I am doing an author reading in Hampshire. Come along to the playing fields at Ringwood Waldorf School on Tuesday 18th August at 11am – 1pm, and bring a picnic.

There is a plenty of parking, a wholefood cafe and shop, toilets, and also nearby walks, and it is 5 minutes from Moors Valley country park which is a great place for children.

The address is Ringwood Waldorf School, Folly Farm Lane, Ringwood, BH24 2NN. If there is a downpour we will find an indoor space at the school.

RSVP: by August 8th. email:  veronikarobinson(at)hotmail(dot)com

I’ll have a collection of my non-fiction and fiction books. I am happy to sign books, too. If there’s a particular book you’d like to buy or have me read from, do let me know asap.

 

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I don’t get down south very often, so it would be lovely to catch up with my readers, old and new, while I’m down there.

Love, Veronika x

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Do you love to cook? Maybe you are not a natural cook and each meal is a chore? Let me help you find the LOVE.

My second recipe book has had a bit of an evolution, and most recipes that I planned to include have gone out the door. The book reflects my journey into a more defined way of eating, namely gluten free.

The book began life titled The Mother’s Kitchen as a spin-off, if you like, from when I was editor of The Mother magazine. It no longer felt appropriate to call it that when I gave the magazine to someone else. I then called it In My Kitchen, but that didn’t feel quite right. I have to thank my friend Denise for inspiring the title Love From My Kitchen. It feels good to me on several levels: food is love. I serve with love. I create meals with love. I hope you enjoy the book as well as the title. I expect to publish in the Autumn.

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Pea and Mint Fritters

 

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Lemon Cornbread and Lime and Blackbean Chilli

Although the book won’t have pictures or photographs, you can see some of the recipe photographs on my Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Love-From-My-Kitchen

 

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Pumpkin and Fresh Thyme Risotto

 

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Vegetable Juice

If you loved The Mystic Cookfire, you won’t be disappointed with Love From My Kitchen. If you’ve not yet got a copy of The Mystic, what the heck are you waiting for? More than 280 plant-based recipes! Chop! Chop! Or should I say ‘chomp chomp’?

 

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I’m sitting in my writing room sipping hot lemon water, and sunshine is streaming through the window. Birds are whistling. Creating a beautiful life begins right where you are: by creating a beautiful day. My new non-fiction book, I Create My Day, will inspire you to embrace your life and be the master of your destiny. Feel free to join my Facebook page for daily doses of inspiration.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/I-Create-My-Day

Publishing Autumn 2015

 

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Cumbria Fells this morning as the Sun shone across the Eden Valley.

My mother had a gift for making home a beautiful sanctuary. What I learnt from her is that home is a sacred space, and regardless of whether we live in a castle or a tent, the intimate surroundings in which we ‘undress’ from the world says a lot about what goes on in our interior landscape. Our home is an accurate reflection of our inner realm.

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I find when I’m feeling a bit scratchy and irritable it’s because things aren’t neat and tidy around me. Sometimes it’s easy to neglect the house when I’m caught up in answering emails or other admin things which suck up my time…or being chief chauffeur to my teenage daughter. The quickest way to shift my mood is to tidy, clean and declutter. When I prioritise that over everything else, calm settles over me again. In a world which thrives on more, more, more, the real beauty is to be found in less, less, less. When I walk into my home and the rooms are clean and tidy, I find myself melting and feeling totally relaxed. This is how I want to feel every time I’m in here.

I was reflecting on our childhood home, and how my mother pretty well raised us eight children on her own (my dad worked overseas for much of the time) and yet, I do not have a single memory of our living space ever being messy or dirty. Not only was our home clean and tidy, it carried a vibration of calm and beauty. Classical music was often playing on the stereo, and large, lush pot plants brought a sense of nature indoors. Incense filled the rooms with the scent of something mystical and magical.

Not only did my mother create a nurturing and beautiful home, she also managed a 700-acre property (again, while my dad was overseas) with dozens of horses, and maintained a thriving 4-acre garden.

She didn’t have a cook, nanny or gardeners. But you know what else she didn’t have? Social media. My mother lived from her heart, and created a life of beauty all around her. And she did so without distraction. Her focus was on creating a beautiful home and family life, and within that vision she found herself, and was immensely creative.

