In 2018 I was invited as a spinner/weaver to participate in the Festival of The Mind at the Aspire in Ryde. As a therapist I was delighted to participate in such an event. I thoroughly enjoyed the day meeting lots of lovely people, both, those who like myself were demonstrating diverse, fun ways of attending to our mental wellbeing and members of the public coming into the venue to explore what was on show.
The highlight of my day was a woman from Cygnus Cafe (Cygnus Cafés are dogma-free zones for Cygnus Members & friends to share their feelings, thoughts and journeys with others) who came to chat to me.
She was an old friend who I had not seen since 1972 when we served together as military nurses in Germany. I have no idea what the odds are of two women originally from the mainland Midlands who nursed together in Germany ending up at the Festival of The Mind, Ryde. However, I am grateful that we found each other again and we have both agreed that we both benefit greatly from our now regular contact.