‘The thing I dread most, far more than the gossip – and God knows, I really don't like gossip – is the pity. The thought of people feeling sorry for me is too much. My worst nightmare is others holding a pity party on the coat tails of my misfortune.’ It had been a long time … Continue reading I Don’t Want Pity
When the wind blows for days on end it can be hard to remember what a calm day ever felt like. When you are on long-haul flight you quickly become accustomed to the roar of the engines and it’s only when you land, and the aircraft is powered down, that you realise your earphones were … Continue reading Heart Rules The Head
I’ve just come across an online reference to a conference that took place in Glasgow a few months ago. It was called ‘Everyday Compassion: Supportive responses to dying and bereavement by schools, neighbourhoods and workplaces.’ I didn’t read much more, but I was interested in the fact that there had been such a conference as … Continue reading Everyday Compassion
Life can turn on a dime, goes the saying: the smallest of coins; the smallest of chances; the smallest of opportunities. Life can be governed by events that seem insignificant, and it may be only with the benefit of hindsight that we can take the long view and see that one decision tipped a line … Continue reading But For The Grace Of God
I felt really sad this week on reading a news story about a Polish mountaineer, Tomasz Mackiewicz, who was lost while climbing in the Himalayas. A rescue team managed to get to and save his climbing partner, French woman Elisabeth Revol, but they could not reach Tomasz on one of Pakistan's most deadly mountains – … Continue reading Good Grief
My Edinburgh Press 