Katie Rose: 37 Things

Dear Friend

In honour of being alive for 37 years, here’s 37 Things I feel immensely grateful for.

1. YOU!!! - and my human family - I feel so incredibly blessed to exist amongst such a wonderful community of friends. Thank you for being alive at this time with me!

2. My birth family - for their endless patience with my weird and wonderful ways.

3. Life - thankful for being here and inhabiting this crazy body vehicle and for the basic fuels that enable it to stay on the road - breath, food, warmth, shelter and, of course, tea.

4. This AMAZING Planet - and the infinite beauty of Nature - particularly Trees, Water, big Cats and Roses :) My little spot of earth that I rustle about in here in Crystal Palace.

5. My senses - having grown up with a grandmother who was deaf and having worked with those with sensory impairments for over 20 years, I am acutely aware that being able to experience all the tastes, touches, sights, scents and sounds of life is very precious.

6. Movement - learning to understand my own physical backtofrontwardness has given me a huge appreciation of now being able to move, dance, cycle, yoga and shimmy.

7. Passion - the dynamic energy that propels us to create, birth, bond and unite. The ability to feel deeply and feel for others - compassion.

8. Deep Connection - and the dance of intimacy.

9. Power - the sunshine of strength, courage, confidence, independence, individuality and self-determination within all of us.

10. Freedom - to make choices and the responsibility to make them wisely.

11. Money - as a form of exchange that saves a lot of time that would otherwise be spent doing the ‘how many beans for your cow?’ routine.

12. Challenges and conflicts - and what they teach me.

13. Difference - diversity brings so much colour, texture and spice to life.

14. Love - in all its magnificent manifold forms.

15. Play - the joy and delight of being very, very silly and laughing until its beyond silly.

16. Community - I’ve had so much fun, work, play and party time with the most truly extraordinary creative people. It was so amazing to celebrate the 4th Birthday of The Garden of Roses at Inspiral last week - 46 events featuring over 100 artists at InSpiral - all made possible by love and generous collaborative community spirit.

17. Communication and creative expression - in all its forms - writing, poetry, art, music, dance. I am acutely aware of the power of words to reframe our perceptions and also conversely the limitation of words and the value of non-verbal communication.

18. Music - essential medicine which transforms the vibration of every aspect of our being.

19. Singing - for me, it’s the direct line to heaven (aka ecstatic meditative experiences).

20. Chanting - mantras could be described as the dial up code on the direct line to heaven.

21. The Big Om - the sonic big boOM of creation - huge Big Up for the beautiful Barefoot Doctor - and his truly life changing Big Om experiences.

22. Musical instruments - piano was my first love and I now have a family of sonic beings who travel around me - gong, singing bowls, flute, tampuri etc.

23. Composition - birthing pieces of music and albums is one of my life’s big adventures. I feel particularly honoured to have composed a piece for Road to Peace, a film about the Dalai Lama. Big shout out to my producer Scott Turner at Spiritual Studio.

24. Choirs - the exquisite sound of voices joining together in harmony gives me shivers, tingles and frequently brings me to tears. Particular thanks to Croydon Intercultural Singing Project & my Forest Hill Singing Group.

25. Sing for Water - being part of this amazing project which features huge amounts of people singing together to raise funds for WaterAid has been so immensely life-enriching - the power of song in action.

26. Supporting others to sing and sound - I get such a huge buzz out of seeing people reclaim their voices - whether one to one or in groups - its so amazing!

27. Imagination - meditating and journeying with clients has revealed to me that our lives are beautiful tapestries with intricately perfect strands of meaning and symbolism. Our imagination enables us to re-weave and re-vision our worlds and to create new pathways, choices and perspectives.

28. Learning - it goes on and on and on - I am forever grateful to my teachers, mentors and guides - and the amazing sources of wisdom and knowledge I have accessed.

29. Healing - so many amazing modalities exist for us to transform our awareness - my particular loves are coaching, reiki, massage, reflexology, tarot, kabbalah, meditation and acupuncture.

30. Travel - inner and outer voyages to places known and unknown. It’s so important to keep stretching beyond the familiar. I’ve experienced the grace of adventures to many far flung places, of which Turkey and New Zealand have impacted me most deeply.. so far...

31. Solitude - is the deep soil in which I grow my ideas, reflections, creations.

31. Silence - stillness, peace.

32. Darkness - the womb of creation. Death and the space it creates for more life.

33. Miracles - they happen all the time!

34. The Ancestors - and their legacy of gifts and challenges.

35. Angels - we are all angels and angelic energy is always available.

36. Spirit - the effervescent energy that enervates the great symphony of existence. The great numinous spirits that have inspired devotion throughout time across all spiritual practices.

37. Mystery - As Socrates said ‘As for me, all I know is that I know nothing’

It’s been magical writing this, thanks for reading - beaming over huge amounts of love, appreciation and gratitude to you!

Wishing you a wonderful August

Love