Author of The Grace of a Nightingale

hello@maryannewillow.uk

Mary Anne Willow Potrait

Hello

…welcome to my blog about writing, living fully and making a difference in the world.

My debut book

My debut book The Grace of a Nightingale is available to buy worldwide in Hardback, Paperback and Kindle.

The Grace of a Nightingale cover

Reviews

Read more reviews

Blog updates

Only Kindness Matters

Only Kindness Matters

26/06/2020 0 Comments

As only kindness matters… Mary Anne Willow

Lesley Young – Selected Poems #3

Lesley Young – Selected Poems #3

24/06/2020 0 Comments

Message in a Bottle I will take my feelings and dress them up In fancy words On the finest vellum And seal them in a vial made of tempered glass I will carry this with me down to the sea The ocean we’ve always shared Where it will float away And weather the elements,

Quote – Lord Byron

Quote – Lord Byron

23/06/2020 0 Comments

Blessing: Mary Anne Willow (June 2020)

Blessing: Mary Anne Willow (June 2020)

19/06/2020 0 Comments

May your heart… Mary Anne Willow

Nothing Compares

Nothing Compares

15/06/2020 0 Comments

Let the silent tears flow And when your eyes clear Perhaps you will glimpse How your eternal child Has become the unseen angel Who parents your heart And persuades the moon To send new gifts ashore. —John O’Donohue Nothing compares to the terrible news of an innocent child being murdered. It cuts across everything we

Quote – Anaïs Nin

Quote – Anaïs Nin

11/06/2020 0 Comments

The creative writer…

Follow me on Instagram

maryannewillow

Denial of women's concerns contributed to decades

Denial of women's concerns contributed to decades of medical scandals says enquiry reports the Guardian today....an arrogant culture in which serious medical complications were dismissed as "womens's issues"...It also makes it very clear that our medical establishment is deeply entrenched in institutional denial and misogyny...“For the women concerned, this was tantamount to a complete denial of their concerns and being written off by a system that was supposed to care,” the review, chaired by Baroness Julia Cumberlege, concluded. My #memoir preempts much of this report as I describe my own personal account of being harmed by a #mesh implant #nightingale #slingthemesh #harm #grace #love

As only kindness matters... Mary Anne Willow #ble

As only kindness matters... Mary Anne Willow #blessing #christianity #gratitude #happiness #healing #hope #kindness #light #light_in_darkness #love #memoir #mental_health #poverty #spirituality #suffering #vulnerability

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/only-kindness-matters/

Message in a Bottle I will take my feelings and dr

Message in a Bottle
I will take my feelings and dress them up
In fancy words
On the finest vellum
And seal them in avial made of tempered glass
I will carry this with me down to the sea
The ocean we’ve always shared
Where it will float away
And weather the elements, heading north by north west

You will find it next spring on a morning walk
Washed up by the tide
On your very #fantasy #friendship #gratitude #Learning #lost #love #poem #poetry #teaching

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/lesley-young-selected-poems-3/

#books #creative_writing #gratitude #happiness #he

#books #creative_writing #gratitude #happiness #healing #hope #inspiration #light #love #memoir #nightingale #reading #Story_Telling #truth #wisdom #nature

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/quote-lord-byron/

May your heart... Mary Anne Willow #blessing #chr

May your heart... Mary Anne Willow #blessing #christianity #gratitude #happiness #healing #hope #john_odonohue #light #light_in_darkness #love #memoir #mental_health #spirituality #suffering #vulnerability

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/blessing-mary-anne-willow-june-2020/

Let the silent tears flow And when your eyes clear

Let the silent tears flow
And when your eyes clear
Perhaps you will glimpse
How your eternal child
Has become the unseen angel
Who parents your heart
And persuades the moon
To send new gifts ashore.
—John O’Donohue
Nothing compares to the terrible news of an innocent child being murdered. It cuts across everything we are doing or thinking. It has a chilling ring to it. #beauty #bereavement #contemplation #death #deeper_meaning #God #grace #gratitude #grief #hope #life #light #loss #memoir #mental_health #mourning #nature #nightingale #reflection #spirituality #Story_Telling #true_story

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/nothing_compares/

The creative writer... #anaisnin #books #creative_

The creative writer... #anaisnin #books #creative_writing #editing #gratitude #happiness #healing #hope #inspiration #light #love #memoir #nightingale #Reading #story_telling #Teaching #Trust #Truth #welovememoirs #Wisdom #Writing

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/quote-anais-nin/

People disappear when they die. Their voice, their

People disappear when they die. Their voice, their laughter, the warmth of their breath. Their flesh. Eventually their bones. All living memory of them ceases. This is both dreadful and natural. Yet for some there is an exception to this annihilation. #Books #Dreams #Happiness #Inspiration #Learning #Longing #Love #Memoir #MentalHealth #Nightingale #Reading #Silence #Spirituality #Truth #Wisdom #Writing

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/quote-diane-setterfield/

In the universe... #Gratitude #Happiness #Healing

In the universe... #Gratitude #Happiness #Healing #Hope #Inspiration #Learning #Light #Love #Memoir #MentalHealth #Nightingale #Trust #Truth #Wisdom

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/quote-william-blake/

When all the light around you lessens...and your t

When all the light around you lessens...and your thoughts darken until your body feels fear...turn cold as stone inside....close your eyes, gather all the kindling about your heart to create one spark. That is all you need to nourish the flame that will cleanse the dark of its weight of festered fear. #johnodonohue #madeleinemccann #hope #light #justiceformadeleinemccann #justice #katemccann #gerrymccann #nightingale #love

So little of our conversation addresses our passio

So little of our conversation addresses our passions, loves, emotions, dreams or our creative insights and soul stirrings... #Dreams #Gratitude #Happiness #Healing #Hope #Inspiration #Learning #Light #Longing #Love #Memoir #MentalHealth #Nature #Nightingale #Silence #Spirituality #Trust #Truth #Wisdom

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/quote-bill-plotkin-soulcraft/

Existential Crisis They said it would be useful, h

Existential Crisis
They said it would be useful, help me to ‘move on’, after all this time. And I did want to tell my story, I wanted to understand.

