Joy Jumble | November
this song, this song | cold torture | substack gals | recycling my husband | the dark, still
Hi friends – for those of you new here – you’re so welcome – I’m an Irish writer and tender to many things living at the foothills of the Wicklow mountains in south eastern Ireland. I’m interested in exploring how it feels to write, hold and (m)other on this beautiful, tattered planet right now.
The beauty & bone community is a small (yet mighty) gathering of like-minded souls, determinedly fumbling towards a brighter future. For paid subscribers I share through weekly written posts (the heart of it all), live seasonal calls (where we get to explore, connect & support) and my slow podcast (for deeper dives in your own time). You’d be so welcome to join us.
And if you’d like to take a look at what is coming up in the next few weeks, head to my fancy new Membership Hub where all upcoming events. Two to look out for next week are:
Thursday 14 November :
10:30-11:30am GMT: M E T A L live call (if you’re a paid sub you’ll receive a link to the Zoom the day before, recording available).
𓇸 MID-LIFE Chat with Substack’s Loose Women (working title!) | part 2
Friday 15 November
19:30-20:30 GMT
Changing bodies, libido, how we are feeling in our skin
Free to all! Live on Zoom (recording available)
Click here to join
Ok, let’s begin!
This month’s Joy Jumble is a week late. I’m pretty sure none of you noticed, but if you did, I feel I have a good enough reason - my no. 1 Jumble this month was only released this Friday, and so I wanted to wait until now to share! I hope you’ll agree it was worth the wait…
So, here we go. Let this month’s JOY JUMBLE begin!
one :: this song
{to watch, click image above, to listen, click here}
This song, this song.
It feels so special to me. It reaches into me and invites me to travel elsewhere.
It was released on Friday and is a collaboration between my husband,
Brian wrote an instrumental version of the song in response to the stillness and isolation of the first pandemic lockdown, Paul heard it and sent a lyrical response over voice message, and a creative collaboration was re-born (Brian and Paul were both founding members of the successful Irish band BellX1, but they hadn’t collaborated together in 16 years). Watching these two lifelong friends working together again has been such a joy for me.
Added to this, is the profound connection that Rich felt to the song when he first heard it. Rich writes:
I had recently just lost a close friend who tragically passed away while swimming at sea. I was 100% in a state of shock, or as I once read somewhere, I was in grief-land. This song, with its clear connection to water and another world felt like some strange serendipitous way to honour the passing of my friend and in turn it gave me somewhere to focus the grief and pain that was surrounding me.
In a strange twist of fate, the friend Rich lost was also an old school friend of mine, I wrote about the impact his funeral had on me here.
All of this feels woven into the collaboration between these three gorgeous, talented, kind, open hearted men. I love this song, I play it over and over.
two :: sorting my shit out
I tend to do my ‘spring cleans’ around now, not in spring. The METAL time of year (Autumn) is all about cleansing, letting go, releasing what you no longer need, if feels like a good time to clear out some stuff. My husband has joked if he sits around long enough, I’ll recycle him at the moment! But it has felt great to look at all I / we own and keep asking myself - do I need this?
I thoroughly enjoyed following along with
I also found the conversation I had with my dear friend Mari Kennedy about this time of year - about the destruction, the shedding, the loss, the letting go, to be extremely moving.
three :: the sea
There is a new sauna down by the sea about 15 minutes from where I live. It means that I am far more regular and enthusiastic about getting into the sea, which is something I’ve vowed to try and continue to do as winter approaches after a remarkable conversation I had for the WATER spiral of the Element Sessions with surfer, scientist, activist
four :: candle light / sitting in the dark
I’ve slacked a little on my daily sitting in the dark, due, mostly to being so, so tired. I gave myself a break for a few days, and then began again earlier this week. In the week I’d had off the clocks had changed, the mornings have got darker, it felt even more womb-like to move through the black, the candles seemed to cast an even more beautiful light.
(To find out more about my offer to sit in the dark together towards the end of the year head here)
five :: the women of Substack
Honestly, this community has been such a source of joy to me of late. I’m here to make real connections, find like-minded peeps, and to lift everyone I can up, cheer them on, learn and grow. It feels like a great place to do all of the above and more. This month alone I’ve :
𓇸 Had really deep and open conversations with three women I’ve met here on
() about this mid-life roller coaster we are all on. We’ve only met through screens, but I feel a friendship and a long term collaboration beginning, the first part of which has now been watched by over 1,500 of you! Next conversation is on Friday 15th November.𓇸 I’ve arranged a sea swim with a writer friend I met here (see you on the 13th !)
𓇸 Four generous, beautiful women responded to my request to read a piece I’d written before I submitted to some journals. The conversations and comments over email I received moved me to tears. Thank you thank you & .
𓇸 Received brilliant advice from
on the whole social media mine-field, and had an inspiring one-to-one chat with the wise𓇸 Seen my article on HRT shared by so many of you, including, much to my excitement the brilliant in her round up of what’s catching her attention this week, and in her October top reads.
𓇸 Shared a little of my creative world with
for her wonderful Atelier series.
That’s it amigas!
Have a lovely Sunday,
Layla x
Wonderful! So glad you were with us on the declutter. It made me laugh what you said about your husband being scared he would be recycled! x
What a glorious joy jumble, thank you for sharing these beautiful gems. And thank you for sharing your dreamy work space for ATELIER, it was a delight to have your insights xx