Gillian Monks

'Making Fairytales Come True'

Page 2 of 20

How Courageous Are You?

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On March 16, 2025

In Musings of the Hearth, Uncategorized

Today I came across a post on Facebook entitled ‘Advice to Girls’. I won’t name the  author but I presume they are an ‘influencer’ of young minds and behaviour.

I am well aware that for far too long, women have been treated outrageously, cruelly, and totally inappropriately – usually by men, but also sometimes by other women.

I heartily applaud the courage and stamina of so many women who have in the past, and continue today, to stand up for equal rights, and who work to expose society’s skewed perception of the feminine.

However, in the response to male chauvinism, some females – specially the younger ones – have apparently fallen into the habit of behaving just like the rude, crude, violent, unintelligent and chauvinistic men they are rebelling against.

In this particular Facebook post, girls are advised, among other things, to be ‘loud’, ‘gross’, ‘snide and sarcastic’. What kind of advice is that? And what kind of a world will our youngsters create if they follow this advice? Apart from anything else, it will only serve to vindicate men’s opinion of women as being self-centred and brainless.

COME ON GIRLS – I EXPECT MUCH BETTER FROM YOU!

Our youngsters – of ALL genders – are our flagship – on them depends so much for a better future. It made me stop and think very deeply about the advice I would give to my own daughter – perhaps anyone reading this could help me out here – making my message more compact and all-encompassing – refining it – but in reading it, you will get my drift. (See below.)

Your thoughts and comments (if polite!) are warmly welcomed.

‘Make yourself what you want to be, and be comfortable and confident about who you are.
Respectfully expect the world to accept you on your terms – settle for nothing less.
You are unique, honoured and loved, with unique experiences and gifts.
Behave to others as you would like them to treat you.
Show that you are a person of strength, dignity, compassion and wisdom.
Allow your kindness to speak for you.
Be courageous. Be steadfast. Be your own person.
Let the way you live speak for you.
Be quietly assertive and truthful, but if you are met with derision and aggression, speak out loud and clear – enlist the support of others – stand firm.
Know when to say ‘No’, and stick to it.
Do not behave badly because everyone around you is acting out that way.
In all you say, do and are, be worthy of your own approval.’

 

A Brilliant Saint David’s Day!

By

On March 7, 2025

In Out and About

We all had a terrific time last week at the Saint David’s Day Festival and Book Fair down by Bangor Pier. The weather was amazing – clear skies and warm sunshine (I even ended up with a touch of sunburn!), with lots of people out to celebrate our country’s patron saint and well-known son, and our joy and unity in living in Wales.

There were lots of activities and stands, but the main focus was on the central stage where a stream of performers kept us entertained throughout the day, including choirs, musicians, singers and Indian dancers. I was particularly struck by the poignancy of the small Ukrainian choir (dressed in their gorgeously colourful costumes) who sang their hearts out for their beloved homeland to their host nation who were also particularly focused on celebrating their much loved home country that day.

At the end of their performance, I simply couldn’t stop myself from going over to thank them. I tapped one lady on the shoulder and thanked her – she looked bewildered, didn’t speak any English – so I hugged her instead. Words so frequently get in the way of true communication.  As we gazed into each other’s eyes we exchanged a look of deep and complete mutual understanding. Perhaps some of these international conferences should abolish speaking and simply have the delegates go around hugging each other, sitting holding hands and gazing into each other’s eyes. We might all be amazed at what we learn about each other and what we can agree on.

Personally, I was delighted to finally meet fellow author, Patricia Wynne, who’s first book, ‘To Light a Penny Candle’ I have adored since I first read it at the pre-publication editing stage. It is a story about a journey to find oneself – quite literally – and the people the main character comes across who heart-warmingly provide the support and directions she requires – I can thoroughly recommend it!

And then there was the opportunity to meet some of my readers and hear their first hand opinions of my work so far – all complimentary, I hasten to add – but very humbling and heartening to a solitary author!

