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NICKY TEMPLE | Spiritual Director

Ponderings

What do I need?

What do I need?

The greatest gift I have to offer the world is my transformed selfIts been a busy time - my Spiritual Direction practice continues to grow and there have been retreats to prepare for and host. And then there’s the usual stuff of life that needs to be seen to. There...

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Mary arrives at the empty tomb: a reflection

Mary arrives at the empty tomb: a reflection

Mary, I have come to love that name. It is my name and it is her name  - the apostle to the apostlesJesus Appears to Mary Magdalene John 20:11 - 18  Mary stood crying outside the tomb. While she was still crying, she bent over and looked in the tomb and saw two angels...

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Ploughing the fields: allowing death and life

Ploughing the fields: allowing death and life

These ploughed, brown fields seem to be a mirror to my own soul. Perhaps part of me feels ploughed, dug into and turned over.I’ve noticed the fields lately. They seem bigger than usual, wide open and brown. The farmer’s have been busy ploughing, tending and preparing...

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True to the call

True to the call

I couldn’t let the death of Queen Elizabeth to pass without writing something in response. Yesterday (the funeral day) was incredibly moving and marked the pinnacle of the last 10 days of UK (and beyond) history in which people paid deep respect, honour and gratitude...

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When things are too small for you

When things are too small for you

anything or anyone that does not bring you alive is too small for you.I was really drawn to this line from a poem by David Whyte… “…anyone or anything that does not bring you alive is too small for you” What did it mean to me for someone or something to be too small...

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Telling the stories of us

Telling the stories of us

 I've been thinking a lot about storytelling recently, having led a storytelling retreat and being deep into a story of my own that has spanned decades. I am realising more acutely that the stories of our lives need to be shared, that to keep them hidden is to...

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An Easter anointing

An Easter anointing

Today I want to remember this woman, this beautiful Mary that offered such an immense gift born from her singular devotion to Jesus.On this Thursday before Easter, this holy, being-anointed, preparing day I reflect on the woman who entered a humble home with a jar...

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When we’re broken-hearted

When we’re broken-hearted

What if, instead of turning once again to these default mechanisms so deeply ingrained, I simply let myself move towards this heart-rending pain and let it be.It’s been a heart-breaking kind of week. The kind where your heart turns to lead and sinks to your feet...

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Longing and powerlessness

Longing and powerlessness

Longing and powerlessness, held together in one breath, in and out, the yin and yang of lifeA rich and insightful guest blog from Mike Temple... Longing and powerlessness, held together in one breath, in and out, the yin and yang of life. I have supposed before that...

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The crying tree: we are one in our suffering

The crying tree: we are one in our suffering

I do hope to let myself careI walked past “my” tree today, placed my hands on her wet trunk and looked up. As I did, her branches dripped with wet rain. The drips fell onto my face and for a moment it seemed as if her tearful drips became my own. Yes, I know trees...

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Grit and grind

Grit and grind

People with grit are not afraid to change course, to pivot and to let goI was listening to Brené Brown being interviewed this week and for a couple of minutes she talked about the difference between grit and grind. It caught my attention and I found it helpful so I...

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From suffering to sorrow

From suffering to sorrow

Sorrow becomes a way to honour the experience of what happened without clinging to sufferingThis blog is adapted from an article from the International Spiritual Directors journal Presence written by Margaret F. Arms. It offers helpful insight into suffering and...

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