The problem with having had the gleam is that for it to mean anything, work has to ensue. I hate … More
Tag: Anne Lamott
Another good week
Fourth Sunday in Advent This was another good week. Because it had rest in it. Because I re-read Anne Lamott’s … More
Tired, but
I am tired. Though I write from a place of privilege and of safety, I am tired. Tired of feeling … More
Saying goodbye
I want to congratulate you on passing this course and achieving QTS in this uniquely difficult and strange year. None … More
The Year of Living Deeply 15: You don’t have that kind of time
About a month before my friend Pammy died, she said something that may have permanently changed me. We had … More
On Diane Abbott and Assange -Meditation on a line by Anne Lamott (LentBlog37)
There’s an old Mel Brooks routine where the psychiatrist tells his patient, “Listen to your broccoli, and your broccoli … More
Meditation on self-care (LentBlog30)
Like a lot of things I am ashamed to admit discovering late in life -Audre Lorde, James Baldwin, Deborah Levy, … More
Meditation on an envelope (LentBlog24)
Anne Lamott suggests an index card, and I have used these, but they suggest something pre-planned, organised. The envelope, especially … More
Meditation on a line by Joli Jensen (LentBlog21)
It isn’t often that you read something that you know as soon as you read it has the capacity to … More
Losing My Ambition
Towards the end of my treatment for cancer in 2006 I had one of the most profound conversations of … More
What do I know?
One of the more interesting paradoxes of analysing the interviews of professional writers during the Teachers as Writers (TaW) … More
Addicted to the news
‘Listening to the cricket again?’ says the book. ‘I think I’ll join you.’ ‘What do you mean, ‘again’?’ I say. … More
Buggering about on the internet
‘Hullo,’ says the book. ‘I thought you had gone away.’ ‘I lied,’ says the book. ‘What are you going to … More
Oh, but you love writing!
When I write, I feel like an armless, legless many with a crayon in his mouth -Kurt Vonnegut A friend … More
The stationery thing again
My blog post yesterday about the stationery thing provoked more responses than I ever imagined it would. Among the … More
Gratitude
I’m grateful to you, you see. I wanted to tell you. –Raymond Carver (‘For Tess’) A kind, wise man once … More
On disappearing
I wrote recently about poets who disappear from view, specifically Susannah Amoore, from Faber’s Poetry Introduction 6. My point is far … More
8 great books about dying
The chances are, more of us are mortal than have multiple orgasms -Violet Weingarten, Intimations of Mortality When I was diagnosed … More