Later in the afternoon, I decided to take a break and have a walk down the 1500 foot long pier. The sea breezes were refreshing and the view of the snow-capped Gwynedd mountains against a deep blue sky were quite breath-taking. How lucky I am to live in such a beautiful place – but then the whole Earth is simply stunning and we all quite rightly feel that we live in the best bit of it!

Lastly, I looked at my stall displaying five of my six books published to date, and felt totally amazed that I had written them all. It is quite besides the point that I currently have five more books in various stages of completion! (Yes, I owe you all a newsletter and have much to share with you!!!)

For now, all I can say is that my health is better than it was in the winter and I am happily been twirled along by my various excitable muses and cannot work fast enough!

Watch this space!

Bangor Book Fair

By

On February 26, 2025

In Out and About

Bangor Book Fair and Saint David’s Day Festival is taking place this coming Saturday, on the 1st March. Both myself and my publisher will be there – that is if the weather remains kind and doesn’t blow us all away!

The event will be sited in the pier carpark and on the actual pier itself, and will be open from 1.pm. until 7.pm.

Why not come and see me at Herbary Books? I love meeting my readers !

 

Happy Valentine’s Day!

By

On February 14, 2025

In Musings of the Hearth

The Winter Tree which was originally festooned with colourful decorations at Christmas, and then was stripped of all its colour and finery for the icy January look, is now bedecked with heart-shaped ornaments for the season of love, spring and new beginnings.

Any excuse to celebrate a day of love is fine by me! And today need not simply be for romantic, physical human lovers, but a time to show our love and appreciation for everything and everyone and walk through our World and across our Earth with limitless joy, appreciation and unconditional, overwhelming and total love for all that is.

We are living in strange and difficult times, and for many of us, it is probably going to become a whole lot more challenging before it grows easier. But let us ensure that our difficulties and efforts are to a definite purpose – that our struggles are going to finally achieve something real and lasting.

In working our way through the challenges of health, finance, relationships, politics and society, we can do so in a way which will also begin to lift our spirits and create a whole new beginning… a whole new wonderful World where every thought, word, action and interaction is meaningful and of benefit to ourselves and those around us, far and wide… a regenerated Earth where nature can freely develop and thrive alongside us.

We can all co-create this amazing future. We might not live to see it fully prosper, (in this lifetime anyway), but we can start the ball rolling and put in the foundations upon which those following can safely and strongly build.

Where do we begin?

With a thought.

A positive thought.

And a feeling. A feeling of unfettered, wholehearted love for everything.

And then what? What do you envisage your new and wondrous World looking like? being like? operating and working inspirationally and beneficially for all?

When we are asked to imagine something, to pray, or ask for something – or for those who use spells – we are taught to be as carefully precise in setting out our plea or intention as possible. There is an old joke, (which is not really funny at all), that if you aren’t careful, you might just get what you asked for! Take care to be as specific as you can be, or suffer the skewed consequences.

So, not only how do we visualise our new World, but what words do we use to describe it? as few words – or preferably one word – are easier to project and make a regular point of focusing on whilst we birth such a state of being in our imaginations, out there on the astral… the ether – wherever – before it can come into physical incarnation.

Help me out here. This is a serious question.

And a request.  I would deeply appreciate all of you, my much-valued readers and friends, responding in the comments at the bottom of this post and sharing your magical words of creation. If we can all bring our dreams for the future of the Earth and everything upon her down to just a few words – or even ONE word – how clearly powerful and potent that would be.

Please share this thought.

Please connect with me and share your succinct vision.

And, in the meantime, have a wonderfully happy and fulfilling Valentine’s Day. Love yourself, fall in love with life and the Earth and allow joy and kindness to guide your steps – so with every breath we bring a truly new and loving state of life into being.

We Live In Interesting Times!

