Shiva's and Metta's Mother's Sutra

Sometimes I think I am still dreaming when I do things with my class.  I know I am a much better teacher. Much. Yesterday Blaithin was saying that in all her years of teaching she had never taught in such a way that all of the children understood their maths so quickly and comprehensively. And REALLY understood it. It is quite magical. Also I think that we have got the balance right with the literacy and numeracy. I do that every single day. Every single time. They know the drill some kind of movement, times tables, some literacy then main lesson. followed by 45 minutes of hardcore mathing. Something halfway creative and then, after lunch, something useful and fun. I do Forest School and it is a good exchange.  It is just excellent. Life this year has been a good year. The math chickens have come home to roost. The no wine is really paying off. No wine. Nothing... my skin is amazing. My hair is amazing. I ...

The Goddess awakens Schindlers Lift - sent by Oisin My morning in Caerleon Delicious sausage roll!!! Yesterday was very quiet and productive... but here is the sunrise!!! It was wonderful coming into the room and it was already light outside. I have learnt to love the dark, but I truly truly truly love the spring. Seeing it arrive, so gently and beautifully. Gradually. There are thoughts and wonderful possibilities which awaken once again.  I have also decided to start writing again. Writing is a discipline, a craft. and I must apply myself instead of waiting till everything is right. Climb over the heads of people to write, said Dorothy Parker. My eczema seems to be clearing up.  Also I've decided to go back to intermittent fasting. Nothing too mad, just not eating from 7 pm through to 12 pm. Which means 3 pm. It will be ok. I'm just trying to stop eating at night. In the middle of the night. I had a slice of cake and a piece of...

The guys Excellent adaptation, although why anyone wants to make a live action of a great animation I will never understand... Shwarma night in Cardiff The house in front of the Mynde Wall # The River Usk  What remains of the Mynde Wall More Usk... Was this porphyry or pink granite??? I can't quite believe Oisin is in Singapore. My wonderful son. He is with Ma and Pa and everyone else. I miss him so much. It seems I miss him more when he is there with everyone else! Today was a good day. I did loads of finance and other things - website things and organised my life and cleaned the room and changed the sheets which is something I had been meaning to do for ages. After this I will do the class plan and then turn in early. Get up early and start with my writing, etc. It feels amazing really. I can't tell you how happy I am that I'm back and doing things... imperfectly, but they are stil...

Lines written above Tintern Abbey Wordsworth Five years have past; five summers, with the length Of five long winters! and again I hear These waters, rolling from their mountain-springs With a soft inland murmur.—Once again Do I behold these steep and lofty cliffs, That on a wild secluded scene impress Thoughts of more deep seclusion; and connect The landscape with the quiet of the sky. The day is come when I again repose Here, under this dark sycamore, and view These plots of cottage-ground, these orchard-tufts, Which at this season, with their unripe fruits, Are clad in one green hue, and lose themselves 'Mid groves and copses. Once again I see These hedge-rows, hardly hedge-rows, little lines Of sportive wood run wild: these pastoral farms, Green to the very door; and wreaths of smoke Sent up, in silence, from among the trees! With some uncertain notice, as might seem Of vagrant dwellers in the houseless woods, Or of some Hermit's cave, where by his fire The Herm...

Back on the laptop after an almost two week hiatus. I stopped when I went to Wales which was last Wednesday - truth be told that last week as fuzzy - I was so tired and kinda ill, so there wasn't a lot of writing. And yesterday I was also so tired - It was beautiful though yesterday.  The sun was shining and everything was rising. Everything.  The flowers I planted last year are coming up in the garden. And I have spoken to Oisin every day since he has left. He said he has felt a little be lonely - eating alone and such, but it's Oisin, he will make friends soon. It was Chap Goh Mei last night - the fifteenth day of the New Year. After this work commences again. So we too have a two week break.  What is there to say? I felt deliriously happy yesterday, walking with Ghin and chatting. Laughing and commenting and just generally feeling that life goes on indeed. As we walked along the Deongall Streer, I said, Belfast is so gritty - as a jo...

It should not be this difficult to have to prove a genocide, especially when it is CLEARLY taking place now. The excuse is, eggs gotta be broken, we gotta do what we gotta do. In a recent online conversation, I saw that that the really the support for Israel, while various, was also mostly white supremacist, sexist and Islamaphobic. It was quite awful to have to interact with someone who held that world view, and to think that he is out there, walking around, holding completely primitive views about human beings. It, of course, stems from this thing called the doctrine of discovery. I remember reading about it years ago and recently it resurfaced on my Reels. So I wrote this on the Facebook feed. ANY EXCUSE TO BE AN ASSHOLE AKA THE DOCTRINE OF DISCOVERY Very recently I was unwisely engaged on someone else's newfeed, stupidly arguing with the troll about the horror in Gaza. I mostly just leaned into the oh you a...

First day in Wales. This was Thursday morning. It is tough being Welsh I think. Having to share this border with England. There were so many English people. For the first time I understood what people meant by saying Ireland is different. If I had to live in England/ Wales/ Scotland, I would miss Ireland. Do I miss Singapore? Not really. I miss my family, but the totalitarianism, not really. And what Singapore has to offer, not at all. Not at all. If I did go back now it wouldn't be so bad because I know who I am, but back then, well, it was really awful. Not easy at all. Trying to find my voice, screaming. It was wonderful travelling again. Just freed from all responsibility. Having short trips is good. Although I did miss Ghin and realised it so much when I got back. He had missed me too and I made wonton noodles for him when he got back. But this later. Being in Beechwood Park, this strange grand home - this is...

Didn't upload anything yesterday - a combination of too busy and also too shell shocked. We had a wonderful time in the forests yesterday and by the river. Then I came home and once more - the nightmare of Palestine descends. I barely sleep now. I keep looking into social media, hoping to find some change. A relenting. All guns are now pointed at Rafah and the Israelis are hoping that they will force the Palestinians, Hamas to surrender. If they do not, there will be mass extermination. I mean a few good things have come from this, if you can call it good. For a start, I finally understand why people say being anti-Zionist equates to being anti-semetic. At first I thought, oh they are stupid. But it turns out that I am stupid. It hasn't very much to do with the Holocaust, but a lot to do with the white Judeo Christian settler mindset. You all had your turn with colonialism and genocide, why can't we have ours now? It's o...