Growing up in Lancashire in the
North West of England, I was surrounded by trees. Even though I lived in a city, many trees
grew in and overhanging my school grounds, trees lined many streets, filled city
parks, and one even grew directly outside my house. A big old tree, a maple I think. I remember as a child standing in the middle
of my street, looking up into the beautiful light green canopy that shaded my
road, and throwing a tennis ball straight up through it, to slowly come back down
and let me catch it. I couldn’t reach
the top myself, but somehow, sending my ball up there and back, it was as if I
could touch a little piece of magic.
Trees form a huge part of our childhood,
somehow they naturally feel safe to us, as if they are tall, wise guardians
watching over us. Instinctively we want
to reach out a hand and touch their bark.
It’s tactile and secure, encouraging us to climb and explore. In my early years at school, I remember
taking a piece of paper, placing it against a tree trunk, rubbing a crayon over
it, creating the texture of the bark directly onto my paper.
My earliest natural toys came
from trees, the helicopter like sycamore seed that twirls and spirals its way
to the ground, as if designed to capture the attention of a child, to pick it
up and twirl and twirl, transporting it to a new destination - a natural way to
spread its seeds. A pine cone also captures
a child’s imagination, another tactile delight to behold. I remember running my fingers over it’s
strange shape, taking it home to put on my windowsill, then watching it open
and close depending on the weather, displaying the humidity level like a
natural hygrometer.
And of course there were the
conker games the boys would play on the way to school, at breaktimes, playtimes,
hometimes, and any time they could get away with it when the teacher wasn’t
looking!
On the trip to and from school I
would love crunching the crisp autumn leaves under my feet, giving me an
enormous amount of pleasure, and a huge smile across my face. A happy and carefree feeling is the gift
nature gives to you.
Trees are with us, right through
our school years and beyond into adulthood.
They teach us about the world around us, help us learn how to read, to
write, and to draw. It wasn’t until a
teacher wrote in my exercise book “Don’t Waste Trees!” on a half page I’d
skipped to start at the top of the next page that I really thought about where
my paper comes from. It is in fact, from
trees. If you are indoors as you read
this, I imagine you will be surrounded by the products of trees. For example, I am using a laptop sat on a
wooden folding desk; I have a paper calendar hanging on the wall, and a paper
diary next to me with all my To Do List items on it. There are paperback novels on my shelves,
hardback reference books on a taller bookcase, and magazines I’ve recently
enjoyed reading strewn to my side. I
also have photos in frames printed on photo paper, a wooden door, and wooden
floorboards under my carpet. In many
buildings heat is produced by coal and log fires, staving off the cold and
keeping us warm. Trees really do provide
our shelter, our education, images of our loved ones held dear to us, and fire
off our imaginations in novels and fantasy art images on calendars.
Within the pages of C.S. Lewis’s,
The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe,
we really do discover a whole new world.
Lucy discovers a huge old wardrobe in a spare room, within it are thick
fur coats to wade through, and through the back… paradise. And what does paradise look like? A beautiful wood forest covered in snow.
Trees contain our history, our
memories are closely interlinked with them.
And because trees can live to hundreds of years old, many have far
greater histories attached to them, farther back before we were even born. Some have witnessed epic battles, historic town
meetings that took place beneath their boughs before townspeople thought to
build town halls. Many years of history
are wrapped up in trees, hidden within their many layers of age, wisdom and
memories.
And yet trees, that are far older
than any historic listed building, are not listed. There is no register or listing that protects
ancient trees from being uprooted and demolished. Surely we should protect trees as much as
they have protected us? They have looked
after humankind for hundreds of years, sheltered us, educated us, and kept us
warm from the cold outside. Surely we
can take a small step to thank them for all they have done for us, by protecting
them from damage and destruction by us, preserving them for future generations
to come, so that they too can learn the history and the beauty that lies within
these ancient trees.
The Woodland Trust is attempting to
do just that, to create a national register of important trees, to give them the
same protection as historic listed buildings.
