Hello everyone and welcome to The Little Things! 💙
I’ve been thinking about starting a newsletter for a while and so happy I can finally put this thought into reality. Thank you so much for your support, and hope you enjoy!
Each newsletter will have a little piece of creative non fiction, focussing on something small that deserves more attention, or making the ordinary a little more extraordinary. Oh, and there will also be a book recommendation, and maybe even an animal fact because why not.
Time to grab a cuppa and let’s take 5 mins to focus on the little things! ☕
Blossom
I sit at my desk and look outside.
Winter still has us in its grips and everything is saturated with rain. Nature feels washed out at this time of year-light washes of watercolour rather than the bold acrylics of summer.
I take a sip of tea, comforted by the warmth. Then I notice something. The tree opposite my flat is no longer simply skeletal branches. Tiny pricks of white have appeared. I put the tea down and look again. They’re hardly noticeable but I’m right. Buds.
Over the next few days, the dots of white multiply, covering the tree. I go away for the weekend, and come back to see the blossoms out, the tree fully abloom. A tree is now alive with petals, and a few have fallen to the path like confetti. Around the park, I see other signs of life - snow drops nestled under trees, crocuses in fierce purples and vibrant oranges dotted amongst the grass. I catch a quick glimpse of Narcissi, intricate miniature daffodils, peeking through the woodland undergrowth. Little signs that spring is on its way.Â
The patches of colour amongst the greys and browns make me think of warmer days to come, reading in the park, long walks, dragonflies darting across the pond’s surface. My body feels lighter and I look at the blue sky.
Slowly, colour is returning.Â
What I’ve been reading:
The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean
I adored this book and can’t stop thinking about it.
It follows Devon, a young mother who is part of a human-like race that sustain themselves via eating books and consuming their contents. When her child is found to be a mind eater, seen as taboo within the community, Devon discovers just how far she will go to look after her child.
A wonderfully gothic feminist anti-fairytale, I cannot recommend this book enough. If you want your fantasy dark and weird, this is for you.
And finally….a weird animal fact!
Platypus hunt their underwater prey via electrical impulses through the water, meaning they can hunt in the deepest and darkest water without issue. The process is called electroreception, and while common among fish and amphibians, the platypus is one of only 3 mammals with this ability!
Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it-feel free to let me know what you think, and what you’d like to see in future editions. If you know someone else who would like it, please share.
Can’t wait to hear from you, and have a great day!
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