This is a collaborative blogpost with Lines and Current and includes a gifted item.

My house sits about half a mile as the crow flies, from the swirling waters of the Pentland Firth. Each morning, i pull back the blind and look at the sea. It comes as naturally to me as reaching for the light switch in the dark. I am drawn to it for comfort, reassurance, a reminder that no matter how chaotic life may be (three kids, yep!) those tides continue to ebb and flow. It is the work of seconds. I feel grounded and ready to continue. At times of reflection, of stress, sadness, i find myself lingering longer at the window, usually in the kitchen or by the back door, staring out at the white swell, the rise of the water as it runs along the pier, the flash of the lighthouse. Its almost a mindful practice to me, and something I’ve been doing for years but didn’t recognise it as such. A small pause to stop and be in the moment. And who doesn’t need that reminder? I know I certainly do.

As we head through autumn towards winter, i find myself pulled to the sea more so. A result of the shortening days? The added pressure of Christmas? I can become consumed with the thought of an idyllic festive period, and in turn, my anxiety begins to rumble. I try not to allow it. And something that works for me is spending time outside, be it on the doorstep or driving the short distance to the shore. This particular one is covered with rocks of varying sizes and colour, with little to no sand. And on a rough day when the wind steals the breath from your throat, the strength of the water lifts these rocks and tosses them back and forth – the sound is like that of thunderous applause. Its hard to be anything other than present when you’re witness to such raw, unyielding power.

Some things i like to be mindful of when near the sea:

Listen

The water. Is it trickling or flowing fast? How does it sound as it reaches the shore? What birds can I hear? Are there boats, in the harbour or passing through? The wind – is it whistling?

Feel

The cold. Like really feel it, how it feels on my skin, how each cold inhale makes me feel. The wind on my face? The rain? When i inevitably stand too close, how do my feet feel when they get wet and how quickly do they dry? What about the jolt as the icy cold water hits my skin? What does the seaweed feel like between my fingers?

Look

The waves as they roll back and forth, back and forth, in their mesmerising ocean dance. Is there sand on the beach, what does it look like? What about the sun reflecting on the water?

Smell

The sea air. *sigh* There’s nothing quite like the ‘fresh’ salty smell of someone who has been near the sea.

Heeding the water and watching the tides is part and parcel of island life. Our lives are dominated by the sea and affect the decisions we make on an almost daily basis throughout the winter months. I speak as someone who lives on a smaller island, connected to the mainland of Orkney by causeways. I have learnt to appreciate over the years, that there is no greater strength than Mother Nature when the wind is blowing in a south easterly direction!

So yeh. All respect to the sea.

Lets not forget the role the sun and moon play in creating and controlling the strength of our tides. As the earth rotates, the moons gravitational force continually mounds the water and that fluid mound moves around the earth. The suns effect is less than half of the moon but when the two are in alignment and pulling in the same direction, they cause higher and lower tides. These are called spring tides. But when the sun and moon are at right angles to one another – with the moon pulling in one direction and the sun pulling in another – there is a kind of cancelling effect which causes lower high tides and higher low tides called neap tides. The actual height of the tide is influenced by the shape of the coastline and the depth of the water.

The tides tend to be quite large in Orkney because of our distance from the equator. And the stretch of water I watch from the comfort of my warm, cosy home is known to be amongst some of the most unforgiving in the world. This is a result of the North Sea colliding with the Atlantic Ocean. Amazing.

In celebration of the moon and all it’s lunar brilliance, Rebekah from one of my favourite online brands, Lines and Current, has designed the most striking Moon Sister pendants in the shape of the crescent and demi/semi moons.

Rebekah sums the thought process and meaning behind the Moon Sisters necklace best herself:

Life is a combination of phases. We journey through light and move with ebbs and flow, reorienting ourselves and supporting our fellow female sisters as we go.

The ‘Moon sisters’ unpolished sterling silver or thick 18K gold-platedhand-textured pendant trinkets celebrate these phases as we wax and wane through light.

As a Crescent, we stretch and awaken to something new and exciting. A feeling of hope rises and we trust these flickering sparks and take our first gutsy steps towards that new expression

In the Demi/ Semi phase, we have plunged right in. We are committed, filled with badass clarity. We’re in ‘creator’ mode girls taking action & making decisions like champions.

How amazing, so fierce and so powerful 💪🏻

How do you feel about the sea?

Thanks so much for reading 🙂