Please show your support by sending a short message through the Woodland
Trust’s Very Important Trees page. Together, we can make a difference. Because life’s better with trees.
Would you like to enjoy live music, get a little exercise, and hear inspirational words to help save the planet? Knowing that you would be making a difference to woods and trees, and attempting to reverse Climate Change at the same time? Well you can, because the People's March for Woods and Trees will enable you to do just that!
There are over 2000 events taking place across our whole planet next weekend, on the 28th and 29th November 2015. In the UK, they will be taking place in all the capital cities, as well as many smaller events dotted across the country. I've listed the main city events below, but if you would like to attend a smaller event closer to you, you can find them on the Global Climate March Event Finder (as well as those across the planet too - just type in your country, city, or zip / post code for your area).
Climate Change
It's all in aid of drawing attention to the importance of Climate Change, the damage it is doing to our planet, and to bring it to the attention of our Global World Leaders who will be deciding what action will be taken on the next global climate deal, which they will be negotiating in Paris on Monday 30th November.
These days climate change is having a much bigger impact on the world. Instead of the scientists just predicting it, we can see the changes greenhouse gases are having on the planet. The rising temperatures of global warming are creating freak weather patterns, causing extended heat waves, snow in countries not used to having it (such as Egypt), and violent storms.
These weather patterns are effecting our seasons, making them more erratic, slower to start, and causing confusion to the plants and animals of this planet. In my own garden this year, I have witnessed shrubs that should have been shedding their leaves, instead they are flowering in October and November, confused by the milder weather we have been having. October is the month when weather normally turns drastically colder in the UK, causing trees to shed their leaves. This year, insects have been flying around when they should be hidden away. Small animals that normally hibernate at this time of the year, like our garden Hedgehog, are still active when they should be sleeping through winter.
This change in the timing of natural events can cause a loss of synchrony, so species that rely on each other, are now out of step with one another. Some animals will do much better, whilst others will struggle, breaking up the natural balance between the two. We are also more at risk of having non-native invasive species, who are not meant to be in our country, taking over and driving out native species, due to a changed weather climate that ordinarily would not allow them to thrive here. This is how our native plants and animals who are quite common now, can become endangered and possibly extinct in the future.
Woods and Trees can really help to alleviate this problem. With trees storing carbon, they help reduce greenhouse gas emissions which are changing our climate. The more trees the better. Trees and woodland also ease problems with flooding, they drink up water through their roots, which also helps hold waterlogged land together, preventing landslides during periods of heavy rain (which we seem to be having rather a lot of in England at the moment!). Trees can also provide a renewable source of winter fuel, reducing the need for fossil fuels which are adding to the problem.
The time to act on Climate Change is now. Many people believe we are almost at the point of no return, with scientists discovering new data which suggests sea levels could rise 10 times faster than previously predicted. If emissions aren't cut, they believe "multi-meter sea-level rise would become practically unavoidable. Social disruption and economic consequences of such large sea-level rise could be devastating. It is not difficult to imagine that conflicts arising from forced migrations and economic collapse might make the planet ungovernable, threatening the fabric of civilization."
This makes me think of my own island that I live on, England. After the Ice Age, sea levels rose that cut off England from mainland Europe. If the ice continues to thaw now due to global warming, will sea levels rise above my country? Will I effectively be homeless? I hadn't thought of my own country possibly being submerged underwater, and my country's population (myself included) becoming refugees seeking higher ground on which to live. You can well imagine that on any remaining high ground, the people already occupying that land would not be so keen to accept migrants. Suddenly life in the movie Waterworld doesn't seem quite so much science fiction, as potentially science fact.
Marching for Change
I believe we need to show our world leaders not only that we care, but that they must take action now, or this planet will look very different in the near future, a change which may well become irreversible.
The major events taking place in the capital cities of the United Kingdom are:
Belfast, Northern Ireland
Sunday 29th November 2015
A rally with live music and speakers hosted by Niall Bakewell from Friends of the Earth.
Cardiff, Wales
Saturday 28th November 2015
A bike ride and rally with speakers and live entertainment hosted by Delphine. You can choose to take part in either the bike ride, or rally, or both!
