Do you despair at the news? Deplore those in power? Dream of a future that’s not quite so apocalyptic? Cool. Then what are you doing about it? It’s your fault the world is broken. And mine. It’s our friends’ fault, and their friends’. Our families’ fault, and lovers’ and neighbours’ and colleagues’… it’s all our fault. As a child of… Read more →
In Thoughtful’s first (and only!) listicle, I share my 10 top tips for falling in love with the morning. Hello, sun in my face. Hello, you who make the morning and spread it over the fields and into the faces of the tulips and the nodding morning glories, and into the windows of, even, the miserable and crotchety– best preacher… Read more →
A poem by Roshni Goyate, 1/4 of the performance group 4 Brown Girls Who Write Here is heartbreak, in the heart of our circle Walls made of triangles, walls made of light (Triangles of light) Here is heartbreak, heavy-hearted heartache Waiting to be healed Sisters, we are healing; we are healing our sister Hold a mirror up,… Read more →
Commercial creatives are learning to get to better solutions faster by partnering with mission-led startups. What happens when you combine a social mission with commercial ambition? It’s a question that’s fascinated me for ages. For me, there’s no inherent conflict between purpose and profit. In fact, given the influence it has on every aspect of our lives, I think… Read more →
There’s nothing quite like connecting with nature to make you feel happier, healthier and more connected with yourself. Sometimes I feel completely, whole-heartedly, acutely alive. In the moment, there’s no anxiety, no insecurity, no desire to be anywhere or do anything else. Just a sense of calm, comfort and contentment. I feel a world away from the otherwise constant… Read more →
Lessons from an unexpected encounter between a Pakistani immigrant and an older white man in America Many years ago, as I sat next to the iconic lion statues outside the Art Institute of Chicago museum, staring at the waves of people passing by in front of me, I felt alone and mesmerised. I was new in the United States,… Read more →
An uptick in financial fortune has made our lives better in many ways. But is it also making our lives worse? A large swathe of Indians in the UK are twice migrants, arriving in Britain via Kenya at a time of strife. Most made this journey in the seventies, as teenagers with nothing but a suitcase and dreams. Amongst… Read more →
Buying fewer, better things can help you lead a more fulfilled, less wasteful life. “Don’t care how, I want it now!” Looking back, I have the uncomfortable feeling that as a child I might have channelled a bit of the irredeemably entitled anti-heroine Verruca Salt. My parents, being rather more British than normal British people (due to the fact… Read more →
A ‘slow media’ movement is, so to speak, gathering pace. Once up on a time, you could stay on top of current events without being distracted by clickbait headlines, listicles and notifications. You could keep up with the news, full stop. There wasn’t a 24-hour firehose of tweets and trolls, posts and pundits. Anything described as viral was to be… Read more →
Reclaim urban space by moving through it at your own pace. The speed of urban life has been noted for centuries. The philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau declared the city a “whirlwind” back in 1761. Fast forward two hundred years, and a study in the journal Nature found scientific proof that the “pace of life varies in a regular fashion with… Read more →
When the itch to play doesn’t abate as you grow up. Here’s how I used to play. Early in the morning, before anyone else was awake—or at least awake enough to pay me any attention—I would go downstairs and pull on a pair of wellies. In summer, I might not bother. In winter, I might drag a coat over my nightie,… Read more →
We need to get back to basics and take ‘frivolous’ play more seriously. Every day, for anything from 30 minutes to an hour, at some point between lunch and dinnertime I’m forced to play. Waiting patiently for hours, until I’ve wrapped up important phone calls and made a big dent in the day’s work, my playmate isn’t fussy about… Read more →