The woman who welcomed me had a pale face and a thin, watery smile. She looked sort of competent, I thought. She ushered me in and took my coat; “Please sit down and make yourself comfortable”. #Fantasy #Friendship #Gratitude #Learning #Lost #Love #Poem #Poetry #Teaching

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/lesley-young-selected-poems-2/

My favourite radio station is BBC Radio 6 speciali

My favourite radio station is BBC Radio 6 specialising in alternative music.

A Nightingale Sings Outside Our Window by Erland Cooper is a special piece of music created for BBC 6 Music during the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite this awful time, we can also be inspired by acts of kindness, devotion and selflessness, creating artistic beauty. This is one of them. #ANightingaleSingsOutsideOurWindow #Beauty #Books #Christianity #CoronaVirus #Covid19 #ErlandCooper #Grace #Healing #Hope #Love #Nature #Nightingale #NightingaleHospital #Nursing #radio6 #Spirituality

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/a-nightingale-sings-outside-our-window/

The nightingale has totemic significance for me. N

The nightingale has totemic significance for me. Not only am I drawn to the symbolism of this bird of love and loss, it is also the name of the founder of modern nursing, Florence Nightingale.
In 1859 Florence Nightingale wrote Notes on Nursing, a book that is still considered a classic. #ANightingaleSingsOutsideOurWindow #Beauty #Books #Christianity #CoronaVirus #Covid19 #ErlandCooper #Grace #Healing #Hope #Love #Nature #Nightingale #NightingaleHospital #Nursing #radio6 #Spirituality

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/the-tao-of-the-nightingale/

“ If experience is the food of learning, then re

“ If experience is the food of learning, then reflection is the digestive process………to benefit from experience, it is essential to make something of it….” Obholzer 1994
This meditation is taken from the preface to my memoir 'The Grace of a Nightingale'. It describes what I experienced when revisiting some of my memories in order to write my book. This was both painful and enlightening. #Beauty #Contemplation #deepermeaning #Gratitude #Happiness #Hope #Life #Light #Memoir #MentalHealth #Nature #Nightingale #Nursing #Reflection #Sea #Spirituality #StoryTelling #TrueStory #welovememoirs

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/reflecting-on-your-everyday-experience-2/

Watch your thoughts... #Gratitude #Happiness #Heal

Watch your thoughts... #Gratitude #Happiness #Healing #Hope #Inspiration #Learning #Light #Love #Memoir #MentalHealth #Nightingale #Trust #Truth #Wisdom

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/quote-lao-tzu/

As an eclectic music lover I have recently discove

As an eclectic music lover I have recently discovered this talented indi artist Jon Fazal...Jon Fazal is a British indie-folk songwriter based in Devon. With tales of escape and longing, his music is characterised by poetic lyrics that retain a sense of the off-hand and everyday. ‘In this music, there is a delicate intensity guaranteed to melt your heart’ – BBC Introducing
Here are some of my favourite songs by indie artist Jon Fazal
Belly of the Beast

https://bit.ly/3dX8Vwn

I Will (The Beatles Cover)

https://bit.ly/2ZnjVzt

Camelot

https://bit.ly/3bGfWAq

May You Never (John Martyn Cover)

https://bit.ly/2WBzYru
#indiemusic #indiemusician #music #poetry #authors #memoir #nightingale #songs #songwriting #writing

In the sweetness of silence, Holding Nature's hand

In the sweetness of silence,
Holding Nature's hand,
May your heart be refreshed by her stillness
And may your soul fly on the wings of beauty, love and hope. #Blessing #Christianity #Gratitude #Happiness #Healing #Hope #JohnODonohue #Light #Lightindarkness #Love #Memoir #MentalHealth #Spirituality #Suffering #Vulnerability

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/blessing-nature-mary_anne_willow_may-2020/

When I was writing my memoir ‘The Grace of a Nig

When I was writing my memoir ‘The Grace of a Nightingale’ @maryannewillow Here are some of the tools and exercises I found helpful when searching for deeper meaning and spiritual hope:
The Timeline Exercise - Contemplative Story Telling

https://blogs.psychcentral.com/relationships/2012/04/the-power-of-creating-a-timeline-of-your-lifes-story/

The Enneagram - Psychological Growth & Spiritual Wisdom

https://www.enneagramworldwide.com

The #Contemplation #Enneagram #Friendship #Gratitude #Happiness #Healing #Hope #Inspiration #Learning #Light #Love #Memoir #MentalHealth #MyersBriggsTypeIndicator #Nature #Nightingale #Publishing #Reading #Spirituality #StoryTelling #Suffering #Teaching #Truth #Vulnerability #welovememoirs #Writing

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/who-am-i-finding-deeper-meaning-wisdom-and-truth/

To be changed without the slightest effort on your

To be changed without the slightest effort on your part, to be transformed, believe it or not, merely by waking to the reality that is not words, that lies beyond the reach of words.... #gratitude #Happiness #Healing #Hope #Inspiration #learning #Light #Love #Memoir #MentalHealth #Nightingale #trust #truth #wisdom

http://www.maryannewillow.uk/quote-anthony_de_mello/

Load More… Follow on Instagram

My book is available to buy worldwide

Stay in touch

I send thoughtful emails and updates

Mary Anne Willow © 2019. All rights reserved.