Edinburgh, Scotland
Saturday 28th November 2015
You are invited to wear your brightest colours for an inspirational rally with speakers and live music at the iconic Ross Bandstand, hosted by Rea Cris.
London, England
Sunday 29th November 2015
The People's March for Climate, Justice and Jobs will be marching right up to Westminster, and culminating with a rally with live music and a range of speakers, hosted by Fatima Ibrahim.
The London People's March will be putting on coaches from various points all over the country to help supporters get there. Check out The Climate Justice website for more informaiton.
If you'd like to take part on one of the major events above, you can sign-up on The Woodland Trust People's March page, where they can keep you up-to-date with the latest news on routes and meet-up places, and if you meet up with them on the day of the march, they will even give you a biodegradable Woodland Trust poncho and a placard to carry!
If you'd prefer to take part in a smaller event closer to you, or in your own country, don't forget you can check out the Global Climate March Event Finder, which has all the events in all countries, with details of what will be happening at each event.
Some of the other events around the UK will include fancy dress in Southport, poets, circus acts and inspirational speakers in Canterbury, as well as many candlelit vigils around the country with words of inspiration and music to shine a light of hope for our planet.
Around the world people will be showing their world leaders they care too, in New York City, USA, they will be holding their first annual NYC World Climate Festival / March where people will be marching to Times Square with singing, dancing, talking, listening and laughing. There will also be people marching in Canberra, Australia, where they will be having music, speeches and stalls in a family friendly Community Festival of Solutions, inspiring people towards action and change.
Whatever you do, make sure you go out there and have fun, show you care about the future of our planet, and ultimately, all life on Earth.
I’ve always loved anything
miniature and small. As a child, I loved
reading The Borrowers by Mary
Norton. I was intrigued by Arrietty, the
young daughter of a family of Borrowers, tiny people who lived under the
floor. When they emigrated in The Borrowers Afield I loved exploring
the great outdoors through her eyes, discovering giant grass and hedges to
climb, beautiful flowers, giant buzzing bees, mice and frogs. And so began my love of nature. I used to imagine my miniature self, running
barefoot across the moss in my garden.
This glossy green carpet is perhaps one of the most ancient of plants, having
no roots or stems, nor true leaves. Many
varieties of moss thrive in the ancient woodland of the British Isles. It grows over rocks and soil, tree bark and stone
walls.
Lichens also grow on the bark of
trees, and are similar in that they have no roots, and absorb water all over
their surface. They need moist humid air
within which to grow, and the best place to spot them is in damp ancient
woodland. Because they absorb water from
the air around them, many varieties of lichens cannot survive near motorways or
human habitation due to the pollutants in the air, such as sulphur dioxide and
carbon monoxide, which dissolve in the water in the air that they drink. In these areas only Pleurococcus, a microscopic alga that turns tree trunks a dirty
green colour, seem able to survive. In
ancient woodland you see a much more varied and exciting variety of lichens,
including Tree Lungwort (Lobaria
pulmonaria), one of the largest lichens with large light green leaf shapes
growing over tree trunks, whose presence is often an indicator of ancient
woodland.
Ancient woodland is rare in that
it has undisturbed, and very rich soil.
It has not been ploughed or turned over by man for centuries, if at
all. It often dates back to the last Ice
Age, and in deciduous woodland, has been fed every year with the falling leaves
in autumn. Deciduous trees also enable
the prolific growth of another key ancient woodland indicator species – the English
Bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta). They flower and leaf early in the growing
season, making the most of the available light before the tree canopy closes in
late spring, giving a beautiful carpet of colour so typical of British woodland,
and much loved pollen and nectar for our humble Bumblebees.
Ferns are also well adapted to
woodland, these shade loving group of plants are one of my favourite. I love how each leaf gradually uncurls from
the centre, extending out into beautiful light green fronds, it’s like
unwrapping a present. Large ancient trees
in Britain harbour many beautiful little rare treasures, like the Golden
Hoverfly (Callicera spinolae), large
furry hoverflies that more closely resemble a honeybee, except that they have
long black antennae that are white at the tips.
