Drawing the butterflies in
monthly archive 08
June was a decidedly autumnal month, with more clouds than sun. There were a few bright days, perfect for replanting seeds that decided not to show, and then enough rain to make sure the garden never grew dry.
I spent the first few days of June on a ship, and by the time I returned home, the garden was bursting with life: foxgloves, feverfew, lupins, and delphinium a riot of colour. But soon the gloom came back, and I’ve spent most days in June huddled inside, drinking strong coffee and working on my novel.
I’m not complaining; autumn is my favourite season by far, and I’ve never done too well in the heat. But I am looking forward to July, when the beans will be ready and the milkweed, newly bought, will draw the butterflies in.
Aside from the garden: I painted our small hallway a rosy pink, and am looking at a mossy green for the music room. Unfortunately I’ve also now convinced myself that maybe the off white of the office isn’t so great, but the walls are so saturated with art that I’m afraid to tackle that one—I may leave it for autumn.
I’ve also become enamoured with spooky instrumental music (I don’t know how else to describe it), and it makes everything I do a little more mystical.
Anyway—here’s a little collection of what June held:
Lately I’ve been:
WATCHING Miss Potter and I think it may be my new favourite movie. Actually have to stop myself from watching it again tonight! Also rewatched Longlegs (slower than I remembered) and a new-to-me movie titled Master Gardener (phenomenal).
LISTENING TO old episodes of the Comfy Cozy Witch podcast, plus lots of Julia Wolf; I’ve been playing “In My Room” and “Sunshine State” on repeat. Also falling back in love with Florence and the Machine.
READING oh gosh have I ever been reading!! Lots of things, but I found the Shady Hollow series by Juneau Black through Pinterest and I am hooked. So much so that I’m currently battling myself on whether I should just buy all of them right now—the library only has ebooks, and these are definitely the kind of story I want a physical book for.
THINKING ABOUT my garden, despite the fact it’s been more like autumn for the past month or so. Also the library course I’m taking, which has been so interesting!
EXPERIENCING excitement for where life is going; being stuck in my own head (in the best way possible) with the novel I’m currently working on.
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Image courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery
Today’s little bit of inspiration for you: Olwyn Bowey, an artist who predominantly created landscapes and still lifes, but who also branched out into portraiture.
You can see some of her work here:
Images courtesy of the Royal Academy of Arts.
Since last time we spoke, I posted four videos on Youtube, which you can watch here:
—Returning to life as usual: working on the farm, the garden in june, and plans for the summer
—Days alone in summer: another new project & changes I’m making
—When creativity is no longer for us; a note on almost quitting youtube
I’ve also started writing blog posts again! In June, I posted three:
—The power of intention in witchcraft
—The beginner’s guide to sustainable foraging
—Breaking up with Instagram: a long-overdue social media break
Today’s poem is “11-11-11” by Jacqueline Turner. A line I loved:
“to create such pleasure always figured as explosions / or fire burning brightly or extinguishing ceremonially”
Franklin’s message for the month:
“Sometimes it pays to get up close and personal with your fears to see that they aren’t so bad.”
To cap off this newsletter, here are some of the things, I loved, noticed, or cherished lately:
Writing blog posts again; I always come back to them and love writing them more each time
Deleting instagram off my phone and feeling human again
Wandering my grandparents’ farm in this autumnal weather, seeing puff poppies bright against a grey sky
Franklin snuggling up on my stomach while I read by lamplight
Finding the perfect piece of lace for a skirt I’d like to sew
Painting the small hallways pink (!!) and picking colour options for the music room
Strawberry matcha made at home—a new obsession
Cloudy mornings spent drinking coffee with my grandparents
Planting a yellow milkweed plant for my mom to find once she’s back from vacation
The little wood bookshelf my dad gave us, now filled with vintage travel VHS tapes
Working on my teacher librarian course and feeling very much like I’ve found my place
Watching Miss Potter and wishing I could have known her
Sewing a patchwork skirt late into the night
Finishing knitting my brown sweater (though it won’t be cold enough to wear it for some time)
Finding black hollyhock seeds at the garden center (!!)
Having friends over on a stormy evening for a feast
xoxoxox,
Catherine
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If you like, you can buy my books on my website, where you can also see samples of my writing, including poetry, creative nonfiction, and reviews. I also write blog posts on herbalism, seasonal living, witchy things, creativity, and how to be your best self.
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