I learnt about living in community by being part of a family where everyone contributed to the smooth functioning of daily life. Not once in my childhood were dishes left on the sink. After each meal they were washed, rinsed, dried and put away. Laundry wasn’t left lying around. It was folded/ironed and put away. I actually did a lot of ironing in my childhood! Toys weren’t scattered here, there and everywhere. And yet, I don’t remember my mother having to nag us into tidying. If you were old enough to play with a toy or eat a meal, then you were old enough to take responsibility for tidying away. My mother created all our meals from scratch. We didn’t have take-away meals or processed foods. Sometimes I wonder how my mother managed it all, but then I remember: she got up early each day to meditate and do yoga outside on the grass before sunrise. By the time us kids woke up, she’d already squeezed each of us a fresh orange juice.

One of the things I hold most dear in my heart is the beauty-infused childhood my mother gifted me through her mindfulness. One of the words which keeps coming up in reviews of my new novel, Sisters of the Silver Moon, is: beautiful. I can only assume that is a legacy of the home life my mother so joyfully created for us. You can buy my new novel on Kindle or paperback. I hope you enjoy it, and that it fills your heart and home with beauty. ~ Veronika

 Five-star reviews of Sisters of the Silver Moon

Veronika Creates My Day

I have a favourite earthenware mug that has the words ‘I Create my Day’ on it. Having read Sisters of the Silver Moon I need a new mug that says ‘Veronika Creates my Day’. I was transported into a reality that I became totally involved in. I was surprised and a little sad, on finishing, that the characters were no longer part of my day. I enjoyed the mix of family conflict, herbalism, community, bees, tea, knitting and a life well lived. This was an easy, pleasurable read that connected me with new friends and I’m impatiently looking forward to the sequel.

 

A Beautiful Story

I really enjoy Veronika’s writing, both fiction and non fiction. This is a beautiful book. The narrative flows so well that you quickly get caught up in the story and don’t want to put it down. I would love to know women like these characters. I could have easily sat and read this in one go if work and family life hadn’t got in the way. I can’t wait for the next one.

Love, love, love it!

This wonderful book is a complete slice of heaven, a book to truly lose yourself in. Family connections, friendships, love and relationships. Full of the beauty of life, even in the darkest of times.

I love this book so much

I loved this book so much. I love the little moments of beauty in it, and I loved and felt for each of the characters. I didn’t want it to end.

Another beautiful book from Veronika Robinson

When you get to the last page you are going to be mighty relieved there is a sequel!! Beautiful characters that I totally fell in love with!!

A simply beautiful story

A simply beautiful story. It pulls you in, like being drawn into a warm embrace. Can’t wait for part 2!

As a writer, I find it’s important to get away from the keyboard and live life. I am blessed with being a speed typist and someone who doesn’t suffer writer’s block, so when I come to the keyboard to write, that is precisely what I do.

 

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Having two daughters born twenty-two months apart meant I learnt to effectively manage what precious little time I had to myself. My girls are 19 and 17 now, and I’ve had years to develop the skills in how to work well and productively. I have a workaholic nature, but in recent years began to give myself some slack and go and play. I’ve come to recognise it’s not only okay to head off for a swim, meet a friend for lunch, take a two-hour walk by the river, or read a novel in the sunshine ~ but it’s vital for my growth, well-being and productivity.

 

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Playtime, as with self-care, is essential for keeping inspiration alive. I love to cook, and although it’s a requirement to put meals on the table, it’s generally a pleasure, too. Many ideas for writing come to me as I’m slicing up a vegetable or stirring in the seasonings. I can’t begin to tell you how many sexy men I’ve conjured up by breathing in the earthy scent of cumin.

 

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The Mystic Cookfire

 

I’m a highly sensual woman, and am always guided by how I feel, see, smell, sense, hear and taste the world around me. My primary source of creative inspiration is Nature. Whether it is the waxing Moon sliding across the sky or a red squirrel scampering atop a 300-year-old moss-covered stone wall or being woken at 3.40am by birdsong, I am filled and nourished and sustained by the gifts all around me.

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The level of abundance that fills my soul is not connected to a bank balance. I love, and am loved. There is no price that can be put on such things.

It’s an important part of my writing day to step into the garden and ‘talk to my plants’. I tell my baby plug plants that they’re beautiful, and how damn proud I am of them for surviving the torrential downpour the night before. My starflowers thrive, and I am grateful that I chose them as the symbol/name of my publishing business (Starflower Press). Starflower means courage.

