Seventy is the New Seventy
Why should you read this?Because ageing is changing, but not in the same way for everyone. I bring the perspective of someone who’s lived through nearly seven decades, worked for over five, and seen peers who began working at 15 or 16 in tough, physical jobs. Their reality isn’t captured by neat averages. My voice […]
The Six Arts of Confucius: Lessons for Later Life
Earlier this week I wrote about attending the Confucius Festival. It was a fascinating experience, but for me it didn’t feel quite enough. Later, looking back at one of the photographs I’d taken, a poster listing the Six Arts of Confucius, I realised I wanted to know more. Some of the arts made sense straight […]
Finding Calm at the Confucius Festival
This week I found myself at the Confucius Festival in Gloucester. I hadn’t planned to write about it, but the experience stayed with me. There was food, conversation, drumming, even a puzzle involving numbers – yet what lingered most were the lessons about community and responsibility between generations. I thought I’d share a little of […]
A Birthday in the Wood: Stories, Memories, and What We Hold Close
This year, I chose to spend my birthday at my wood. It felt right, a return to what I did on my 65th, when I marked the day with reflection, looking back at the year gone by and forward to what might come. I’d already had a week of holding space for a Vision Quest, […]
A Letter to My 35-Year-Old Self
Reflections from 68 to anyone who feels they’re running out of time Dear Denise, You’re 35 now, caught in the swirl of work, parenting, and proving yourself. You think time is running fast and you have to keep up. Let me reassure you: life is long. Longer than you imagine. At 68, I can see […]
Late 60s and Letting Things Settle
Recently I received an email from my publisher.My next book, Career Coaching for Midlife and Beyond, is now live on Amazon and their website, ready for release on 28 October. I read through the description. It covers my background: decades of work in career psychology, retirement coaching, and my PhD at 64. Then I reached […]
Fifty Years On: The Life I Didn’t Live
The other path I might have taken, and why I don’t regret the one I did Whilst I’m taking some time away from regular writing, the news this week caught my attention. A-level results are out tomorrow, and much is being said about university admissions, including that many young people today aren’t used to phoning […]
Finding Home in the Woods: How I Became a Woodland Steward
As I sit beneath the broad canopy of trees at my woodland basecamp, it’s hard to believe how much has unfolded since that first encounter with this land. This place, my wood, has become so much more than a plot of trees. It’s become a teacher, a sanctuary, and a space where something in me […]
How Do You Begin Your Day?
A Woodland Reflection on Morning Practices This morning, as I stepped out of my car and into the quiet embrace of the woodland, I paused, breathed in deeply, and noticed the subtle shifts that signalled my arrival. The scent of the earth, the birdsong, the stillness. This small act, this moment of presence, is part […]
A New Start, at Any Time
A woodland reflection by Dr. Denise Taylor This time I filmed from a different part of my woodland, my base camp, where logs are stacked and thoughts are often stirred. What emerged today was this: we can choose a new start any time we like. Not just at New Year, not just when life forces […]