The Women’s Group

28/09/2022

14/07/2022

Not everyone will like you.
Not everyone will agree with the things you say, or do.
Not everyone will understand why you are who you are,
which trials and tribulations made you stronger, weaker, braver.
Not everyone will care enough to look beneath,
peek behind,
Or read between.
That’s ok.
Some people will.
Some people will find you so fascinating that they will delve right into your depths.
Some people will devour your words and commit them to memory,
should they ever need to revisit them again in times of pain.
Some people will crave your company like a flower craves the rain.
Some people will not only appreciate your light but they will reflect it right back.
They will charge you from the soul, like being plugged into the sun.
Those are your people.
Accept no shade from haters my friend, life brings enough of that.
Always seek out the light.

Donna Ashworth,
From ‘The Right Words'

Art by Catherine McMillan, Art

10/07/2022

REAL FRIENDS CAN’T BE LOST

You cannot lose real friends.
You just can’t.
They won’t go, no matter how hard you push them away when you are not yourself.
They will wait
and wait
and wait,
until they see a tiny glimmer of your light breaking through
and back they will come, with open arms.
Your real friends are still there.

And if they feel lost to you right now,
perhaps it’s because they are lost to themselves.
Just wait
and wait
and wait,
then knock on that door,
reach in, just in case they can’t reach out.
And do it again until they answer.

If you are feeling sad about the people you have ‘lost’ along the way my friend,
don’t.
They were never yours to keep.
Real friends don’t need to be earned, or appeased, or coaxed.
They are in it for the long haul and for all the right reasons.

And each of those friends is worth a dozen fair-weather,
so count your lucky stars if you have even one.

Keep your circle small but let its light be mighty.

You can’t lose real friends,
they just won’t go.

By Donna Ashworth
From ‘the right words’

Photo by Romualdas Rakauskas

06/06/2022

COMPLIMENTS ON WEIGHT

Compliments on weight
as the cause of looking great,
are toxic to the heart,
they imply that beauty starts,
with the loss of fatty cells,
that keep us looking ‘well’,
but stop us looking slim,
so how can we win?

Never get too thin,
or look too ‘drawn in’
but never get too fat,
there’s no sexiness in that.
You must just stay the same,
somehow train your brain,
that your body can’t evolve,
the science you must solve.

Eat your five a day,
but don’t let that run away
into a snack of choice or joy,
your life should be devoid.
So you can keep your weight,
keep on looking great,
be neither fat nor thin,
because women cannot win.

(And let’s change this shall we?)

Donna Ashworth

From ‘I wish I knew’

Art by Duane Bryers art

20/05/2022

THOSE WHO WAIT…

If each of us knew how much time we had allocated,
perhaps we could play around with it.

But we don’t.

Believing tomorrow to be a guarantee,
is the biggest mistake we make.

Not seizing every day like the gift that it is,
is the biggest risk we take.

Waste time wisely my friend.

Time spent in rest, joy, company and kindness,
is never wasted.
As for the rest, just do it.

You won’t regret the things you tried and failed at,
but you will regret a life spent waiting.

Waiting for anything is a dangerous game because there is no guarantee the conditions will ever be just right.

Those who wait, wait..
but you,
you have a life to live.

Right here, right now.

Donna Ashworth
From ‘I Wish I Knew’: https://amzn.to/3JVMJlZ

Art by the FABULOUS Lisa Aisato (who I have become completely obsessed with)

19/05/2022

TO THE WOMAN WHO THINKS SHE ISN’T GOOD ENOUGH

To the woman who looks around and wonders why everyone else is so much more capable, so much stronger, so much more ambitious than her.

To the woman who thinks everyone else is blazing a fiery path through this thing we call life, while she limps behind, barely getting through the days.

Somewhere, another woman is looking at you thinking exactly the same.

You see, we all look like we’re kinda nailing it, from the outside in.

We all look ‘together’ sometimes.
Catch us on the right day and hey, we look like we have it all.
Because guess what, we learned to look that way a long time ago.
We learned to hide our struggles behind a smile and whack on that mask every day.

