Words of encouragement from England to Japan

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What makes a GOOD volunteer? (And what makes a really BAD one?)

A few months ago I received an email from a British woman called Sophie, who wanted to join me on Oshika and help out for a week or so. I was initially quite reluctant about the idea — I didn’t feel that I was able to take care of other non-locals, I was beginning to [...]

Furla Yoga supports the shrines on Oshika

I gave a talk last month at FEW, where I finally met someone with whom I had only ever had a telephone and email relationship, and even then we had lost touch in recent years. Dana Levy, who runs Furla Yoga, was one of the women in the audience listening to my 30-minute talk about [...]

An overview of my last stay on Oshika

My last stay on Oshika was the longest stay so far, and possibly the most exhausting. Two months is a long time to be sleeping in basic conditions, to be living in such a sensitive environment, to be working with such intensity, and of course to be away from the man I totally adore. But [...]

Want to collect things for the next free shop?

A few people have been contacting me with things they’d like to send up to the free shop — I’ll be doing the shop again on my next trip, but as I’ve mentioned in previous writing, donating clothes and other items has to be managed very carefully, so I won’t be able to accept anything [...]