This will be reaching you a few days after the full lunar eclipse. I wonder if you might have been lucky enough to see it?

Here in Scarborough, thick cloud sat on the horizon at the very moment the moon would have risen as a deep red ball over the sea. So no eclipse for us. But we did have a spectacular sunset.

I found myself interested in noticing any feelings connected with “missing out”.

Naturally, there was some disappointment. And yet, the sunset was extraordinary, and the evening itself felt as though it carried a special quality. I became very aware of the choice this moment offered me. I could see my glass as half empty or half full. I could mourn what was absent, the missed sighting of the lunar eclipse, or I could revel in what was present, the beauty unfolding right in front of me.

It felt as though Nature had a great deal to say on this contemplation.

Allowing our feelings to be exactly as they are is, of course, an act of self-kindness. At the same time, if we allow our minds to dwell too long on what is absent, we can miss the experience that is actually on offer to us.

And so, back to the gannet chick.

As you read this, the chick is twelve weeks old and just one week away from fledging. The rapid development over the last week has been astonishing to witness. Day by day, the remnants of fluffy down have disappeared. At twelve weeks, the chick looks sleek and mature, alert and deeply engaged with gazing out to sea. Just beautiful.

I have not, however, had the chick entirely to myself. A photographer is now also following the nest, and I have had to share the small space nearby. This has stirred some interesting inner responses around personal space, territory, and possessiveness.

Once again, I noticed that if I dwell on those feelings, or spend time wishing things were different, I can become distracted enough to miss the simple enjoyment of being with the chick in the moment.

This week’s self-kindness invitation is to notice any moments when you have a choice to view your glass as half empty or half full. While accepting whatever feelings arise, gently invite yourself into experiencing and appreciating what is present. There is often more here than we first realise.