 

I breathe in the scent of lavender, and admire the fennel leaves. I gasp with delight when discovering the radishes are ready to harvest. I pluck a mangetout and savour the crispy sweetness of each bite. Sometimes, I just need to sit in the sunshine, my feet bare on the grass, the birdsong all around me, and breathe in the gloriousness of life. How does this help my writing? It connects me. It grounds me. Gratitude for this wonderful Earth that we live on is vital to me, as a person and as a conveyor of messages, and being one with Mother Nature plugs me back into my true being faster than anything else can.
Barefoot, I walk from one end of our garden to the other, taking in all the goodness around me. It’s easy to think of creativity as something we ‘do’, but it’s also something we receive. For me, being in Nature is a gift that I constantly take into my whole being. How could I possibly know how to create if I am not one with the Great Creator? The Breathmaker didn’t just breathe life into human form, but into every living thing/creature. Closing our eyes and remembering our interconnectedness with all of life is a beautiful way to reclaim our sacred self and our creative heart.

My home is filled with the love of friends and their creative acts. I have such beautiful hand-made items that instantly take me to a good place in my heart whenever I see them. Being surrounded by creativity, and supporting other people’s creativity, is as vital as anything we produce ourselves. There is room in this world for everyone’s dreams!

I spend a portion of each day exercising, whether it’s taking a long walk by the river, using weight-resistance machines in the gym, aquafit or swimming, I find these times allow me to go inward and explore my rich inner terrain. Exercise, at first glance, doesn’t seem like a creative act, but we bring as much pleasure and leisure to it as we choose. Astrologically, leisure is found in the same ‘house’ as creativity (and children). It is what makes us feel alive. Exercise is only a chore when we don’t enjoy it. My favourite ways to exercise are walking and swimming/aquafit, and that’s where I put my focus. And in turn, they give me the opportunity to let my body rather than brain take the focus for a while. It’s the yin and yang of the writer’s life: in and out, cold and hot, slow and fast, body and brain, feminine and masculine.

Life is such a beautiful dance, and it is such a privilege and honour to have sensed my calling in life at such a young age, and to have followed that dream.
If the idea of creativity seems alien to you, I can’t recommend The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron highly enough. Our art comes in so many forms, and is expressed in as many ways as there are living creatures. Is a bird’s nest less creative than the beautiful artwork Sara Simon creates for my books?

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Is Sara’s art less creative than the Grand Canyon?

You see, it isn’t about bigger or better, or less or more; it is about what moves us. It’s what causes us to release a part of ourselves into the world. It might be the way you decorate your house so it becomes a home, or the way you make your bed and how you plump the cushions or tend to your pot plants. Perhaps creativity is the felt doll you made this morning, or the soup bubbling on the stove. Maybe it is the flower essences you’re crafting. Own your creative soul.
Humanity can heal from its pain with one creative act at a time. Let’s unite. Let’s share the love in our heart through our varied ways of expressing the soul.

 

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For twelve years I published a niche parenting magazine. If you’ve not ever read it, I can safely say it was a magazine you either loved or hated. It rested on the foundation of conscious parenting and prioritising the biological needs of children. I attracted a faithful readership, with some subscribers staying with my husband and I for 12 years, long after they ‘needed’ the magazine.

 

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About 2005, editing the magazine.

 

What I learnt from that apprenticeship is that the same ideals apply to my life as a novelist, especially as I am an independent author. As writers or publishers, our readers ‘feel’ our vibration at a level beyond our understanding. It isn’t “just” about our writing or the material we produce. It is about who we are. We can’t be one person at home and another in public. Our authenticity reaches out into the ethers. Our values and all that we hold dear, they are there, infused in the energy we emit to the Universe. There’s a lovely saying that does the rounds of Facebook: Your vibe attracts your tribe. This doesn’t just apply to friendship! It applies to every area of life, and especially as a writer or publisher.

 

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My writing room

 

Do you want to attract new readers? Do you want to increase sales? Do you want to be a magnet for a certain type of readership? Look at your vibe. Examine your values. And, get away from the modern world a fair bit. Walk barefoot on the grass. Smell the scent of leaves. Feel the wind in your hair. Get back in touch with Mother Nature. Ground yourself.

