Just Emma

              Hello, lovelies.      It’s my birthday. And the monumental day of our birth is something to be celebrated. As we make our arrival into this world, we mark that day every year. But what is it about birthdays that have us so divided? The young delight in their birthdays. Many adults don’t just have a birthday day but can make the celebration last for a week. So why do some people suffer from the birthday blues? Do we have to be happy, or can we say, it’s my birthday and I can cry if I want to?             Birthdays are a funny thing.  Some of us love them, and some of us don’t. We all know that the moment that you were born you become a uniquely beautiful human being. And the day of your birth acknowledges our existence on earth. No matter what kind of family you were born into or what your past looks like, you are here to live your ...

              Hello, lovelies    We’re creeping through January and this brand-new year isn’t turning out to be so different than the last. We still have the same restrictions. Shops are still closed, and who knows when we’ll ever be able to go shopping for clothes again. So, will this year bring about the changes that we all need? Can we grow in this time of utter standstill? Or are we safely cocooned in our homes for another year? Can we stay the same or can we all make the change, no matter how scary it will be?             In the immortal words of the iconic green witch, Elphaba, in the musical Wicked, ‘Something has changed within me, something is not the same.’ And that’s how this new year has affected me. We were all thrust into a strange and unprecedented set of circumstances that will have long term effects on our health, both mental and physical. And...

                Hello, lovelies.     I think that we can all say that we own far too much stuff. Beautiful, shiny and useful things fill our cupboards, wardrobes, and in my case, the car. We have surrounded ourselves with every convenient amenity, every kitchen aid and every new product that is designed to make our lives easier. But what is the cost of all these items? And not just the financial cost. Why do we put an emotional price on them too? Why is it so hard to get rid of our possessions?               We have stuff everywhere. Bags, books, clothes, cars, toys, jewellery, furniture, iPads, TV’s, VRs, gaming consoles in every shape and form.  And the more affluent we are the more we acquire. Our possessions become extensions of ourselves. We use them to signal to ourselves, and others, who we want to be and where we want to belong. And long after we’re gone, they ...

            Hello, lovelies     We’re halfway through January, and so far, 2021 has been challenging. Shops are still closed, the new variant of the virus is running rampant, and our lives are back to the uncertainty of last spring. But the one thing that is missing most from my life is our traditional Christmas panto. Oh yes it is! There’s been no Dames in frilly dresses and outrageous wigs. No girls dressed as boys trying to win the hearts of either the princess or the pauper. No flying carpets or sky-reaching beanstalks. No puss in boots and definitely no Mother Goose’ dancing across our theatre stages. Is our traditional Christmas Pantomime just another casualty of Covid 19, or is the magic of panto still with us?             I just love panto, although all my friends and family will tell you that when I’m in the middle of one, albeit on stage, behind the ...

                 Hello, lovelies.        We’re three days into this new year and I can already feel the stress and anxiety falling away and the new joy and hope for this brand-new year beginning to grow. But am I right to feel that way? Should I really be pinning all my new hopes and dreams on the uncertainty of a year that so unknown? Or should I just throw all my worries out of the window and embrace all the challenges that 2021 will throw at me? Is it time to let go of 2020?             This afternoon I found myself in a delightful position of having some spare time on my hands, a rarity in my life. So, I sat in my favourite chair, a freshly made coffee beside me, and my fully charged kindle in my lap. I was finally going to be able to start the book that I have been planning on reading but never had the time. And for once my house was actually quiet. ...

               Hello, lovelies.          Christmas has come and gone, and the festivities are coming to an end. We’re almost through the Christmas week, where I’ve all eaten far too much, and so much cheese that I am now the missing link of half woman half cheese. I still don’t know what day it is, and am terrified of going into a supermarket, as the last of the shoppers are buying everything in preparation for tonight, New Year’s Eve and the last day of 2020. And never has a year been so eagerly awaited to end. But as we count down to midnight, will next year really be everything we hope it will be? Or has 2020 just been a precursor to the year to come?             Reluctantly, I was standing in the queue of my local supermarket today, and as I waited and waited in the ridiculously long line, I watched the other shoppers as they brought everything that t...

         Hello, lovelies         'Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. All the presents are wrapped. Food all laid out ready for tomorrow. All Christmas films have been watched and sherry and a mince pie is being laid out for our magical visitor's arrival tonight. We've done everything necessary for making this Christmas as perfect as possible. But will it be enough?                 This year has been incredibly hard. Money has been tight. The worry about being able to give presents, buy the best foods, and make this Christmas as perfect as possible has been an ever-present fear. But we did it. We have done everything that we can in order to make this Christmas the best one ever. We’ve worked so hard. Lived with the stresses and strains of everything this year has thrown at us, and here we are on...