The adults are active in September and October, often feeding on nectar
rich ivy as it is one plant which offers nectar and pollen at this time of the
year. Golden Hoverfly tend to lay their
eggs in ancient trees that have been pollarded, where wet rot holes have often
formed, or in the snags and complex branch structures of these old trees.
Perhaps the most elegant and
beautiful creature of ancient woodland, is the Purple Emperor Butterfly (Apatura iris). This Butterfly can appear black and white
from some angles, but when the sunlight strikes the wings at just the right
angle, a magnificent purple sheen is revealed.
This Butterfly spends most of its time up in the tree canopy feeding on
aphid honeydew, although it’s rather unusual diet does bring it down in the
early morning and again in the late afternoon, when it will feed on animal
droppings, carrion, moisture from damp mud, and have even happily landed on
human observers to feed on their sweat!
Another beautiful butterfly is
the Silver-washed Fritillary (Argynnis
paphia), a bright orange butterfly named after the silver streaks found
underneath its wings. This Fritillary is
most often found in woodland where it’s larval food plant, the Common
Dog-violet (Viola riviniana),
grows. As adults, they feed on aphid
honeydew in the woodland canopy, but also their favourite nectar sources, the
flowers of Bramble and Thistle. The Silver-washed Fritillary is a strong
flyer, hurtling along through the tree canopy searching for anything that might
be food, and investigating anything remotely orange coloured in case it might
be a potential mate. Their courtship
flight is the most spectacular of all though, with the paler orange female
flying in a straight line, whilst the male continuously flies in loops all
around her, before eventually landing on a convenient spot where the male
showers her in scent scales. How
romantic!
Important managers of ancient
woodland are the rare and often overlooked are the Narrow Headed Ants (Formica
exsecta), recognised by a deep notch at the back of their head. Even though they are only 10mm long, they
play an important role in helping to regenerate forests. Certain plants are dependent on ants for
distribution of their seeds. For
example, Small Cow Wheat (Melampyrum
sylvaticum), produces seeds with a small sweet attachment which attracts
the ants. The ants carry the seeds to
their nest, where they will consume the yummy food, before taking the seeds out
of the nest and disposing of them somewhere new where they will germinate into new
plants the following year. Ants must
have a sweet tooth too!
Narrow Headed Ants are also
surprisingly green in their way of living. Masters of eco architecture, they build large
dome-shaped nests around a tussock of grass or some similar plant, which
provides not only the foundation of the nest, but also heat as the vegetation
decays within their nest. They also
build their nests asymmetrically, with the larger and flatter side facing
south, so as to get the maximum heat from the sun on their nests. The worker ants also go out sunbathing, before
returning to the nest and using their now heated bodies to warm and help
incubate the eggs. They also thatch
their roof with a covering of grass, heather and pine needles, insulating their
home from the cold. I guess when you’ve
gone to so much trouble to make your home so nice, you can understand how wood
ants can be very territorial, and Narrow Headed Ants are no exception. They have been known to climb onto the backs
of other ant species, and decapitate them from behind, literally biting their
heads off! Perhaps they’ve watched one
too many zombie movies?
If you’re looking for more scary
creatures of the forest, there are a couple of rare bats, the Barbastelle Bat (Barbastella barbastellus) and Bechstein’s
Bat (Myotis bechsteinii). I think the Barbastelle Bat is probably the
scarier looking of the two, being mostly black and pictured here in caves. It’s kind of ironic to think that humans used
to live in caves, and these days most of us tend to have a fear of Bats
flapping around us, how did we ever manage to live in caves with them? Surely we must have come across them in the
past, or is that where our fear of them first came from? Did we inadvertently spook them with a noise,
or was it just their time to fly out, and we happened to be in the way when
they went?
