Starsparks

Offering adult, teen, children, baby and pregnancy yoga in Stonehaven and beyond. Creator and Keeper of The Haven, yoga and wellbeing space in Stonehaven.

09/10/2025

Day 336 of 365 Sacred Ways - Resilience Bias

Resilience bias is when we celebrate the people who make it through hardship and overlook those who do not.

We love to tell the stories of survivors, of those who kept going, who battled on and overcame. It inspires hope. It shows us strength is possible. Yet in doing so, we often forget the people who broke under the weight, who could not keep going. Their stories are just as real and just as worthy of being heard.

When we only focus on resilience, we risk shaming fragility. We miss the cries for help, the ones who never made it to the finish line.

I notice myself at times applauding survival while forgetting the cost it came with. And I wonder, what if we made more space for the stories of stopping, of surrendering, of saying “this is too much”?

08/10/2025

Day 335 of 365 Sacred Ways - Asking for Help

Asking for help is the hardest thing for me. Advice? That’s easy. I’ve travelled the world asking questions, listening, learning. But help… that feels different.

I’ve been on my knees before, asking for help, and when it was denied it broke something inside me that has never been fully fixed. That kind of moment teaches you to stop asking. To armour up. To carry on alone rather than risk that kind of shattering again.

What I’ve learned though is that not everyone is the right person to ask. I try small first, to test if someone can really hold what I’m carrying. I pay attention to whether the relationship feels balanced, not one-sided. And I notice who’s also been in their knees, because those people usually understand what it means when you finally say, “I need help.”

I’m still learning how to ask. Still learning how to receive. Still learning that help isn’t weakness, it’s the rawest form of courage.

PS - this painting was done by my Nannie and I love how lighthouses just help people without them having to ask.

07/10/2025

Day 334 of 365 Sacred Ways - Asking for Advice

I’ve always asked for advice. Travelled far and wide to find expertise. Been in the presence of great, humble, grounded teachers, elders, leaders. Listened. Learned. Gathered wisdom like it was a treasure hunt.

I’ve been accused more than once of asking too many questions, of digging too deep. And yet here I am now, on the other side of the circle, where people seek out mine.

What fascinates me is how often they don’t ask anything at all. They arrive, sit with me, and pour their words out. I let them. I hold the space. They are seen, they are heard. Then they leave. Without having listened or learned and I wonder....why did they come?

And I am left smiling at the mystery of it all, almost as if I was the one who had called them here in the first place.

06/10/2025

Day 333 of 365 Sacred Ways - Felix Felicis.

“Liquid luck.”

In Harry Potter, it is the shimmering potion that gives you the feeling everything you touch will work out, that you will be in the right place at the right time, without forcing or knowing it.

I am currently initiating Gaelle in shamanic ways and this morning she shared with me this insight....

“So basically we just keep doing what we are doing without knowing what we are doing?”

Yes.

Exactly.

That is the essence.

Trusting the unfolding. Like Harry taking Felix Felicis, he did not plan every move, he simply followed the pull of the moment. And it led him to exactly where he needed to be.

You do not need the whole plan or the full map. You take a step, listen, trust, and the way reveals itself.

It's a test. For the brave. And the ready.

And it's sooo sooo worthwhile.

And really why would you want to live any other way?
gaelleconjaud

05/10/2025

Day 332 of 365 Sacred Ways - Vigil

From the Latin vigilia, meaning wakefulness, to keep watch, to stay present.

Some people love a party. I have always leaned towards a vigil. Quiet presence. Holding space. Showing up.

This week the word came back to me in talks about “what if everything goes wrong?” My answer is always the same. I would give my service to a spiritual community and cause. Scott joked that vigil sounds better than “planning for when my husband dies.”

I was moved to learn of the Norbertine Sisters who rise at midnight to pray for new mums. They call it their “motherhood hour.” There are others too: the Sisters of Life who walk with pregnant women, Carmelites who pray daily for expectant mothers, and the Pink Sisters who have kept continuous prayer for over 100 years.

I have held my own vigils for those who passed, for causes, for energetic purposes. We also hold modern vigils without naming them that, like waiting by a hospital bed, sitting up with a friend, or holding a candle in the cold.

Service does not always look like action. Sometimes it is a prayer in the dark. A promise to stay awake for one another.

02/10/2025

Day 329 of 365 Sacred Ways - Voice Inside Your Head

They say the voice inside your child’s head is shaped by how you spoke to them growing up. I have been thinking about that a lot since my eldest left home for university. She tells me she still hears me all the time, even though she is over an hour away.

Research shows that the way parents talk to their children is linked to the way children talk to themselves later in life. In one study, university students’ positive self-talk was significantly correlated with their parents’ positive self-talk.

What my daughter admits she hears most often is me yelling at her to come downstairs to unload the dishwasher. I also hope she hears me in other ways too, in the encouragement, the love, and the reminders that she can trust herself.

I've always loved this photo of her.

01/10/2025

Day 328 of 365 Sacred Ways - Orange Flags

We always hear about red flags. Sometimes green flags too. But today at the traffic lights I found myself thinking about orange flags as I was listening to my friends voice message.

That space in-between.

Not quite braking. Not quite accelerating.

You are assessing, feeling into the moment, wondering which way it might tip. So often it depends on your very next action or reaction.

Life is full of orange flags. They show up in relationships, in career choices, in health, in the way we respond to opportunities. They ask us to pause and consider rather than rush to label something good or bad, safe or dangerous, right or wrong.

Orange flags can be uncomfortable because they hold uncertainty. But they can also be powerful because they ask us to notice more carefully, to pay attention to subtleties, to trust our instincts. Sometimes they are a signal to slow down and recalibrate. Other times they are an invitation to be brave and take the next step forward.

Maybe orange flags are less about warning and more about awareness. A gentle light saying: “Pay attention, something important is happening here.”

30/09/2025

Day 327 of 365 Sacred Ways - Baseline

Your baseline is what you deem acceptable in your body and in your life.

For me, I know how I want my body to feel: flexible, open, strong, resilient and healthy. I will not accept anything less. When I’ve faced long-term health conditions, I’ve poured my focus into healing. Sometimes that has taken days, sometimes months, and other times, years.

It is the same with relationships. They need to feel flexible, open, committed and like a mutually beneficial exchange of energy. Again, I will not settle for less.

The key is to know and feel your baseline, so you can course correct quickly.

What I notice is that many people are not really in their bodies and are not connected enough to sense how they feel or how they should feel.

Some contemplations to help you unearth your baseline...

When did I last feel full of energy and my best self?

What did I do then that I do not do now?

How would my life be different if I was able to connect and maintain my baseline?

What small manageable steps can I do to get back there?

I also want to mention a baseline isn't a constant state but rather fluctuates but the quicker you can return to it the stronger you will be able to maintain the equilibrium.

Your baseline is your compass. When you know it, you will not lose yourself so easily.

Address

The Haven, 3 Market Square Buildings
Stonehaven
AB392BY

Telephone

+447473388198

Website

https://www.starsparks.org/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Starsparks posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Want your practice to be the top-listed Clinic in Stonehaven?