Colette O'Neill, Innovator of Goddess Permaculture ~Writer ~ Teacher ~ Photographer
Yesterday I spent much of the day in a workshop group learning all about needle felting. It was a day well spent, for I was with others and being creative. I made this… We often forget how it feels to simply be. To be oneself. To be with others. To be happy. To be quiet […]
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As the thousand and more trees and thousands of plants of the Bealtaine Project grow taller and more dense, so it is the once barren land seems more and more as it is…an Ark for Earth, set into a monoculture landscape of Cash-Crop-Forestry and animal grazing fields. This summer witnessed the most Bees, Butterflies, Pollinators […]
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As the Roman Empire came apart at the seams, the safest place to be was on the very edges of that dying empire. I have recently been reading the books, by Robert Harris, detailing the life of the great thinker, orator and statesman, Cicero. It is uncanny how many parallels with modern day life can […]
Read MoreThe roses are in bloom on the veranda. The view through the sitting room window is cheerful and lovely! I sit with my back to the stove, warm, waiting for the kettle to boil on the hob, so as I can make a big pot of tea. As I type the kettle begins to sing… […]
Read MoreThis month marks the tenth anniversary of Bealtaine Cottage. Today, the 14th of May 2014, is the full moon of Bealtaine. This marks the actual Bealtaine celebration, as many of you know. The full moon is in Scorpio, my star sign. All I can say is that I am exhausted and feeling like I […]
Read MoreSammy-Bear lies concussed by the heat from the wood burning stove! It’s a tough life being a cat at Bealtaine Cottage! Over the past week there has been a struggle between Winter and Spring as temperatures have moved up and down the thermometer, with hard frost, heavy rain, warm nights and brilliant sun all in […]
Read MoreThe air is still. The storm has passed. Stillness and silence pervades the cottage. Jack is in his bed, and the boys continue to doss away the morning in the Lodge. A midwinter scene repeated all across the northern hemisphere. Someone remarked on the increasing silence they noticed in the world around them. Midwinter is a silent time, […]
Read MoreToday I felt a tiny bit sad. Not for any reason in particular…I’m sure we all feel like this every so often. So there I was, having a good old wallow in being down, when something caught my eye, causing me to look up. It was a simple cameo…a blackbird that peered inquisitively back at […]
Read MoreThis is when the coppicing begins…early winter as soon as the leaves have fallen. This Willow will make excellent logs for the stove, once properly seasoned. The thinner bits will be added to the kindling pile and left to dry. Coppicing allows for continual regeneration of woodland and is an excellent way to help young […]
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