Mid-2023 Reflections

Update: 1/7/23: I've added an extra bit to the post because I had more to say! 

It's already June and the middle of the year, so it's time for my annual mid-year reflections post! It's later in the month again like last year, but never mind! I've been writing these for a few years now, I started in 2018 (although that post was in May, so not quite halfway through the year). You can see my previous posts below:

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

Mid-2018-Reflecions: 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

I also write an end of year post. Here's 2022's (written in January because I couldn't get it finished earlier): https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2023/01/letting-go-of-2022.html

As I mentioned in my year-end post, the end of 2022 was quite hard for me due to personal issues. So the beginning of this year didn't start off that well. I feel like I've struggled quite a bit during the first half of 2023. I also find it hard adjusting to a new year, although this time it wasn't as much of a "comedown' after Christmas, since it wasn't that great. 

In February I went to a belly dance workshop with Lianna Greene. I'm not belly dancing regularly at the moment but I go when I can. It's good to do some dancing. 

I have been going to Meetup events quite regularly, just Action for Happiness Happy Cafés (meetups at cafés) in Brighton right now. I wrote about getting back into that in my Letting Go of 2022 post.

At the beginning of the month it was 5 years since I joined Meetup. It seems weird that it's already been 5 years! I wrote about joining it in my Letting Go of 2018 post. I started out doing some courses and groups to help with my mental health and then felt inspired to join Meetup and socialise a bit more. Of course with the pandemic and the lockdowns everything shut down for a while, so I've been trying to get back into it again. 

I got out of my routine of weekly park walks during the first half of 2023 but I'm hoping to go more regularly now. I did also go to the beach for Beltane (seasonal festival that I celebrate). 

I've been feeling up and down mental health wise. I was quite depressed at times during the first half of the year and other times my health anxiety got bad. 

I also feel down about the state of the world sometimes. Of course it's been a difficult few years, not only with the pandemic but with violent events, racial tensions and war in Europe. It also seems like people are becoming increasingly horrible online now!

As a mixed race (black and white) person I find the racial issues especially hard to deal with at times. Currently there seems to be little consideration or support for people like myself in the "mainstream". I have found some supportive places online though. 

I don't talk a lot about these things and don't like to focus on them all the time. But I feel I need to "speak my truth". It's just quite unbelievable to me that even in these so-called antiracist times, mixed people still aren't being treated with respect (particularly those of us who are part black). 

 I just don't understand the horrible attitude and hypocrisy from people who claim to be in favour of "social justice" towards those of who us identify with our full heritage. 

I've created a mixed race resources page for people who need support and anyone wanting to support a person with mixed heritage. Here's a link: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/p/mixed-race-resources.html

It's weird to look back at last year's mid-year reflections post, where I was writing about going "back to normal" after the pandemic restrictions were dropped. 

When it comes to blogging, I haven't been that active here during the first half of the year. Apart from my monthly gratitude lists, I wrote one other post celebrating Falling Petals' 10th birthday. On the one hand it's a bit surreal that it's already been 10 years since I started the blog! But on the other hand, it doesn't feel like that long, lol. 

I have been posting regularly on my entertainment blog Star Sparkle Blog and once a month or so on my seasonal living blog The Seasonal Life. I post quarterly updates on TSL. You can see my winter-spring update here: https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2023/04/winter-spring-update-2023-happy-beltane.html

I've been having computer problems for a couple of months or so, but I am still able to use my phone for most things, which is good. 

I haven't been inspired much in recent months, due to feeling down. I write about "deeper" topics on this blog and I just haven't felt like I had the energy for it. But I will hopefully get back into blogging more on FP during the second half of 2023. :)

Then in "wider scale" news, we had the coronation of King Charles (now known as Charles III) in May. He became king after his mother the Queen died last September. She had just celebrated her Platinum Jubilee (70 years on the throne) in June that year. 

For many of us, the Queen was the only monarch we'd ever known (she became queen in 1952 and her coronation was in 1953), so it feels weird to now have a king! It's also a bit strange that the Queen is now written about as Queen Elizabeth II and Charles' wife Camilla has become Queen (she was called Queen Consort before the coronation). 

This was also the first coronation that many of us had seen. I didn't watch the actual ceremony but saw some of the coverage on TV and the Royals coming out on the balcony.

So that's it for the update.  Thank you for reading! We're now "officially" in summer (in the Northern Hemisphere) after Litha/the Summer Solstice and halfway through the year. It feels like it has gone quite quickly. I hope everyone is doing well or at least ok, and if (like me) your first half of the year wasn't that great, I hope that the rest of it is better. 

Wishing everyone a smooth transition into the second half of 2023! :)

Photo: Mill Hill, Shoreham-by-sea. Taken on Litha/the Summer Solstice. Moonsparkle 2023.