Apparently, Bats roost in
different locations at different times, depending on whether they just want
somewhere to sleep for the day, a breeding roost, or a hibernation roost. For breeding, they prefer higher treetops,
just under the canopy, where the sun will keep the females and their babies warm. Non-breeding adult females, and males, prefer
hollows and damaged spots in older or dead trees to keep cool in for sleeping
during the day. But in winter, they need
somewhere cooler, to allow their body temperatures to drop, preferably quiet
where they won’t be disturbed, and somewhere with a consistent
temperature. Perhaps in the base of an
old tree, but Bats would also find caves ideal for this. Perhaps they would hibernate deep in caves,
whereas prehistoric man would be nearer a cave’s entrance making small fires to
keep warm. Then come springtime, a whole
swarm of Bats could come flying out, surprising and terrifying humans, who
would have had no idea they were there!
I think the cutest creature of
the UK’s forests has to be the Dormouse (Muscardinus
avellanarius), a quick search on GoogleImages brings up many gorgeous pictures to melt your heart. Dormice are so sweet, with tiny human-like
hands, cute faces, golden brown fur, and a fluffy tail. They spend most of their time sleeping, they
sleep all day long, and hibernate up to seven months a year. They wake up in April, and spend their
nocturnal lives searching for food amongst the branches in the trees, often
taking long detours and leaping from branch to branch rather than having to
risk the danger of predators on the ground.
They tend to feed on flowers and pollen in the spring, fruit during the
summer, and nuts in the autumn. Their
favourite food is hazelnuts and bramble, whose flowers and berries can sustain
them for quite some time, but they can also eat aphids and caterpillars. The trees really do hold all they need, even
giving them nesting material, and hollows within which to build their nests
close to the ground for winter hibernation.
Over recent years, Dormice are in
decline. Because of their specialised
diet, and because of their fear of crossing open ground, dormice are restricted
to ancient woodland sites, they cannot cross open ground to colonise other
sites when their woodland habitat is destroyed.
All the species I have mentioned today are especially adapted to ancient
woodland, many are rare and threatened.
Amazingly, only 2% of the British Isles is covered in ancient woodland,
and only half of it is in a semi-natural condition. The other half has been planted with exotic
and invasive species, such as conifers and rhododendron, spoiling the biodiversity
and making it difficult or impossible for our native species to survive
there. These woodlands need careful
management, with the maintenance of native species of flora and fauna, to bring
the woods back to what was originally here in these woodlands. We cannot bring back the species that are
already extinct, but we can use what we’ve learned to protect the threatened
species barely hanging on to our British countryside.
The National Planning Policy
Framework (NPPF) is meant to protect special sites like these, to protect the ancient
forests of Britain and its inhabitants from extinction. But their wording has provided a huge
loophole allowing any potential developers to bulldoze straight through the
land. This is what it says:
“Planning
permission should be refused for development resulting in the loss or
deterioration of irreplaceable habitats, including
ancient woodland and the loss of aged or veteran trees found outside
ancient woodland, unless the need for, and benefits of, the development in that
location clearly outweigh the loss.”
How can any benefit of
development outweigh the loss of such a beautiful habitat and the amazing
species within it, which could be lost forever?
The Woodland Trust believe this wording is as much use as a
chocolate teapot. The wording should be
changed to ancient woodland loss being “wholly
exceptional.” The UK government disagrees,
they believe there is adequate protection, despite there being absolutely no
evidence to back that claim up. What do
you believe? Do you want to protect our
amazing and precious species?
Do we appreciate the country of our birth? The place we are born and grow up in? When we think of going on holiday, we often
think of visiting other countries; perhaps a road trip discovering America, or
a safari in Africa to discover the amazing wildlife out there. But we often forget to explore and discover
the wonders and beauty of the country we live in.
I live in England, part of Great Britain. Great Britain is an island that consists of
England, Scotland and Wales; with Ireland to our west and Europe to our
east. It’s funny, I don’t think of my
country as an island, I think of it as a large solid piece of land, a large
country. I imagine islands to be small tropical
patches of sand, a few palm trees in the middle, in a hot climate surrounded by
the ocean. That isn’t anything like
Britain.