By

On January 9, 2025

In Out and About

Northern lights over solitary hawthorn tree

Northern lights over a solitary hawthorn tree

In early December I spread the word far and wide about a recording of a talk which I had just delivered to the Theosophical Society in Bangor, advising everyone to click on the link and go and listen to it – but then was I taken ill and unable to provide the vital link. My apologies!

Here below is a reminder of that talk and the actual link to enable you to hear my delivery of it back in late November:

Are you finding life frustratingly problematical, increasingly challenging and generally more difficult than usual? Was 2024 a particularly hard year for you

Do you know why?

I would suggest that Earth and everything upon it is currently at so many crossroads – we have reached an unprecedented pivotal point in the history of the planet, and particularly in the history of the human race. Everything is about to change. This goes way beyond the possible environmental catastrophe that we all face, although that is also a part of it.

So, what can you do about it? Is there anything that you can do about it?

Take heart! There is a very positive and inspiring side to all this – one which we can all take a share in.

If you would like to learn some of the answers to these imperative questions and a great deal more detail around this whole monumental topic, please click on the link below which will take you to a recording of a talk I gave to Bangor Lodge Theosophical Society recently.

I also put forward a suggestion as to what purpose the Earth and all its inhabitants – but especially humanity – ultimately will be asked to step up and fulfil.

In the meantime, please just remember that the key word  –         the answer – to everything is ‘Love’…

Merry Midwinter!

By

On December 21, 2024

In Musings of the Hearth, Thoughts From My Fireside

We have arrived! The tipping point between the headlong plunge into the Darkness and the long slow climb back up towards the Light.

Technically, the Solstice occurred at approximately 9.30. this morning… but before we can actually see evidence of the returning Light, with the dying of the day later this afternoon we shall enter into the very darkest time of the year which will only visibly come to an end with the breaking of the day on the morning of the 25th December. On this morning, the Sun/Son is reborn – the Light of the World returns to us and another year is assured.

Make good use of this precious, sacred time. Enter fully into the darkness… rest in the shadows and enjoy the synthetic light of candles and coloured bulbs, then glory in the return of the Light.

According to the meteorological forecast, we are in for some rough weather today. In years past we have gone down into the woods to keep the natural world company as the daylight dies, or up onto the hillside to witness the dying of the Light. However, today it will be more appropriate to withdraw into our homes and gather around the hearth… to light candles as daylight leaves us and hold the light and love of life in our hearts until the Sun bursts forth once more on Christmas morning.

My dearest wish is that you all make the very most of this dak time, not so much by nourishing and nurturing yourself within the warmth and safety of your own homes, (although that also applies), but by creating as much light within your own beings as possible. Allow your own very special and unique light to shine bravely and brightly out into the dark world by any and all means possible… bring smiles and laughter, bring kindness and compliments as you rush about preparing for your own celebrations.

I wish you all a very meaningful and positive Solstice as we wait with bated breath for the rebirth of the Sun/Son.

A very merry midwinter to you all… with my love.

Eat-Up Evenings

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On December 12, 2024

In Uncategorized

Creating something from nothing – or to repeat my own oft quoted words,  making much of little… or not even much but at least something – is the focus of my thoughts today.

This is what I ended up doing yesterday evening. We had all been out to various Christmas lunches and celebrations and had arrived home later in the afternoon with some of us needing to return to work on our computers while others had physical tasks to catch up on. Darkness fell… the moon climbed higher in a clear sky as the temperature plummeted and the evening became icily cold.

I knew that no one would need or want a proper meal after the feasts which we had variously consumed only hours earlier, so I peered in the fridge to see what I could find. A couple of ends of cold joints, some heels of cheese, a bit of salad. In the cake tins I found some delicious fruit, nut and honey cake which is a Maltese Christmas delicacy which one of us had recently brought home from a cruise which had passed that island. I also discovered half a pink sponge cake and some German spice cakes… cheese biscuits, and so on.

