It’s been another busy couple of weeks here at Haven House. I’ve been away, back to my birth town of Shoreham-By-Sea, to celebrate my mum’s ‘big’ birthday. I had such a good time. It’s always lovely spending time with family and even better when the sun is shining! It’s sometimes difficult adjusting to the different pace of life in the South after being in the Far North for months. And then vice versa when I return. It’s busy and crowded in Sussex and empty and peaceful in Caithness. I love both equally, and could make both my home, but have chosen Caithness because creatively it is much better for me. I need the quiet and the space to be me, to process and to breathe.
I’ve been watching Kevin McCloud’s ‘Escape to the Wild’ on Channel 4. Programmes about families or individuals who give up the rat race to start from scratch, somewhere remote, sometimes off-grid, always fascinate me. I think I am a closet off-gridder and am dying to do it. I guess after living on the south coast of England for 31 years, being in the Far North of Scotland can feel pretty remote and wild sometimes! Although the families in the programme live far more extreme lives than I do. One family are building a house on the slopes of an active Chilean volcano and another live in the jungle of Belize. Like these people I would love to discard excess and live minimally. Surely then one’s focus would be on inner contentment, not outer acquisition?
At the beginning of this month, we were wild camping our way around the North Coast 500, which I am sure I will blog more about in the future, and even though the weather was dire, think grey skies, drizzle and some nights gale force winds, I loved it. I loved my mind being forced to stop its incessant chatter and focus on the matter of basic comfort and what sometimes felt like survival. When you are concerned about finding a sheltered camp spot or how to cook food your mind isn’t worrying about what’s occurring on Facebook or what other people are up to. I can see why these families in ‘Escape to the Wild’ are drawn to the isolated existence; to find themselves in the simplicity.
Like the two worlds that I now inhabit, I feel that I have developed a mixed personality. I love spending time alone in Caithness, just ‘being’, but when I go back to Sussex, I come alive in the buzz, and draw on the energy around me. Even more so than when I lived there. Now, thankfully I appreciate it more when I visit and make the most of every visit. And inspirationally the two places couldn’t be more diverse. The contrast is stark and I notice the difference as soon as I am coming to land at Gatwick. The south coast is definitely ‘a green and pleasant land’ with rolling hills and pretty colours, whilst the Highlands are rugged and more Earthy.
Thus a change of scenery for my palette this month. A big birthday deserves a big present, so Mum Weller had this bespoke painting created for her, by yours truly. And what else could she have but the beach she loves, Shoreham Beach, in full bloom.
Shoreham Beach in Bloom
In other news, I have another ‘Caithness’ outlet. My canvases and cards are now available to purchase at Wick Airport. A lovely opportunity for visitors to take home a piece of Caithness.
Wick Airport Collection
As always there is plenty to purchase on my website, or please do contact me for your very own bespoke canvas.
Online Energy Healing
Quantity: 1 £95.00 