Britain is traditionally a cold, wet and windy place. We think of business people rushing down the
rain-soaked city streets with umbrellas, everything cold, wet, and grey. But if you go back in time, Britain was a
very different place.
Prehistoric Plants
and Animals
During the last Ice Age, some 20,000 years ago, Britain was connected to
both Ireland and Europe by small strips of land, allowing prehistoric man and
beast to migrate in and out of the country.
Early humans had to be hardy, living in caves and making flint tools by hand,
they hunted brown bears, antelopes and wild horses across the frozen plains of
Britain.
The Ice Age eventually came to an end, with the ice thawing,
rising sea levels cut Britain off, first from Ireland, then from Europe
too. The once arctic climate now reached
a warm 17 degrees Celsius in summer, allowing birch trees to spread, with
shrubs and grasses appearing too. The green
and pleasant land that we know today was beginning to take shape. The main hunted animal species were horses
and red deer, although hares, mammoth, rhino and hyena were also hunted. How amazing that we had these creatures in
our country?
As the greenery spread and began to develop into forests,
humans struggled to hunt the herds of wild horses and reindeer they were used
to across the flat plains. They had to
find new ways to hunt, and turned to the pigs, deer, wild boar and aurochs (wild
cattle) flourishing in the new pine, birch and alder forests now covering our
land.
Around 5,000 years ago, as temperatures continued to rise,
the pine forests were replaced by woodland, nature was blooming, with so much
vegetation and wild animals, there seemed to be plenty to go around. But humans were also blooming, our population
was increasing, and so were our hunting and gathering skills. So much so, we were beginning to exhaust our
natural resources. (Sound
familiar?).
So around 4,500 years ago, we began growing our own plants
and domesticating wild animals as food. Forests
were cleared to make room for crops and animal enclosures. They farmed native pigs and cattle at first,
then sheep and goats were imported from the continent, along with wheat and
barley, for which Britons later became renowned wheat farmers in the eyes of
the incoming Romans. Britain gradually became
a country of arable land, pastureland, and managed woodland.
Humans relied on woodland for just about everything: food,
heat, animal enclosures, even shelter (once they ventured out of their
caves). Britons learned coppicing, the
art of cutting young tree stems down close to the ground, where new shoots will
grow back and can be harvested again. They
also discovered pollarding, similar to coppicing, only they cut the branches to
just above head height to prevent animals from grazing on the new shoots. Both brilliant ways to manage trees for
timber, without killing the tree.
This now makes sense of something I remember doing in Runescape, a medieval fantasy online roleplaying game set in a fictional world, where you performed a lot of the skills and tasks of medieval English people. I remember we chopped the trees down to stump height, and the whole tree would reappear within a few moments. Obviously time is speeded up in video games, but the concept remains the same, we were coppicing the trees so that they could grow back and be harvested again.
Personally, I would love to travel back in time, see the country as it was, covered in woodland full of strange and beautiful creatures. I think it would seem almost like visiting an alien planet today, a bit like in the movie Avatar when they explore the forest and see alien animals for the first time. Everything is wondrous and exciting.
Photo Credits: Images 1, 2 and 3 - Wikipedia Creative Commons license. Image 4 - WT/ML Woodland Trust Media Library.
This is basically my New Year's Resolutions list for 2015. I need to straighten out some bad habits and make myself and my environment more conducive to living an exciting and adventurous life. Baby steps to begin with, and build up some steam for the bigger more scarier things I want to do.
1. Declutter all my possessions
I have a tendency for impulsive shopping. I think I do it to cheer myself up. Only now I have reached the point where I cannot move for the teetering piles of stuff on my floor. Nothing is easy to get at or find in my home. Therefore, it needs clearing out, badly. I am going to declutter all my possessions this year, hopefully within the first 6 months. I want to completely sort through all the large reference books on my bookcase (and those stacked on the desk, and the floor, and the landing). I also have a filled double layered bookcase of novels I have never read. A huge mountain of CD's I've never listened to, and DVD's, and Video Games. I think they are a bargain when I buy them so cheaply from the charity shop, secondhand or electrical trade in store. But they soon build up into overwhelming insurmountable towers, threatening to collapse. So now they have to be vastly shrunk in quantity, and I have to choose what I like, quite like, and love. And only keep what I really, really love.
