Breathe

Some ghosts have nothing to do with the supernatural. Sometimes they’re the memories, regrets and old wounds that keep returning to haunt us long after the moment itself has passed: the criticism that still speaks in a parent’s voice, the relationship that ended but keeps being replayed, the embarrassing moment that still makes your stomach drop or the old version of yourself...

In this issue: Catching the light – Hold that thought – Mutual understanding – Break your mould – Nature’s pause – Hooked on tradition – Repeated routes Ecology of safety – Scary fairies – Rethinking sleep

‘You will come, won’t you?’, ‘Do you mind hosting?’, ‘Could you spare an afternoon?’ Requests to share, whether it’s your home, your time o...

‘Plants and animals don’t fight the winter; they don’t pretend it’s not happening and attempt to carry on living the same lives that they lived in the summer. They prepare. They adapt. They perform extraordinary acts of metamorphosis to get them through. Winter is a time of withdrawing from the world… but that’s where the transformation occurs.’

Katherine May...

Memory. It’s a funny thing. If you looked at a year group photo from secondary school, you could probably name most of the faces staring back at you – and even recall where you sat in each classroom. But the name of the book you just read, or a film you recently watched? Poof, gone. Or perhaps you can remember every word to a song you haven’t heard for years, but find yoursel...

I’m sat outside my cabin nursing a tin mug of camomile tea, dusk throwing shadows across the deck. A muted hoot breaks the silence, echoing from deep in the woods. It’s a strange sound for this city girl. Is that a barn owl, I wonder? Without my phone, I have no way of knowing. The owl hoots again as if to answer, and I’m thrilled. Maybe I’m not so alone after all.