 

 

 

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A road out of my village with lovely views of the fells

 

Often we spend so much time trying to reach out, that we forget to reach in! We are not the number of retweeted tweets or Facebook likes. We are not the size of a publicity campaign. We are not the number of books or magazines we well.

 

We are spiritual beings

having a human experience.

 

 

Regardless of our profession, We attract, and we repel. Like attracts like. It’s the basic law of the Universe. Want to gather your tribe? Then look at what you’re vibrating. Do you attract or do you repel? Only you have the power to change that.

 

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Tomorrow I am officially launching my third novel, Sisters of the Silver Moon. I might be an Aussie girl in England, but it seems pretty appropriate to give birth to my literary baby on Independence Day.

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Being an independent author means freedom, but it also means taking responsibility for everything to do with your work. Responsibility is one of those heavily loaded words that often has people running for the hills, and yet if we embrace it then it changes its hold on us. We become the captain of our ship, rather than a hapless passenger at the mercy of the nautical conditions. We don’t have the luxury of waiting for someone to rescue us. It’s sail or sink.

As an independent author, you’re not just a writer, but a business person. Most writers would agree that all we want to do is write…but the truth is simple: if you want to be an independent author you have to do more than show up at the laptop. You have to do mind-numbing jobs like annual accounts or deal with the tax office regarding overseas royalties on foreign translations. Independence means building an author platform, and not relying on a marketing team to get your work into the hands of would-be readers. To thrive on being an indie author means you live your life outside of any boxes. You aren’t confined, unless you choose to be. It’s not a job for the weak of mind.

One of the most powerful things my dad ever said to me (he was an atheist), was that he believed in himself.

If, like me, you don’t want the limelight for yourself but for your work, then putting yourself ‘out there’ can feel like a daily chore. If you’re an author, you must promote yourself as an author/novelist/writer as equally and as passionately as you do any of your literary work. You MUST believe in yourself. Without that conviction, you may as well give up. Readers tune into authors. If you believe in yourself, and your writing, then readers will be drawn to you. (You still have to market yourself!) To understand your target audience means understanding yourself.

Who are you?

What has meaning to you?

What are your passions?

Who are you when no one is watching?

Do you live authentically?

 

Whether you like it or not, who you are is energetically imprinted into everything you put out into the world. If you don’t like yourself, change. Change now. Change every day. You have the power to be the best you can be.

One of my favourite quotes of all time is: “Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self.”

 

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Independence means you have the pleasure and pain of choosing the right image for your book. A picture paints a thousand words and you want to be sure the image on your book says as much as it possibly can about what is inside. It must be heartbreaking to write a great book only to have a publisher slap a generic or bland cover on the front. My pet hate is when I’ve picked up a romance novel and the guy on the front doesn’t remotely match the description the author has given. This would NEVER happen with an indie author.

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Beautiful artwork painted by Sara Simon www.sarasimon.co.uk

The publishing world is changing with astonishing speed in ways we would never have once imagined. Even big-name authors are leaving traditional publishing houses in exchange for self-publishing and marketing themselves. That speaks volumes!

And while, for the average person on the street, the idea of being accepted by a big publisher means you’re a ‘real writer’, for those of us who work independently we have come to know and cherish all the benefits of autonomy even if our books aren’t sold in every bookstore chain.

One of my guiding beliefs (for my fiction and non-fiction writing) is that the right readers will find my publications. I know that most of my books have proved life-changing for many people, and so I trust (yet I still do the leg work) that books will always find their way into the hands of those who will appreciate them.

Writing is often described as a lonely business. I’m not someone who gets lonely. And, I love being alone. A lot. However, as an independent author it means that I need to step out of the writing room (or garden!) and ‘meet’ my readers. I thrive on solitude, and it is this rich inner world that lends itself so perfectly to the writing life.

 

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With my daughter, the novelist Eliza Serena Robinson

 

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Eliza’s trilogy

My author tour starts this Saturday with a book launch right here in my reading room (aka The Barn). The following weekend I’ll be reading and speaking in Lincolnshire and Harrogate. There’ll be other venues throughout the Summer, too. I’m really looking forward to sharing my new novel, and also meeting my devoted readers as well as meeting new readers.

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At my desk

 

My writing style is evolving, but the themes which are important to me will always remain regardless of whether I write fiction or non-fiction: Nature, friendships, love, family, food, home, symbolism, metaphysics and so on. Being an independent author means I get to explore and experiment with my voice and my passions without censure. I value freedom, as much as learning from my ‘mistakes’ and seeing how I can improve.