And actually, we are doing each other a favour when we show up,
just as we are,
warts and all,
late,
flustered,
human.

What we really need to see is that we are all the same.
We all struggle.
We all fall apart.

Some days we nail it, other days we get nailed.

By hiding our own weaknesses, fears, worries, we give them more power.
If you let it out, shine a light on it all, it becomes so much less scary, funny even…
And goodness only knows we need to laugh.

So, to the woman who wonders if she is good enough…

If this is you.
Yes you are.
You always were.

You don’t have to live up to everyone’s expectation of how you should be coping.
You are human, flawed, wonderful, miraculous, loveable, loved.

I see you,

Now do me a favour and go see all the others too.
Spread the word, we are good enough, just as we are.

Donna Ashworth
From the poetry collection ‘to the women’ : https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08LRGWY74/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_fabt1_OYLVFbX4YR91V

Art by Ramona Pintea Artist

18/05/2022

WHAT A THING THAT WOULD BE

Being around someone who likes their self,
is like sitting in the springtime sun.
It lifts your soul and spins it around on a virtual dance floor,
like your favourite song,
your favourite treat
and a lingering hug all rolled into one.

The reason for that is simple,
people who like themselves as they are, don’t judge.

They don’t look for flaws,
neither do they filter your words for signs of weakness.
They have learned to stop all that.

They accept themselves and so naturally,
they accept you too, just as you are.

Even better, they see you in all your glory,
the way you should be seen.
It’s a truly uplifting experience,
which brings a whole new energy of its own
and you should seek it out more often my friend.

After a while of that,
maybe, just maybe,
you could be a person who likes their self too.

And you could bring that sunshine to someone else in need.

What a thing that would be.

Donna Ashworth
From ‘I Wish I Knew’: https://amzn.to/3JVMJlZ

Image posted by Odyssey on Pinterest (source unknown)

25/04/2022

IF YOUR MOTHER DID NOT LOVE YOU

If your mother did not love you, the way she could have.
your heart is never quite full.
If your mother was not who she could have been,
your soul is somehow incomplete.
If your inner little girl was not taught how to feel,
your journey is not easy my friend.
But
You owe it to that girl to learn.
You owe it to her to make love.
You owe it to her to create a world so full of love, that it will eventually out-shadow the demons of your past.

And here’s the thing about that...
Love regenerates.
So make it and watch it blossom in the hearts of those around you.
And watch them pass it on and on and on until you have singlehandedly made enough love, and more, to fill that void you carry and to fill the voids of anyone who crosses your path.

If your mother did not love you, the way she could have,
you have some catching up to do,
But I know you will my friend.
I know you will.
It starts with you.

Donna Ashworth

12/03/2022

Esther Perel on asking for help…

11/03/2022

I have been her
I have been she
I have been them
And now I’m me.

I have been out
And I’ve been in
I’ve felt defeat
I’ve known the win.

I have held joy
and shouldered grief
I’ve had my share
Of changed beliefs.

I have been hurt
and I’ve been high
I heard the answers
to what and to why.

I know the loss
and I know the gain
I know that we
all bleed the same.

I have been her
I have been she
I have been them
And now I’m me.

By Donna Ashworth


Art by LovRich Artwork

08/03/2022

Happy international women’s day 2022 💛

WOMEN

In this life we women are many things,
mothers, sisters, wives, friends, carers.

We are creators,
we are nurture,
we are home.

But above all,
we women are the magic.
We are the intuition.
We are the product of generations,
who fought to be heard,
to be believed,
to be empowered.

And that runs very deep.

When women come together, magic happens my friend.

And those who tell you otherwise are afraid.

We are not.

So come together in all your glory today and every day.
Because you can,
because you must,
because you are called by deep-seated ancestry to do so.

And because, most of all, we hold up half the sky,

and our half must show the other

how to be.

Donna Ashworth
From ‘Life’: https://amzn.eu/d/9Y6E6kz

Art by Celeste Yarnall

01/03/2022

YOU DON’T JUST LOSE SOMEONE ONCE

You lose them over and over,
sometimes many times a day.
When the loss, momentarily forgotten,
creeps up,
and attacks you from behind.
Fresh waves of grief as the realisation hits home,
they are gone.
Again.

