Mentally still wet.

I may have dried out physically but definately not mentally - the scars and cold of last weekend's Isle of Wight experience is still with me and no doubt with Lindsey, Teresa and Lisa the other 3 EEG who were with me.

The East End Girls were meant to be doing the last part of the Capital Ring Walk tomorrow but after many people telling me that they couldn't come and doing checks on the forecast, I have postponed it until September. Interestingly there were sighs of relief all round.

Look out for the postings then and hopefully sunshine.

Drowned rats had nothing on us.

I and three fellow walkers have just returned from a long weekend walking round the coast of the Isle of Wight.

Now in June, on a weekend that is the longest one of the year you might assume that the weather would be good - wrong!! I have never been so wet in all my life.

Things started well and the journey was in glorious sunshine although a short walk along the front that evening did mean waterproof jackets. That was just drizzle though and I, in all my optimism awoke to shades of blue and grey in the sky and hopes of a sunny day. Unfortunately by the time we set off the rain was on again but only lasted for an hour and the rest of the day was great. We ate lunch outside in Cowes while we watched the place prepare for the following day’s 'Round the Island Race'.

Day two was beautiful and we walked in shorts and strappy tops, through woodland, along the coast, a bit of beach and into picturesque Yarmouth where we met up with Teresa. Clearly she thought we needed dampening down as we did have a shower then but again it was short and a little further along the coast we had lunch watching wind surfers and boarders as we ate, outside again, in the sunshine.

Day three, the rain never stopped and for miles there was nothing but long expanses of cliff top and walks around inlets – ‘chines’ in the Isle of Wight. On one, we all performed intricate ballet steps in the mud as we slid all over the place trying to negotiate the path. Finally at about 3.00 we stopped for lunch dripping water everywhere and soaked through. After a comforting lunch, no let up in the rain meant we were reluctant to continue so we called a taxi and moved on to our over night stay in Ventnor. So wet was it that once warm and dry, not one of us ventured out for a meal and I for one was in bed and asleep by 9.30.

'It cannot possibly be as bad as yesterday' we figured over breakfast as grey and blue fought in the sky for dominance and even as the rain started just as we set off, we really did think it was only a short shower ahead. The terrain was more varied, no endless cliffs and walking through woodland sheltered us. At one point the sun looked as if it was about to shine but no longevity. The rain set in again, harder than ever and after deciding in Sandown to push on, we reconsidered after another 5 minutes of torrential downpour.

It was madness so we caught a bus back to base, dripped into a trendy coffee bar and then headed back to the hotel for a shower and lunch and decided to head back to the mainland.

Did we have fun? Yes, it was great and we met some very interesting people. Would we do it again? Ask me again when I have thoroughly dried out.

Grab each moment and enjoy it to the full.

Last year I dedicated my Breakthrough Breast Cancer Walk to many women but two were singled out, one was Roo whose wedding I attended in France a couple of weeks ago and the other was Bev.

Sadly, very suddenly and unexpectedly Bev died last night and I have just found out.

Everyone deals with cancer differently and for a long time, although I was in regular contact with her, I did not see Bev - it was what she wanted. However, her battle did not always run smoothly and when she had to have more treatment she invited me to visit. Her shoulder length auburn hair had fallen out and was now wispy, short and grey but she still looked the 'beautiful Bev' I had always named her. She told me that getting back to everything being perfect again might take longer than she hoped so she had decided to stop punishing herself and see people. We spent a wonderful 3-4 hours together laughing, reminiscing, eating pastries and enjoying each other company.

I did not see her again but I am so glad I had that time with her. Bev would be the first to say, enjoy each moment so for my dear friend, please do.

Where has the last month gone?

Well of course I know, but I cannot believe that so much time has elapsed since I last wrote. It seems no time at all that I was in Peru and I have been in France since then too.

First and foremost, yes, I did it, I walked the Inca Trail and so did the whole of the wonderful group I was with.  The group consisted of myself, Chris, Teresa and Gemma all of whom were East End Girls and then my friend Elaine and Helen who I met when networking.  Then in Peru we met a family group of 3 and Alan who was on his own. We all got on so well, what a great bunch of people.

It was a great experience and I have to keep looking at my photos as already the reality of it is fading as life just moves on.

Here is a photo of our group on the morning that we started the trek. We were on our way by coach to Km 82 and we got out to take photos at this wonderful spot.




Some of the peaks seen here were with us on the entire walk and that was very comforting. This photo was taken about 7.00a.m and it was still quite cold but as you can see very beautiful.
There is so much to tell you and share with you about the trip and the only way I am going to be able to do it is bit by bit so please bear with me.
Although the clear focus of the actual trip is fading, the one thing that I brough back with me, which I still have, is a great feeling of calm and relaxation. I have now maintained that through a week of working and a sometimes hectic half term week. I plan to keep it as it feels really good and I have not raised my voice once or got angry since. Quite amazing really. I am exploring the whole issue as I want to take the lessons and pass them on to others. I have to say that I feel great.
Just one last thing to share and that is that the word for the week is balance.
What am I talking about? Well, a number of years ago a friend and fellow coach bought me a pack of cards with different words on them. There are many ways to use them but I tend to pick a random card and then work with it in the way that seems relevant and beneficial to me. Today I picked 'balance' which felt a really good way of working on maintaining the balance that I currently have and am enjoying.
It is placed beside my computer and is reminding me of the need to have that balance all through my day. It's made me ensure that I take a lunch break, something I do not always do, and I also made sure I fitted a walk in today even though I could not do my first thing in the morning one.
If your word was also balance, how would it work for you? What could you do to ensure that you had balance in your life? What would balance be like for you? Have a go and see what you achieve.