On Twitter the other day, a reader said to me: “Your books are unlike any others I’ve read in terms of themes and references.” I really must paste that onto the notice board in my writing room. It truly made my day. Why? Because when I’ve approached traditional publishers in the past they’ve wanted to know which writer my writing was like. I wanted to yell: I’m not like other writers! Don’t box me in.

So, here’s to Independence Day, and tomorrow I’ll be sipping champagne and eating chocolate-dipped strawberries with friends as my new novel, Sisters of the Silver Moon, is officially launched. Here’s to freedom! Available in paperback and Kindle. Amazon, other online retailers, good bookshops, UK libraries, and signed copies www.veronikarobinson.com

 

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Well, as far as lovely days go, this one certainly fits into that category.

The weather alone is enough to send me into a state of bliss. I’m grateful for every second of this so-called heat wave. Of course, it’s nowhere near like my native Australia, but after almost seventeen years of shivering in Cumbria, this patch of weather is just what I needed.

I enjoyed deep-water aquafit first thing this morning with my daughter who is home from university for the Summer. Then I popped by my florist and treated myself to some eucalyptus! One of my favourite scents in the world. It always reminds me of walking through a eucalyptus forest after a storm. Heavenly.

 

 

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Oooooooooooh and I got my first shipment of books: my new novel, Sisters of the Silver Moon. So overjoyed to read the five-star reviews on Amazon UK this morning! Thank you everyone!

 

 

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My author tour kicks off this Saturday with a book launch at my home. Seems appropriate since the book was written here.

 

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Time to start signing books! Beautiful cover art by the gorgeous Sara Simon.

 

And then I spent some playful hours in the garden: gardening, eating melon, chatting to my daughter and a friend, cuddling a baby, reading a novel, and then it was inside to join Bethany as she made dinner. Now this is one of my favourite meals ever, but I rarely make it because my other daughter does NOT like mushrooms. She’s away for the night, so I grabbed my chance to do a full-on mushroom meal with two hands. I left Bethany to it as the onions and garlic sautéed with bay leaves in a rich tomato sauce. I popped a bunch of mushrooms, tomatoes and garlic in the oven while her Mystic Sauce bubbled away.

 

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The warmth of the day found its way to the kitchen. The radio was on the classical music station. All is perfect in my world. Today. That’s all we ever have, isn’t it? Just today. That’s why we should savour every one.

 

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One of my favourite recipes from The Mystic Cookfire, my popular recipe book with more than 280 plant-based meals.

 

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** My mushroom recipe can be found inside The Mystic Cookfire: the sacred art of creating food for friends and family. It’s gluten and dairy free.

 

My favourite things: books, flowers, fabulous food, friends, sunshine, family (not necessarily in that order).If you love those things too, then I reckon you’ll enjoy my new novel. On Kindle, and paperback. Amazon, and other online retailers, and good bookshops. Signed copies from www.veronikarobinson.com

 

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For as long as women have walked upon the Earth, their lives have been guided by the pull of the Moon. There was a time, however, when we cycled to the Sun rather than the Moon.

 

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To talk about our Moontime, and indeed, to make menstruation a mainstream topic, has taken quite some work. We still have a LONG way to go. To bring this most fundamental aspect of being a woman into the limelight is to reclaim our sacred femininity from behind the closed doors of one of patriarchy’s great taboos.

 

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“Our menstruation is our honesty.

It tells us what the world denies.

It is a mirror of our diet, emotions, beliefs, cellular memories, dreams and the world we live in.”

~ Cycle to the Moon, by Veronika Sophia Robinson

“Modern statistics relating to menstruating woman
are taken from huge cities,
about women whose lifestyles
are not in accord with Nature.”
~ Cycle to the Moon, by Veronika Sophia Robinson

Blood is not dirty. Menstruation is not filthy. Bleeding each month is not a curse.