I carved the meat into finger friendly thin slices and set everything out on a large board with a couple of homemade chutneys and all the appropriate cutlery, the bowl of salad and the platter of sweet stuffs. Homemade rolls were popped in the oven to warm. Butter was warming in seasonal dish shaped as a smiling little deer. This was all set on the shelf next to the Aga where this year’s wooden Advent calendar lights up a dark corner. I added a couple of candles and wound up my husband’s German musical box which plays ‘Tanenbaum’  – the scene was set!

Everyone congregated in the cosy warmth from our faithful old cream stove and as we ate and shared the ‘bits and pieces’ which we were all suddenly ravenous for and which tasted amazingly good, everyone relaxed, laughter and chatter flowed and the atmosphere grew warmer – and not just from the Aga!

I sometimes do this for afternoon tea – raid all the cake tins and fridge/freezer and assemble al the ends of packets, pieces of cake and biscuits on one small table which then overflows with tasty treats and possibilities. If there is any shortfall, out comes a loaf of bread and the toasting fork and we indulge in slices made golden brown by the blazing fire, dripping with butter or honey… toast never tastes so good as when it is done on an open fire!

So, good people, do not despair at all the disparate ends and remnants of foods that have accumulated in your fridges and cupboards… get them all out and arrange an eat-up feast and turn it into a special occasion, not simply a tiresome task, or another case when everything ends up in the waste food bucket.

Extra ingredients: light a candle… possibly pour a glass of wine (or a cup of tea or coffee) and give each other a hug – after all, it is Christmas!

All In a Jug of Lemonade

By

On December 1, 2024

In Musings of the Hearth, Thoughts From My Fireside

I made my Christmas cakes yesterday… one for the family, two to give to friends and another to decorate and cut at New Year. Not ‘Stir Up Sunday’ you might say. No, but the nearest I could get to it considering my other commitments.

I ended up with a couple of lemons from which I had grated the zest but which still needed squeezing to remove the juice, and decided to make lemonade with them for my husband and I to enjoy hot before bedtime. We only tend to think of lemonade as a summer beverage served with ice to cool us down but it is something my mother used to make for us when I was a child, and stand on the hearth by the fire in a big glass jug to keep warm. (Never allow to boil, of course, as this destroys all the beneficial Vitamin C.)

As I wound down towards bedtime I sat clasping my steaming mug of pale tangy liquid, fragrant with the scent of citrus and it suddenly struck me just how lucky I am… lucky because we have access to such fruit which is usually grown so far away, lucky that we can afford to buy it, lucky that I have the knowledge and ability to make such a drink, lucky that I can see, smell and taste it, and so on. Most importantly of all, lucky that I have close, loving family with which I can share it.

As I sipped my warmly comforting lemonade, I felt a decided glow spread throughout my being which was attributable to more than just the heat of the liquid.

How had such a simple action turned into an activity of revelation and gratitude and become a precious and sacred occasion?

This is the miracle of Life, I suppose, the realisation that even the most mundane action or event when viewed in a certain way, can become magical… and that our whole life is actually amazingly magical when seen from a positive perspective… if we allow ourselves the opportunity to do so.

Perhaps the necessary ingredients for this happy outcome lie in taking the time to stand back and contemplate… to take in what actually is. Couple that to the joy of the moment and a grateful heart and it is easier to see how it might come about.

Recipe for Homemade Lemonade: Zest and juice of a lemon, a pint of water and honey or sugar to taste – you may also roughly chop up the flesh of the lemon and/or add a pinch of citric acid if you wish but it is not necessary. Place all ingredients in a pan and warm gently, making sure that all the sweetening has completely dissolved. Put to one side and allow the lemon to steep in the warm liquid for a while before reheating (remember not to allow to boil) before straining into a warm jug to serve or pour straight into mugs.

What better way to chase away those cold and ‘flu bugs, give your immune system a boost and lift your emotions?

 

Bucking the Trend!

By

On November 28, 2024

In Thoughts From My Fireside

Despite the whole of November now being referred to as ‘Black Friday’, on the eve of the real ‘Black Friday’ I am taking this opportunity to turn things around – I am GIVING AWAY instead of buying or selling.