You don’t just lose someone once,
you lose them every time you open your eyes to a new dawn,
and as you awaken,
so does your memory,
so does the jolting bolt of lightning that rips into your heart,
they are gone.
Again.

Losing someone is a journey,
not a one-off.
There is no end to the loss,
there is only a learned skill on how to stay afloat,
when it washes over.

Be kind to those who are sailing this stormy sea,
they have a journey ahead of them,
and a daily shock to the system each time they realise,
they are gone,
Again.

You don’t just lose someone once,
you lose them every day,

for a lifetime.

Donna Ashworth
From ‘i wish I knew’
Art by Kenneth Crane

I WISH I KNEW:Pre-order: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1785303791/ref=cm_sw_r_em_api_glt_i_N03WKA1WA8KR4GTRMTG5?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
Kip

28/01/2022

REAL FRIENDS CAN’T BE LOST

You cannot lose real friends.
You just can’t.
They won’t go, no matter how hard you push them away when you are not yourself.
They will wait
and wait
and wait,
until they see a tiny glimmer of your light breaking through
and back they will come with open arms.

Your real friends are still there.

And if they feel lost to you right now,
perhaps it’s because they are lost to themselves.
Just wait
and wait
and wait,
then knock on that door,
reach in, just in case they can’t reach out.
And do it again until they answer.


If you are feeling sad about the people you have ‘lost’ along the way my friend,
don’t.
They were never yours to keep.
The real ones don’t need to be earned, or appeased, or coaxed.
They are in it for the long haul and for all the right reasons.

And each of those friends is worth a dozen fair-weather,
so count your lucky stars if you have one.

Keep your circle small but let its light be mighty.

You can’t lose real friends, they just won’t go.

Donna Ashworth
From ‘the right words’: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B095MZ3XFP/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_6QX0Y2EW59QD6JXJ635M

art by Giulia Rosa

07/11/2021

It’s what Sunday’s are made for 😊

07/11/2021

❤️🧡💛

01/10/2021

❤️

TO THE WOMAN WHO IS SLOWLY FADING AWAY...

To the woman who has lost her spark.
To the woman whose get up and go, has well and truly gone.
This is for you.
This is to remind you, that you don’t have to be everything to everyone, every day.
You didn’t sign up for that.
Remember when you used to laugh? Sing?
Throw caution to the wind?
Remember when you used to forgive yourself more quickly for not always being perfect.
You can get that back again.
You really can.
And that doesn’t have to mean letting people down or walking away.
It just means being kinder to you, feeling brave enough to say no sometimes.
Being brave enough to stop sometimes.
And rest.
It starts the moment you realise that you’re not quite who you used to be.
Some of that is good, some of that is not.
There are parts of you that need to be brought back.
And if anyone in your life is not okay with that… they are not your people. Your people will be glad to see that spark starting to light up again.
So, if you have been slowly fading away my friend, this is the time to start saying yes to things that bring you joy and no to things that don’t.

It’s really pretty simple.

By Donna Ashworth

From ‘to the women’ :
UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08LRGWY74/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_fabt1_OYLVFbX4YR91V
US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08LRGWY74/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_imm_t1_e1LVFb7RZ2XGN







Image by Sofikul7531, available on shutterstock as a print

02/09/2021

Sometimes our authentic feelings show up in disguise.

14/08/2021

You’ll come back to yourself, after this.
You will.
You’ll come back.
It’s hard for you to see that right now,
it’s been so long.
And chances are,
you won’t ever be able to imagine how you can come back.
But you will.
This chapter in your life has changed you,
that much is true,
some of those changes were due.
But the parts of you the world needs are still there,
and it’s vital that you give them air again.
Let them out, in the sun,
again.
Come back however you see fit my friend.
Do it your way,
take your own sweet time.

Just come back.

~ Donna Ashworth, excerpt from, ‘The Right Words’
Ladies Pass it On
www.ladiespassiton.com

Art by Helena Nelson Reed
www.helenanelsonreed.com