The menstrual-hygiene industry is raking in the big bucks and perpetuating old myths. However, like childbirth, it is true that many women suffer. I would like to add that they don’t need to suffer. Our culture tells them otherwise. Voices in the wilderness speak out against the cultural soup and whisper “there’s another way”. Those of us on the edge of culture try to bring light to the lives of women who suffer with menstrual ‘conditions’. It’s important to ask ourselves: did Mother Nature really want us to suffer with migraines, cramps, bloating, bad tempers and heavy bleeding? I don’t believe so. In fact, the more we look at the lives of our ancestresses we see that the ‘menstrual’ curse is a recent phenomenon in female history. It is in direct proportion to the degree with which we concur with the modern lifestyle: lack of exercise, poor nutrition (caffeine, sugar, dairy, gluten, alcohol), inadequate sleep, stress, EMRs, pollution, lack of immersion in nature, too much screen time, etc.

“The vagina and its excretions (mucus and blood)

are a mirror of the foods and non foods (that is, junk) we put into our body.”

~ Cycle to the Moon, by Veronika Sophia Robinson

 

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There are many resources available these days to guide women on how to heal their cultural patterning around menstruation.

Here are some relatively recent additions to menstrual-healing literature.

Cycle to the Moon: celebrating the menstrual trinity ~ menarche, menstruation, menopause
by Veronika Sophia Robinson; illustrated by Susan Merrick

ISBN 978-0-9575371-4-9
185 pages pbk

Based on my workshops: Sacred Cycle, and Cycle to the Moon, this book offers practical support for every woman wanting to understand herself better. It is a celebration of the menstrual trinity: first blood of the maiden; the cycles of mother; the last blood of the wise crone. This contribution to holistic menstruation reaches beyond culture, taboos and maternal conditioning, and touches the heart of what it means to be a woman. In the style of a journal, this book invites the reader to celebrate her body through reconnecting with her cycles.

Sisters of the Silver Moon
By Veronika Sophia Robinson
ISBN 978-0-9931586-1-2 (Pbk and Kindle)

Although this is a novel, it was inspired by Cycle to the Moon, and touches on women’s bodies by introducing the reader to the lives of four generations of women and their different experiences of menarche, menstruation and menopause, as well as childbirth, as told through their stories of family, home, love, loss and forgiveness.

The sustained motif in the novel is that of the ever-changing, powerful Moon.

Azaria Linden, the community herbalist, spends her days tending herb gardens, concocting lotions, potions and tinctures, beekeeping, and being a mother to four grown-up daughters who have left home. Her handcrafted life is the envy of many, but when the lives of her children change in dramatic ways, she wonders if she can keep it all together. Is it possible to still live a heart-centred life when everything around you is falling apart?
www.veronikarobinson.com

 

 

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http://thehappywomb.com/
Reaching for the Moon – a girl’s guide to her female cycles
By Lucy Pearce
82 pages. (June 2013)
ISBN: 1482363038

Written for girls aged 9-14 introducing them to the menstrual cycle in simple, soulful language, taking the form of a gentle, meaningful initiation into womanhood. Reaching for the Moon incorporates stories, real women’s experiences of their first periods, and answers girls’ most burning questions about periods and their bodies in a loving, age-appropriate way:

Contents include:
* Ideas on how to celebrate their first period.
* Practical guidance on choosing sanitary products. * Holistic health care for the menstrual cycle.
* Guidance on self care as an emerging woman.

This is the guide that empowered and caring mothers, aunts and godmothers want for the girls in their lives.

*Lucy is currently releasing an updated edition.

 

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Moon Time: a guide to celebrating your menstrual cycle
By Lucy Pearce
144 pages. (February 2012)
ISBN: 1468056719

A guide for all menstrual women from 14- 40. Referred to by readers world wide as “life changing”. Moon Time will help you to embrace all aspects of your menstrual cycle, heal PMS, develop self care practices and reconnect to your body’s natural rhythms. It is the first book in print to explore the new phenomenon of red tents as places for women’s retreat, and shares how to create a red tent for yourself and your community, as well as how to celebrate a girls’ transition to womanhood.
Signed paperback version £9.99

 

