be a container. Even a sprig of thyme which is now showing its delicate blue flowers can look so pretty in an old perfume bottle. Thinking creatively is as much part of the joy of working with flowers in the home as it is to sit and take in their display. The branches of eucalyptus placed higgledy-piggledy in a plain white vase can look stunning. Flowers create atmosphere and can change the mood of your home. Work with the seasons. There’s always something to gather even if it is just greenery. A bunch of snowdrops or a vase of daffodils adds a dash of colour and light to a table, hall or a corner of a room, and it can really make life smile.

Today I am feeling much brighter and lighter, and I hope my writing brings something of value to someone who may be feeling a little like I did.

Frank Lloyd Wright had said, “Study Nature, love Nature, stay close to Nature. It will never fail you.” I totally agree.

When my mum’s snowdrops popped up, I couldn’t help but pen a poem called memories. (You can have a listen in the video at the end of this blog) I had great pleasure in placing them on the table for a birthday tea that afternoon. 

WHAT’S TO COME
Despite this emotional time in my life, I am excited about a few things. One is this blog and thank you all so much for signing up and supporting me on this journey. Also, I have a few little projects lined up that I will share with you in the coming weeks. In this blog expect a mix of my poetry and photography, occasional recipes and tonics, (From my time studying herbal medicine) some meditations, a sprinkle of interior design (my first career) and things from the garden. Basically, anything that brings Joy to my life.

GIVEAWAY
Follow me on the following social media platforms, which I’m really only starting to grow. This month on Instagram I will run a giveaway so please follow and interact with me for more details. I’m putting a nice package together, which I think you might like. Think nurturing, pampering, time for self. 

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A post shared by Patrice Reynolds (@patrice.reynolds)

MEMORIES – Why every minute counts
I couldn’t help but pen this poem when I saw my mother’s snowdrops popping up.
It’s called MEMORIES.