Reboot, refresh, renew…
I’d like to start this month’s note with another heartfelt thank you to all of you – for all the emails you’ve continued to send me in recent weeks to let me know of the comfort, solace and camaraderie this magazine is providing. In the most challenging of times, so many of you are finding, or discovering for the first time, that a magazine can play the part of a helpful friend – and my team and I are spurred on when you so kindly take the time to write to us and let us know that we’re striking a chord.
Encouraged by your comments, we started thinking about what it is you’ll want and need as we head into the autumn and we thought the opportunity to reboot, refresh and renew would sound appealing; it certainly does to us! So, with that in mind, many of this month’s features offer guidance on how to recharge your batteries and repower yourself mentally after what has been a gruelling few months for everyone.
In Discover The Joy Of Stargazing (page 38), Jo Marchant explains how looking at the night sky can make us happier and be an effective antidote to stress, while in our Animal Magic! article (page 54), readers tell us how connecting with other creatures can be healing and bring enormous joy. Meanwhile, for Pauline Beaumont, faced with life changes, tragedy and loss, she has found wisdom and hope by baking bread (page 60). And well-known personalities Sophie Ellis-bextor, Kirsty Wark, Rochelle Humes and Fay Ripley also share the things that help keep them feeling strong and positive (page 30). If that were not enough, I defy anyone to not be inspired by the incredible story of Dr Edith Eger (page 42), who generously shares her wisdom for life.
Clearly, there’s no one-size-fits-all advice, but it’s my hope that you’ll find some of the suggestions and tips in these pages useful. And so, too, with our feature The Power Of Touch (page 78). Having an occasional massage was one of my own rare but favourite indulgences before the lockdown, never failing to make me feel calm as my tension melted away in the hands of an expert. But, it turns out, many of the moves can be done on oneself – follow the guidance to enjoy the benefits of everything from a head massage to reflexology.
What also makes many of us feel good is helping others and this is very much the case for our cover star, HRH The Countess of Wessex. I feel very honoured that The Countess invited Good Housekeeping to shadow her day (socially distanced, of course) with Childline during lockdown, then spoke to us about her passion for the NSPCC. She talks to us about how the pandemic has affected vulnerable young people and how volunteering can make a difference – not only to those who turn to charities for help but also to those giving up their time. ‘I have met so many people who have given freely of themselves these past months, and they have enjoyed feeling useful, as I have,’ she says.
I hope you enjoy what you find in these pages – please do let me know!
See you next month,