It's a Classical Life

  Hello Friends and thanks so much for stopping by here today. Amongst the the lists that I like to make and the goals I like to plan, there is one that I haven't shared here before. That is, a reading goals list for the coming year. There are a few books that I would like to read in 2024. Some of these have been on my shelf (or on my Kindle) waiting patiently for my attention. Others I will need to order from the library but am inspired to read. Others still are rereads that I want to revisit and fall in love with all over again. So, without further ado, here is my list of Reading Goals for 2024.  Evil Under the Sun - Agatha Christie Gone With the Wind - Margaret Mitchell Othello - William Shakespeare Hamlet (reread) - William Shakespeare The Picture of Dorian Grey - Oscar Wilde Nineteen Eighty-Four (reread) - George Orwell The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain Villette - Charlotte  Bront ë   The Age of Innocence - Edith Wharton (Kindle Download) Agnes Gre...

  Welcome back to It's a Classical Life. We are now a week into 2024 and I hope that this year will bring you much fulfilment and happiness. I know this is the time for people to be making (and possibly breaking) their New Year's Resolutions  and it's common for these resolutions to be centred around our wellbeing, and perhaps the wellbeing of those around us.  Zeno - one of my favourite Stoic philosophers - reminds us, though, that wellbeing is realised by small steps. Small, easy steps that we can incorporate into our everyday as seamlessly as possible. He doesn't suggest that wellbeing comes from hours of sweating through hard workouts, intense meditation or yoga retreats, strict eating regimes or long therapy sessions. Small steps . Baby steps even. The contradiction, or paradox, lies in the second part of his quote. It is truly no small thing. If wellbeing is realised through small steps, then why does it still feel so elusive to so many people? Perhaps because ...

  Happy New Year! As we kick-start 2024 (or gently roll into it if you prefer a slower pace, like me!) I think the best plan we can make is to really get to know ourselves. Knowing who we are and being true to ourselves is a recurring theme here and I am speaking as much to myself as to others! Before tackling the big resolutions and goals for the coming year, why not take some time to get to know yourself. It's really very simple. Take a piece of paper (or your fresh journal) and a pen. Find a quiet place to sit where you will be inspired but not disturbed. For me this is of an early morning on the quiet, cool deck. These journal topics come from Caroline Jones' book An Authentic Life: Finding Meaning and Spirituality in Everyday Life. You can choose to write to all of these prompts, or perhaps just one or two. You may want to come back to them throughout January and February and reflect on some others.  What do you love to do? What are the underlying themes? What gives...

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas in our house! The kids are all on holidays now and the sun is shining. After a couple of mediocre summers I am embracing a long, hot summer with Christmas to look forward to. What's it like where you are? Hot? Snowy? Windy? (We've had some really bad storms already this summer with wind taking down trees all around us). I have created this word search for you to enjoy this weekend. Christmas is the theme and there are twenty words for you to find in a large, easy to read font. The water paint was a new one I did this week; my first attempt at holly!   Downloading the word search is simple. Either click on the jpeg image above and print it, or you can click on the pdf link below. Christmas Word Search If you're interested, you can find the other word searches that I have created  here . My goal was to create one word search a month; this year I created and posted six. Fifty percent success rate! Not too bad. If you are interest...

  I absolutely love this quote and when I came across it again recently in my reading I knew I wanted to share it for Advent. Even if you aren't a follower of an organised religion or have a deep connection to a spiritual journey, I think there is much to be said about this time of year of peace, hope, waiting, and love. We can get caught up in all the bad things that are going on in the world but Advent and Christmas are meant to be times when we can focus on love, beauty and hope for the future.  The smallest acts of hope and kindness can mean the most to those who are suffering, especially at this time of year. I have just come back from a shopping trip on the other side of town and I was impressed by how kind and helpful the shop assistants were. There was no panic, no rudeness or impatience. One shop attendant even chatted with me about the weather! I was on a mission to get my shopping done and had to slow myself down to appreciate the moment for what it was - a blessing...

Happiness is not a state to arrive at, but a manner of travelling. Margaret Lee Runbeck I can't believe how quickly November passed us by! It felt like chilly October hung around a bit too long, but this last month has flown by. Spring, in all its variable and unpredictable glory, has come to an end and I thought I would share with you some reflections of life in general around here lately. The quote above was in a book that I was reading this weekend and it was a perfect reminder that the simple things really do matter and play such an important role in our day-to-day contentment and appreciation. In the garden Spring is always a tough time around here. We can get frost as late as November, so often we wait before planting out tomatoes, zucchini or other cold-intolerant plants. However, because there was so little frost this winter we took the chance and planted things a bit earlier. We are already enjoying zucchini and there are some tomatoes growing. We have three lots of tomato...