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Recommended Books
Bennet, J. & Pope, A. (2008) The Pill: Are you sure it’s for you? (Allen and Unwin, released in UK by Orion 2009)
Bennett, J. (2002) A Blessing not a Curse: A mother daughter guide to the transition from child to woman, Sally Milner Publishing, Bowral, 2002.
Bennett, J. & Naish F. (2004)The Natural Fertility Management Contraception and Conception Kits
Diamant, A. (2002). The Red Tent. London: Pan Books.
Shushann, Movsessian, Puberty Girl, Allen and Unwin, Sydney, 2005Naish, F. Natural Fertility, Sally Milner Publishing, Bowral, 1991, 4th Ed. 2004
Northrup, Christiane Dr. (1998) Women’s Bodies, Women’s Wisdom. New York: Bantam Books,
Owen, L. (2008). Her Blood is Gold. Dorset: Archive Publishing.
Pope, A. (2006) The Woman’s Quest—unfolding women’s path of power and wisdom. A thirteen–session self–guiding course, self published, 2006. Available from
Pope, A. (2001). The Wild Genie: the healing power of menstruation. Bowral, Australia: Sally Milner Publishing. (out of print, second hand copies may be available on the web)
Richardson, D. Tantric Orgasm for Women, Destiny Books, Rochester, 2004. (Diana’s website: www.livinglove.com)
Singer, K. (2004). The Garden of Fertility: A Guide to Charting Your Fertility Signals to Prevent or Achieve Pregnancy–Naturally–and to Gauge Your Reproductive Health. New York: Avery
Weed, S. New Menopausal Years: The Wise Woman W – Alternative Approaches for Women 30–90
Weschler, T. (2001) Taking Charge of Your Fertility

 

 
Resources for Holistic Menstruation

http://www.redtentwomensproject.org/
The Red Tent Women’s Project is a diverse and dynamic community of women who are catalysts for social change. By creating safe and empowered spaces we facilitate community building, information and resource exchange, and personal growth for women and girls.

http://redtenttemplemovement.com/
http://www.jewelswingfield.com/red-tent-circles.php
http://alisastarkweather.com/
http://www.redtentwellness.com/index.php
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http://menstruationresearch.org/2012/11/28/occupy-your-period/

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Welcome to Moonsong, a website for women.Reclaiming feminine power through reconnection with the women’s mysteries. The women’s mysteries are: the shamanic journeys of our rites of passage of menarche, childbirth, and menopause; the spiritual practice of menstruation; the inner, spiritual and shamanic journey of pregnancy, birth and mothering; and menopause as rebirth. The information within Moonsong will help the healing of the wounded feminine and reawaken feminine power for the benefit of all.
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Veronika’s aduki bean and quinoa burgers

 

 

“What’s for dinner, Mum?” my teenage daughter asked me when I picked her up from her after-school job.

I looked at her blankly. “You expected me to make dinner?” I replied when I was in my chauffeur hat.

It was a bit mean, I suppose, but I did smile pretty quickly to let her know I was joking. Of course there’d be dinner on the table when she got home!

When I relayed the story to her elder sister, the response was “We don’t expect you to make dinner, but we’re so grateful that you do!”

And dinner? I had made Aduki Bean and Quinoa Burgers.

I’d had the beans soaking in water overnight, and wasn’t sure what I’d do with them. Soup? Bake? Stew? And then my fridge reminded me I had a load of cooked quinoa which needed using up! Two birds. One stone.

Okay, so I had a lot of beans soaking, and a lot of quinoa to use up…
This recipe made about 30 good-sized burgers. My plan is to freeze a bunch of them (if the house mice don’t gobble them overnight!) Obviously if you don’t want to make this many, cut the recipe in half!

Scrummy. Satisfying. Filling.

Oh, and dairy free. Egg free. Gluten free.

A friend gifted me with some dulse flakes that I wanted to use in the recipe. Feel free to omit.

5 cups of cooked aduki beans
5 cups cooked quinoa (cold)
5 cloves garlic, chopped
2 small onions, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
3 sticks celery, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
4 T brown rice miso
1 T dried mixed herbs
½ teaspoon turmeric
1 T dulse flakes (optional)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 – 2 teaspoons Celtic sea salt
Generous grindings of course-ground black pepper
200 g tomato paste
Olive oil (optional)

A cup or so of brown rice flour for rolling

Sauté the onions, garlic, carrots, celery and pepper until soft. Add all the seasonings and mix well. Add a cup or so of water once the tomato paste is in. Mix well.

Mix everything together with the mashed beans and quinoa until the seasonings are well combined with the mixture.

Roll into burgers, and then coat with brown rice flour. Place on a baking sheet (drizzle with olive oil if you want crunchy burgers) and baked at 200C for 40 minutes. If using olive oil, turn the burgers over half way through cooking.

Serve with a green salad.