I very much hope that you enjoy my free Christmas short story – let’s buck the trend and turn Black Friday into a SALES FREE day!

 

A LITTLE TALE OF CHRISTMAS MAGIC 

The woman stared at the cardboard box. I was about 30cms square and as light as a feather.

‘Order today and have the magic of Christmas delivered to your door,’ The advert had said. Well, they could all do with a bit if Christmas magic in this modern, harum-scarum life, couldn’t they? But what was it exactly? She shook it gently. Nothing. However, the red and white label on the side clearly proclaimed in large black letters, ‘The Magic of Christmas’. At least it hadn’t cost her a lot.

‘Not more on-line purchases?’ Her husband had spotted her standing uncertainly in the hall and sounded annoyed.

‘I just want it to be the best Christmas ever, Jim, after – you know – what has happened.’ Their granddaughter and son were coming to stay with them for the festive holiday, the first since their daughter-in-law’s death in a car accident.

‘Yes, but money is tight this year after all the lockdowns and furloughs of this wretched pandemic… what’s it supposed to be anyway?’

‘I… I don’t know.’ The woman looked bewildered and defeated.

‘What?’ her husband’s face took on an expression of angry incredulity.

Suddenly, his wife burst into noisy tears as her legs folded under her and she sank down onto the bottom step of the stairs.

‘Oh, Ruth, I’m sorry!’ the man hunkered down in front of her and tentatively slid his arm around her heaving shoulders. ‘You’ve been trying to do far too much, old girl,’ he chided her gently, ‘Come into the sitting room and put your feet up. I’ll put the kettle on.’ Clinging shakily to her husband Ruth rose to her feet. ‘What about asking Debra Rawlins from across the road to join us for Christmas dinner? She’s a jolly good cook and I’m sure that if you ask her, she’d give you a hand… she’s all on her own this Christmas, too, and would probably appreciate the invitation instead of being all alone…’ The harassed couple disappeared into the next room and the door closed softly behind them…

…………………………

At nearly eighty years of age, Mrs Twemlow thought that nothing could surprise her anymore, but watching her next-door-neighbour sneaking up her front path carrying a cardboard box with a large red and white sticker on the side had definitely intrigued her. By the time she had slowly risen from her chair and got to the front door, the woman had vanished, but the box stood on her front step.

“’The Magic of Christmas’. What on earth is this?” she muttered in consternation. Mrs Twemlow tenderly bent her rheumaticky joints and retrieved the box from the floor. Goodness, it was as light as a feather. She shook it gently. Nothing. How odd! The elderly woman didn’t like to open it. One heard such dreadful tales these days. Suppose it was a bomb?

I know, I’ll take it to Dennis at the library. It’s one of his volunteering days. He’ll know what to do with it, she thought. Hastily, the elderly lady prepared to leave the house. The winter sun was shining weakly and a little walk in the fresh air would do her good; the library was only at the end of the next road.

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Keeping it Local

By

On November 19, 2024

In Out and About

Sitting behind my tiny stall at the local market last Saturday

This is just to let readers in North West Wales know that I shall be attending two local commercial Christmas events in December:

Talysarn Christmas Fair:
The Canolfan (Community Centre)
Saturday, 7th December, 10.am. – 3.pm.

Penygroes Christmas Market:
The Memorial Hall
Saturday, 14th December, 10.am. – 1.30.pm.

Why not come along and find me and have a chat – I always love to meet my readers!

You will also be able to inspect some of my handiwork with a needle as I shall be selling my notebooks with the hand embroidered covers based on medicinal herbs taken from the Language of Flowers… as well as aromatherapy hot water bottles with essential oils, little bits and pieces like my Christmas gnomes, lavender bags, ‘Fortune Bundles’, filled miniature stockings, and of course, my BOOKS! We even have Father Christmas appearing with gifts for the little ones in Talysarn.

Give yourself a treat – support local businesses and shop for unique items!

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