Here we are, four days in to 2025, and I'm still present to my new year's experience of crossing a line. In the past few days I've been thinking back over 2024, considering what I've done and not done; remembering what's been enjoyable and acknowledging where things have been hard. I like this sense of review; taking the chance to focus on what's important to me and how I honour that in the choices I make.
"It is our choice of good or evil that determines our character, not our opinion about good or evil. "
Aristotle
I haven't had many big decisions to make in the past year, but every day I've been making choices. Things like, what to eat or wear or read or watch. Where to go and how to travel. When to stop and rest, when to push on.
How to use my time.
That's what I love about this time of reflection at the turn of the year; the opportunity to reflect on my choices about how to use my time. Which ultimately is about what life I want to live.
Many of the most important hours have been spent with friends and family or in pursuit of minor creative endeavour.
"Learning to engage with differing viewpoints and disagree with them in a non-confrontational way is something we could all do more of." Dan Hayes, Sheffield Tribune
Alongside of that, I have the very good fortune to engage in work that sustains me and also - hopefully - provides some benefit in the world. In my part time job, I work with people dealing with everyday conflict. In my freelance practice use philosophical enquiry to bring people together in communities of thinking, talking and writing.
In 2024 I facilitated around 80 philosophical enquiry and creative writing sessions. Working with people of different ages and in different contexts. Looking back over my year, I can follow the thread of encouraging people to use dialogue and discussion to explore and challenge thinking and opinions - their own and other people's.
Providing these opportunities for people to engage in philosophical enquiry in pubs, galleries and other community venues has become a core part of what I do and how I want to engage with the world. Developing my approach to facilitating creative writing - particularly my Write from the Art series - to get people thinking and talking as a way into writing, is grounded in my love of philosophical enquiry methods.
In 2025 I'm planning to continue to facilitate in this way and to grow the opportunities I offer. It's great to start the year feeling that there are no major decisions to make, just a continuing interest in doing what I love. I'm going to be working in some new contexts and I hope to grow my regular offer but these developments are building on a grounded core of what I do.
Regular sessions
Write from the Art - looking at a painting as a way in to creative writing. First Sunday of every month. Online.
Pub Philosophy Sheffield - a different stimulus every month as a starting point for discussion and dialogue. First Tuesday of every month. Fat Cat Pub, Sheffield.
Sharing the View - philosophy in the gallery. Last Friday of every month. Graves Gallery, Sheffield.
Complete Fabrication - write a short story from start to finish. Five Mondays in March (and probably November). Writers Workshop, Sheffield.
Return events
Philosophy Late: Thinking in Colour - an evening of philosophical thinking in the Millennium Galleries, Sheffield. Thursday 8th of May.
Write from the Art in the Graves Gallery - Saturdays 1st of March, 10th of May and 6th September.
New opportunities
A series of reflective support sessions with a local community organisation
A series of comunity engagement sessions as part of the development of an artwork
A creative enquiry workshop as part of a Sixth form Young Philosophers Summit
Write from the Heart - a three week reflective and creative writing course. Tuesday in May. Online with Woodbrooke Quaker Study Centre.
It's only the 4th of January, and already it's looking like a good year! I'm confident that new opportunities will emerge - do get in touch if you're interested in collaborating with me to create something together.
"We live on an island, surrounded by a sea of ignorance. As our island of knowledge grows, so does the shore of our ignorance." John Archibald Wheeler.
And outside of work, there will be continuing relationships and new opportunities too. I've got an ongoing personal project to visit every island off the coast of Britain. (How many there are? Well, that depends how you count them... ) Last year's new island was Canna and I don't have any specific one earmarked for 2025.
Come back this time next year and I'll let you know how I got on.
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