Mid-2026 Reflections

We're halfway through the year, so it's time for my annual mid-year reflections post! I started them in 2017, so 9 years ago (although my first one was in May, so just before the middle of the year).

I'm later posting this year because I didn't manage to get it finished last month. You can see my previous posts below: 

Reflections (2017): https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2017/05/reflections.html

Mid-2018-Reflections: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2018/06/mid-2018-reflections.html

Mid-2019 Reflections: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2019/06/mid-2019-reflections.html

Mid-2020 Reflections: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2020/06/mid-2020-reflections.html

Mid-2021 Reflections: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2021/06/mid-2021-reflections.html

Mid-2022 Reflections: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2022/06/mid-2022-reflections.html

Mid-2023 Reflections: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2023/06/mid-2023-reflections.html

Mid-2024 Reflections: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2024/06/mid-2024-reflections.html 

Mid-2025 Reflections: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2025/06/mid-2025-reflections.html

 

I also write an end-of year post. You can see 2025's here: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2026/01/letting-go-of-2025.html  

The first half of the year has been up and down. I've been struggling with anxiety  (health anxiety in particular) and feeling quite down at times, due to various things. 

I mainly went to Happy Café  meetups (part of Action for Happiness) and also to the park and the beach As mentioned in last year's post, I most often go to the park and the beach as part of my celebrations for sabbats (seasonal festivals). I write about my celebrations on my seasonal living blog The Seasonal Life. 

Gratitude List

I normally post on Sundays or Mondays but didn't get round to writing this yesterday so I'm posting on a Tuesday instead. :)

Things I'm grateful for this month:

• Hot summer weather- although the heatwave (2nd one this spring/summer) took a bit to adjust to!
• Litha/the Summer Solstice 
• Going to the park for Litha 
• Lots of sunshine 
• Summer flowers 
• Watching classic Neighbours episodes on YouTube (Neighbours Classics channel) 
• Buying new books 
• Trying a Vietnamese iced coffee from a restaurant for the first time (I normally make them at home)

Gratitude List

 Things I'm grateful for this month:

• Beltane
• Going to the beach for Beltane 
• The summer like weather- we're having a heatwave in the UK at the moment!
• Long days
• Spooners cookie dough dessert 
• The return of the Law of Attraction blog I Heart LOA- I used to follow it a few years ago and was pleased to see that the owner Amy has started it up again. :)
• My new cosy colouring book! 
• Revisiting a childhood favourite!

Feeling States Round-up

Over 8 years ago (9 in November), I started a series called Feeling Your Emotions. The intention was to look at different emotions (such as anger, sadness and depression, fear and anxiety, peace and love) and get in touch with them, to help heal and move forward. 

You can read the introduction here: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2017/11/feeling-your-emotions-introduction.html

Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor, so if you're having mental/physical issues please seek medical help in addition to reading this. :)

 

I've carried on the series sporadically since then, with my most recent post being in November 2024 (about peace). Prior to that, I wrote a recap of all the Feeling Your Emotions (FYE) posts in 2022. You can read it here: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2022/09/feeling-your-emotions-recap.html

In addition to that, I've written  "stand-alone" post about other feeling states (not specifically core or basic emotions) and just focusing on feeling better. While I currently don't have any plans for another post in the FYE series, I thought that I would share a round-up of the other posts which aren't part of  it. And also look a bit more at emotions and feelings. :)

Here are the posts:

 

Feeling Like a "Loser": https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2019/05/feeling-like-loser.html

Feeling Lonely: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2020/05/feeling-lonely.html

 

Feeling Low: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2020/07/feeling-low.html

 

Feeling More Positive: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2020/11/feeling-more-positive.html

 

Feeling Stuck (When Your Dreams Feel Far Away): https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2024/02/feeling-stuck-when-your-dreams-seem-far.html

Feeling Powerless: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2024/05/feeling-powerless.html

 

Gratitude List

 Things I'm grateful for this month:

• First full month of spring
• Easter
• Lots of sunshine! 
• Simply K-pop coming back (I thought it had finished for good last year)!  
• The days continuing to get longer 
• Amina Makhdoom's Joy Challenge- it's my 9th year doing it live (I think I first did it by myself in 2016)! :) 
• Lana's YouTube channel-  relaxing videos all about her solo life. 
• Listening to music- sometimes it's good to return to basic gratitudes and this is one of mine. :) 

Gratitude List

Another Tuesday post (like last month) but never mind! :)

Things I'm grateful for this month:

• Birthday presents and cards
• Birthday wishes :)
• Oestara/the Spring Equinox and the "official" start of spring
• Longer days
• Reading a good book 
• Going to the park
• Pre-Easter chocolate! 
• Blossoms

Gratitude List

I normally post on Sundays or Mondays but I didn't get round to doing this yesterday, so I'm posting on a Tuesday instead. :)

Things I'm grateful for this month:

• Imbolg/Imbolc 
• The days getting noticeably longer 
• Signs of spring
• Re-reading favourite books
• Sunny days after lots of rain
• A video by Janet Ndomahina about staying positive and getting motivated
• Parks
• Finding like minded people/communities online