2. Lose 2 stone (28 pounds) in weight
For the first half of the year I intend to use my decluttering as my exercise, then develop an exercise programme after that. It will include Pilates, various Aerobics DVDs (of which I have collected quite a number, but never watched), and possibly some weight training (I have a beautiful collection of light blue dumbells under the bed, happily collecting dust). I would also like to explore some alternative fitness, such as contemporary dance, anything different and fun to try. Just because I am doing it in my own home, can I not emulate and express myself like the dancers on Strictly Come Dancing? In the meantime, I intend to eat fruit and vegetables as snacks in between meals, but eat plenty of them if out walking or doing exercise. They seem to contain so little calories that the weight easily starts to fall off. It's just mastering the self-control every day to stay away from the chocolate bars and fizzy pop!
3. Get up early every day
I am much more of a night owl than an early bird, this one is going to be very hard for me to stick to! But it does have the greatest impact in giving you lots of free time to accomplish all the other goals listed below. Plus I have more time out of bed, hence more time to burn calories to help with my weight loss!
4. Nothing New - Do not buy myself any luxuries this year
This will massively help with my decluttering, I tend to declutter lots of things from my home and take it to the charity shop, only to come back with armfuls of books and games I don't need! I am also a ferocious internet shopper. I once spent over £500 in one month on ebay, and only made £15 in selling some unwanted stuff. I should definitely never attempt to make my own business buying and selling, I would soon go bankrupt! This goal also gives me the opportunity to make or craft anything I actually want, or just draw the things I want, til the desire is satisfied and my impulsiveness moves on to a new target.
5. Be Kind, Be Patient, and Make Time for People in my life
Partly inspired by a radio interview I heard with Bear Grylls, where he explained how he begins every day on his knees by his bed, and gets his children to do the same. He says something like: "Be Kind, Do your Best. Come on, Let's Do It!" This motivates and starts his day the right way, focusing on what he wants to do. I really like the idea of starting each day focusing on Being Kind. I think it would make our relations to other people so much better. Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol with the famous character of Scrooge teaches us to carry the spirit of Christmas in our hearts all through the year, peace on earth and goodwill to all mankind. I would like to get on better with people, spending more time with my immediate family, and less time on my own in front of a computer screen. I believe being kind is a very good way to prevent the usual irritability and impatience that can get in the way of you getting along and making friends. Also making time for each other and having patience is good too.
6. Learn to play new Card & Board Games
This will also help me to spend more time with other people. I have bought quite a number of traditional board and card game books, to help me find fun new ways of spending time with my family. I have tried some of these games out recently, including Farkle and Pick Up Sticks, and I have found they also help with my Maths. My Maths skills without a calculator are not as good as I would like, but the main problem is that I lack confidence with them. Practice will make me feel better about it, and finding a way to have fun with them too will encourage me to keep at it. I also have some new Solo Games books which teach me many different ways of playing card and board games on my own, so I will never have an excuse not to improve my gaming and Maths skills, and can always relax and have some fun with them.
7. Start an Art Journal
I love looking at Art Journal pages online, I collect images of my favourite pages, but have never made any of my own. I have blank Sketchbooks and numerous craft store papers and embellishments to use, I have just never got around to doing it. I would love to start my own, as I believe once I have plucked up the courage to start my own, then I will be so happy and addicted I will make many pages and many journals! I am thinking of beginning to make an Art Journal for 2015, focusing on my 2015 Adventure List, with a page for each goal. Now I have several page ideas to work from!
8. Learn to play a musical instrument
I have collected various musical instruments, some cheap, some not quite so cheap, and I would love to finally learn to play at least one of them. Again, I have various music books to teach me, the odd DVD and CD, and of course numerous Youtube videos and About.com pages. I have everything I need at my fingertips, I just need to push myself to start!
