Gratitude List

I normally post on Sundays and Mondays but I wrote my mid-year reflections post yesterday, so I'm posting today instead. :)

Things I'm grateful for this month: 

• The "official" start of summer 
• Going to Nando's (very belated birthday meal!)
• Going to the park
• Litha/the Summer Solstice
• Baking 
• Burger King mocha coffees
• Buying new books
• Summer weather 

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. 

Gratitude List

Last month I started my Gratitude List but then didn't get it finished till it had gone over to May. So I missed April's but never mind! Here's May's. :)

Things I'm grateful for this month:

• Beltane
• Going to the beach for sunset- I went on Beltane
• Going to Perch café on Lancing Beach (the first time I'd been in the café!)
• The weather getting warmer and sunny days
• Roses coming out
• Increased light during this time of year 
• Buses 
• Iced coffees 

I've been having a bit of an anxious time lately and sometimes I find it a struggle finding things to be grateful for. But I enjoy doing this list. If you're also going through a hard time, I hope you're doing ok. :)

Thought I would also share a picture I took at the beach this month:

Sunset on Lancing Beach. 

Gratitude List

 Things I'm grateful for this month: 

• Birthday presents and wishes. :)
• Oestara/the Spring Equinox and the official start of spring
• Seeing more signs of spring
  
• The days getting even longer since the Spring Equinox
  
• Having an iced coffee (and a muffin) from Gail's Bakery
• Going to the park
  
• Late winter/early spring sunsets
• Eating more pre-Easter chocolate (like last month)! lol
  

Gratitude List

 Things I'm grateful for this month:

• Sunny late winter days
• Daffodils coming out
• Going to a belly dance workshop with Lianna Greene 
• Early Easter chocolate, especially Kinder Mini Eggs and Cadbury solid choc eggs!
  
• The days continuing to get longer
• Cybele's YouTube channel- she posts relaxing lifestyle videos and silent vlogs
• Celebrating Falling Petals' 10th birthday! 
• Connecting with others online in positive ways
  

Falling Petals' 10th Birthday + Fave Posts

It was Falling Petals' 10th birthday yesterday! It's hard to believe that it's been 10 years since I started this blog and now 5 years since I celebrated its 5th birthday. :)

I started Falling Petals on 25th February 2013. You can read my first post here: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2013/02/welcome-to-falling-petals.html

And here is my post to celebrate the blog's 5th birthday: https://fallingpetalsuk.blogspot.com/2018/02/falling-petals-5th-birthday-fave-posts.html 

Falling Petals was the second blog I created, having previously started Star Sparkle Blog (about entertainment) in April 2011. I also set up The Seasonal Life (about seasonal living) in July 2013. I've loved writing since I was little (mainly stories) and blogging gave me a new way to do that. I think that starting Star Sparkle gave me the courage to start this blog covering "deeper" more spiritual/philosophical type subjects. 

In my first post (and the 5th birthday post) I explained that the inspiration for the blog's name came from Liza Dalby's book The Tale of Murasaki which I was re-reading at the time, about the real-life Japanese author, poet and lady in waiting Murasaki Shikibu who wrote The Tale of Genji. (I'm actually reading it again now; I re-read about it once a year.) She observed seasonal changes and wrote poetry about the seasons, such as cherry blossoms in spring.

When I started out, I wasn't sure which direction the blog would go in exactly, but ended up expanding from self-help and spiritual topics, including the Law of Attraction (LOA), to sharing resources for finding information about self-help/personal development. Since then, I've also covered mental health topics, because I have depression and anxiety myself. 

Gratitude List

I normally post on Sundays or Mondays but I'm behind with blog posts (I also run the blogs Star Sparkle Blog and The Seasonal Life), and just remembered I haven't done January's Gratitude List! So here it is on a Tuesday (and the last day of the month). :) 

Things I'm grateful for this month:

• Going to Creams Cafe in Brighton again (first went in November)
  
• Going to Starbucks
• Winter sunsets
• Sunny weather after days of rain
• The days getting gradually longer again
  
• Baking gingerbread cookie bars- I planned to make them for Christmas but didn't manage to, so I did them this month instead
• Finding meal ideas online
  
• Getting new slippers 

 

And here is a sunset picture I took recently:

Coronation Green, Shoreham-by-sea.