Guiding

Ultimately the best guidance comes from within, in the quote above from The Call of the Unwritten I speak of an inner compass, however it has often taken others to help me to find that trustworthy direction inside myself.

Throughout my life I has found guides. ‘When the student is ready the teacher appears’ goes the old aphorism. This has been true for me, from Father Leonard May in my early days as a convert to Christianity and my shared attempts to live an experimental religious life inspired by St Francis to training for the priesthood and being guided by various spiritual directors.

After deciding not to be ordained I worked with and was influenced by  Sister Christine Frost and was employed byBishop Victor Guazzelli in the East End of London, both guiding me towards working for social change. I moved to Sheffield to study for a Masters Degree in Organisational Development and came under the influence of Sheffield Hallam University Business School’s Stuart Smith and David Tranfield. I gained a distinction and worked for a couple years doing research into Strategy Development and Organisational Archetypes.

At the same time I began work as a Community Development Consultant and worked with Doncaster Council training workers and in Sheffield training Drug Support staff. At this time I engaged in Community Organising training and worked as an organiser. I was influenced by Neil Jameson of Citizens UK and Ernesto Cortez in the Alinsky style of Organising for change that was pioneered by the Industrial Areas Foundation .

Poetry began to reemerge as a companion at this time along with a renewed commitment to deepening my spiritual life. I trained with Sheffield Anglican Diocesan Spirituality Adviser Nick Helm and became a Spiritual Director, later going on to be a tutor on the course.

In 2001 I was lucky enough to have a personal retreat with  Richard Rohr Ofm and then I attended the Men’s Rites of Passage at Ghost Ranch in New Mexico. Returning to the UK with a desire to see this type of work flourish here. I helped to build the Male Journey UK delivering programmes for men in the UK and the Republic of Ireland.

It was during this time I met Daniel O’Leary and Belden Lane both of whom influenced me greatly as a writer and a guide. I worked with both of these lovely men on male programmes and wider spirituality events. At the age of fifty I began to commit myself to paper taking the plunge to write poetry full time and to aid that process I attended one of David Whyte’s Salon events in the Cotswolds. This proved a catalyst and in 2012 I published The Call of the Unwritten my first collection of Poetry. In 2013 I followed up with Arriving in Magic, my second collection. David has been a good friend to me and I have recently worked as a guide on some of his walking tours.

In 2014 I suffered an onset of severe anxiety and entered into Jungian Psychotherapy. I have slowly recovered, greatly aided and influenced by Helen Drucquer, my therapist. She was trained under Anne Maguire who trained at the C G Jung Institute in Zurich. I published my third collection A Night Sea Journey as a response to these experiences. This led to the production of a podcast exploring the relationship between mental health issues and creativity. The Anxious Poet’s Podcast began in 2018 and has a loyal following. Helen Mort one of my guests on the Podcast has become another kind influence in my work.

Poetry Sharings & Workshops

I am available to do all manner of readings and sharings. I am very happy to work with small groups or in larger settings such as conferences and festivals, in person or online. These are, by nature, occasional, as I always try to remain faithful to my primary work of writing.

Acting as a guide to groups and organisations, on an occasional basis, has been part of my work for many years. One example of this was with an organisation called RODA (relatives of Drug abusers), I advised on strategy, supporting the staff and mentoring individuals.

I have also worked with ASSIST, a charity that helps asylum seekers in Sheffield. I completed a history project on the organisation’s founding, interviewing, photographing, and writing poetry about the founders. I presented it at the annual meeting.