Kate Hodges

By Kate Hodges

11th June 2020

Make a tiny house, essential #blm reading for kids, find art in forests, unmissable salads! Plus build a putt-putt boat and find your purpose in life!

Kate Hodges

By Kate Hodges

11th June 2020

Kate Hodges

By Kate Hodges

11th June 2020

LEARN and DO Safe Sanctuary
Now, more than ever, we need to understand why people seek sanctuary in the UK, as well as celebrating their contributions. Refugee Week is an umbrella for an incredible variety of events, although this year they are online. Join an all-age, 50-word flash fiction competition, a vegan Ethiopian cookery session or make your own miniature home to be part of an international Virtual Giant Dolls’ House exhibition.

LEARN Black Lives Matter
Angela Davis said, “In a racist society it is not enough to be non-racist, we must be anti-racist.” Teaching children about systemic discrimination and black history has never been more important. Publisher and bookseller Aimée Felone has published an excellent reading list, taking in board books such as A Is For Activist right up to Malorie Blackman’s excellent dystopian teen novel Noughts And Crosses (the equally excellent TV adaptation is still available on iPlayer – find it and bonus material here). Adults should educate themselves too. Layla F Saad has written an equally thought-provoking list for adults here.

MAKE Full Steam Ahead
Putt-putt boats not only look adorable – you may have spotted a scaled-up version in the film Ponyo – but making one also teaches you some engineering basics. They were first patented in 1891, and use a candle flame or spirit lamp to heat water which, when it boils and turns to steam, pushes the boat forward. The steam then cools and condenses, and the cycle begins again. So clever! Find instructions and background here. Use colourful sardine cans or tins to make them cuter or, if you’re not feeling so creative, buy a ready-made engine for a couple of pounds here. Now go and sail them!

DO, LEARN and MAKE Go for the Glow
Although the weather is a little cooler, our appetite for fresh summery, seasonal salads hasn’t diminished. We love making a big bowl and letting kids help themselves. Gill Meller’s gorgeous vegan and veggie recipes are simple, yet complex enough to be interesting; try her Pickled Fennel, Mushroom and Rocket or Aubergine, Courgette and Lettuce Salad with Toasted seeds and Tahini Dressing for a light tea, or Tomato, Egg, Bread and Herb Salad for a more substantial lunch. As Jamie Oliver says, we don’t use chickpeas enough; his Summer Chickpea Salad will make you want to eat them every day.

DO and LEARN Roots and Culture
Fancy mixing some high culture with your forest stroll? Check out Forestry England’s website to find the most incredible stained glass art, giant wooden sculptures, modernist life-size figures and thought-provoking installations nestled among the trees. Perhaps you’ll follow a sculpture trail around the Forest of Dean, or be blown away by The Dream, an imposing sculpture of a girl with closed eyes representing hope for the future on the site of a colliery at Sutton Manor Community Woodland in St Helens. Art and nature; the perfect balm for troubled times.

What we’ve been reading this week:

How to Find Your Purpose in Life
“Many seem to believe that purpose arises from your special gifts and sets you apart from other people—but that’s only part of the truth. It also grows from our connection to others, which is why a crisis of purpose is often a symptom of isolation. Once you find your path, you’ll almost certainly find others traveling along with you, hoping to reach the same destination—a community.
Here are six ways to overcome isolation and discover your purpose in life.” Read more here

YOUR FREE MOON CALENDAR

It’s full moon with a lunar eclipse, on Friday night. It’s time for powerful shifts and breakthroughs – a chance to carve out a new path. Would you like a simple, beautiful way to track the moon cycles?

This gorgeous free lunar planner will help you keep track of the phases of the moon and lead to a more peaceful and effective life.

By using this Lunar Calendar you can:
Unlock the magic of each full moon
Tap into the being and doing phases to know when to relax and when to become dynamic.
Follow a natural pathway to a more peaceful, joyful and abundant life.Huzzah! Get yours now at manifestabundance.co.uk

Found something inspirational to read that you’d like to share? Want to share your lockdown creations with us? Have an idea for things to do? We’d love to hear from you. Email Kate

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