BEAUTY…a word we throw around daily in our lives but what does this word really mean? The dictionary defines beauty as “a combination of qualities, such as shape, color, or form, that pleases the aesthetic senses, especially the sight.” Should beauty only be what we see with the naked eye?

Personally beauty has to be more than how a person looks on the outside; the shape of their face, make-up or piercing, the size of your clothes etc. To me, beauty has to be how you carry yourself, love yourself and treat others who you approve or don’t approve off. Beauty is the way you show compassion and empathy to a stranger you don’t know.
Continue reading Beauty →

You think you know someone, then you learn the back story…

Do you ever meet someone, get to know them a bit, and form ideas in your mind about them? “He’s weird.” “Why on earth would she do that??” “What is this dude’s deal?” I’m not proud to admit it, but I’ll be honest, I have. I like to think that I still treat people well, despite pigeonholing them – hopefully you do, too – however it’s a sobering moment when I recognise that I’ve done this, when I realise that I jumped to conclusions; I didn’t know the whole story – and I shouldn’t have needed to, in the first place, but it seems to help.
Continue reading PeRspEctiVe →

I feel lost; but all is not lost. I can see some light.

I take comfort in my new lostness in Psalm 23 (NKJV):

“The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
He maketh me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His Name’s sake.”

When I feel lost, as I do now, I sing this to myself. I have taken to singing it with the children at bedtime, with me singing the alto part. When I am lost, I sing. This restores my soul and I am reminded always to look to the Lord.

We moved house. We moved cities 1600km (995miles) from our previous home. We left the comfort of friends and family. We let go of things in our lives that fed our souls. We have moved away from the New Church community that we loved and were part of. This has been a difficult move. I feel lost. Continue reading Seeing the Light →

Intern’s Note: This story was so full of correspondence and imagery that I couldn’t fit everything I thought into a short article! If you are up for a longer read,  here is the uncut version.

A child sees the world in terms of bad and good, wrong and right. When she grows up she can see the nuances of morality and ethics and sometimes must argue over the distinction between bad and good. This transition can be a difficult and long road but it can lead to a strength and courage that would be impossible to find without the experience of growing up.

In the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg it is revealed that the stories of the word are representative and hold an inner meaning. Using Swedenborg’s science of correspondences I have found one possible inner meaning for another ancient text; the story of Jorinde and Joringel, a German folk story which was first recorded in writing by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. Continue reading Out of the Witch’s Castle →