Muzu Creative

It was about this time of year when my mother was diagnosed with cancer. It certainly did put a dampener on things. Mum loved Christmas. She loved the decorations, the carols, (Her name was Carol!), the festive entertaining and the excuse to dress in something "nice" and drink from crystal wine glasses.. It is strange that for many years she was often ill at Christmas. Of course she had undetected cancer for ten years, so that may have been the cause, but even as far back as my childhood I seem to remember her not being at her best. Maybe she was just worn out by the end of each year. Maybe she was broken, just a bit. As a single mum, mum worked all the time. I have memories of only a couple of holidays that we all spent together. Awesome memories. I was really young. I remember laying in my hessian bunk bed in the tent with a curtain to divide us kids from the grown ups. I remember hearing the laughter. The adults were probably three sheets to the wind, playing cards, si

Christmas is definitely upon us! It's everywhere...there is no escaping it now. Would you want to? Sometimes I would. Anyone who has been to a shopping centre has experienced "Christmas" in all it's glory or is that gory. My last visit was two days ago, hopefully my last until after it is all over.  I was in the tiniest shop you have ever seen. Truly it is literally a hole in the wall. When you are in there, you are jammed between the clothes racks and other customers. Why would I bother, you ask...well, just occasionally you find some real gems. Hidden articles of clothing like no others, but yes, you do have to fight for them, or at least the space to look for them. So on this day I felt I had the energy to be in there. I should have known better. In comes this "woman" literally barging her way to the counter. I was close by, elbows in, searching the hangers for that bloody hidden gem! This "woman" turned to me and shouted "I'm in a h

Is wanting to clean out the cupboards, wash walls and organise the junk drawer in the kitchen a bad thing? I have a fridge magnet that reads "Dull women have immaculate houses". Well, these days I am not as dull as I used to be. But some days I'm borderline boring. Since the return from my self imposed sabbatical to Fingal, where I read, meditated, walked and lived in silence for a week, I have not meditated, I have not read and I have barely written a word. Everyday life has a way of taking over and changing your priorities. Writing my morning pages this morning, the first since my return, I wrote about being back to the 'real world'. Where I feel like the clock is ticking the very moment I wake up, the hours limited to what I can achieve, the "things that need to be done" versus the "things I would LIKE to do". Of course I also 'like' to clean out drawers (strange as that may seem) and organise areas of the house that have gotten

I am at my favourite place on Earth. Fingal Headland. I have been here many, many times before, but today is different. I am the only one here. There is something very special about this place. The magnificent view is one thing of course, but there is also a feeling here of majesty and serenity. The ocean pounds upon the rocks below and surges through the Giants Causeway, a passage of giant prehistoric black pillars of lava, remnants of an extinct volcano.    The sea a kaleidoscope of greens and blues and iridescent mermaid tails come to mind. Sometimes it is so windy here that one struggles to stand, but today there is but a soft breeze and I am here alone, just me and the light. The light that stands is Fingal Headland Lighthouse, built in 1878. I can't tell you how many photos I have of this structure. Too many...not enough.   I am fascinated with lighthouses, their purpose, their history, the stories they must have, the weather they have endured, as they stand si

I am joy. So filled am I with the feeling of complete happiness that have become joy itself. I have stood on a cliff top and shouted with glee to passing dolphins, I have thanked a Kookaburra (out loud) for posing for photos, I have felt the presence of spirit in age old rocks and watched with sheer gratitude and awe the magnificence of the ocean, and all on my morning walk! Yes, it's true, I am blessed. Blessed to live where I do, blessed to have the time to walk but above all blessed to see what I see.   I see wonder and glory everywhere. I always have. I have never verbalised that before. Apparently not everybody sees the world like this. What a shame. I walked through a shopping centre the other day, It was madness. The energy was palpable as people fretted over gifts for Christmas and wrangled cranky toddlers who made it known that they were in no mood for shopping. Amongst it all a small child stood next to a shopping trolley whilst her mother was delving deep i

To me Christmas is all about love and laughter and yes, I know that sounds cliché'. However, the festive season can be so stressful. Organising family, the whole gift buying business and of course arranging the festive meal itself. We often forget why we are getting together in the first place. Trying to accommodate the needs and requests of split families, extended families, in laws, out laws, it can all just take the sparkle out of the whole season. But don't get your tinsel in a tangle. It really is all just about love. Last September, I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. A subsequent mastectomy followed and not long after, a great deal of soul searching. My answer to the big questions in life...be happy, be love. Sounds so corny now when I type this, but it is the truth. So many of us totally lose it over Christmas Day and the festive meal. I know someone who stresses over every detail, making it an uncomfortable experience to be a part of. Another friend is tot