9. Write a Short Story
I always have 'Write a Novel' on my New Year's Resolutions list each year. I want to write novels, I have attempted National Novel Writing Month every year for several years, without success. I have never finished Nanowrimo. Ironically, I have never tried to write a short story either, as I have no idea how to plot such a short story, I wouldn't know what I could fit into the story or not. Can I fit sub-plots or just one main plot in a short story? Can I develop much of a science-fiction plot, or not? I have the Teach Yourself book Write Short Stories and Get Them Published by Zoe Fairbairns, so hopefully I can find out how to plot and write a complete short story hopefully within the next 6 months.
10. Be more Adventurous in my Personal Style
I am not as adventurous as I would like with how I wear my hair and what clothes I choose to wear. I always wear my hair in a ponytail, spend the summer in jeans and a T-Shirt, and the winter in a Hoody, jeans and a T-Shirt. The only variation tends to be which colour hoody am I going to wear this week? I want to try wearing my shoulder length hair in different styles. Can a 30-something wear her hair in pigtails? I intend to find out! I know I am going to have to strictly stick to my Nothing New goal, and not buy any more clothing unless I literally don't have anything to wear, but people generally wear only 20% of their wardrobe, and I am sure that is true for me too. So there must be many new outfits I can make from my wardrobe as it is, without buying anything new. I am going to find out what these are, make some new combinations, and pluck up the courage to wear them!
11. Read 10 Novels and 10 Reference Books
I struggle to read my own books. I am more likely to read books from the library than from my own shelves. They are actually more neatly stacked in the library! I want to read 10 novels (that's less than one a month), and 10 reference books. I want to read what I have instead of leaving the same books to gather dust on the shelf, never knowing whether I like them or not, and never discovering the exciting gems that lie hidden inside. Also, as a writer, I need to read more novels, and find more methods of writing my craft.
12. Discover new music
I have had this one on my New Year's Resolutions before, and actually stuck to it pretty well. I enjoyed looking up the music videos of artists in the Official Charts. I also checked out the American Billboard Charts, I love their country music. This year I want to take that up again, get to know the music even better, and discover some new musical genres that I don't tend to listen to, and see if I like those too. This is the year I want to experiment and try something new. I may not like everything I hear, but at least I will know what I like because I have tried it.
13. Learn more about ancient traditions and beliefs of England
I have recently been learning about the ancient traditions and beliefs of England at Christmas and the Winter Solstice. I am fascinated to learn that ancient cavemen in Stone Age times were celebrating this time of year in their traditional way at Stonehenge and similar stone circles, observing the sunset and sunrise on the longest night of the year, feasting and merry making, dancing and having fun, whilst sharing the warmth of the fire and the food they had with their family, friends and neighbours. I had no idea they were so sophisticated. I would love to learn more about the other times of the year too, like the Summer Solstice, the Spring and Autumn Equinox, and the other ancient festivals in between, such as Imbolc, Beltane, Lammas/Lughnasagh and Samhain. I am fascinated to learn more of my English heritage, and keep that tradition alive today.
14. Keep a Sketchbook
I love drawing, ever since I was little girl I have loved to draw things around me, sometimes from what I see around me, and sometimes from imagination. As I've grown up, life has tended to get in the way, and I don't draw anywhere near as much as I'd like to. I would love to become a really skilled artist, becoming a fantasy and science-fiction artist. But I must improve my skills first, and keeping a sketchbook really helps with that. One office I worked in, when I would take my break at my desk, I would take a sheet of printer paper and sketch on it each break and lunchtime. By the end of the week I had filled the sheet of A4 with doodles and sketches of strange furniture with eyes in it, plants that were alive, superheroes and cartoon characters of people I worked with. I want to have more fun like this, and improve my skills. Art is fun!
This is my 2015 Adventure List, my New Year's Resolutions. I may have picked rather a lot, and I make struggle to accomplish them all, but I am hoping I can attempt some or all on different months, and make my life more fun and adventurous. I intend to post the results of my attempts on this blog, along with any inspiration, motivation and encouragement I find along the way, because I am really going to need it!
