'History will surely judge us harshly if we do not respond with all the energy and resources that we can bring to bear in the fight against HIV/AIDS' Nelson Mandela

Not sure what it is at the moment but I'm incredibly conscious of what we can do as humans, people and empathetic beings. And it is so, so much. Really. I was sat knitting today whilst watching the nativity (my dad always laughs at me and says it reminds him of the women at hangings stood about knitting - he's a joyful soul!) and realised the enormity of it all. I'm creating a jumper for a friend which has a front, a back, two sleeves and a hood. As indeed many jumpers do. However being that I'm knitting this one it grows just one stitch at a time. There will be thousands already done and with just 17cm still to knit I reckon I've got approximately 2600 stitches to go.  It would be easy to think I needed to do millions of stitches to create this garment and decide it was too much, and yet it's easy to do it too. Just one stitch at a time and now I'm so nearly there.

And so with AIDS - although I sit here wishing it were quite as simple as my jumper example. However it would be easy to be overwhelmed and decide that there was too much to do so do nothing. And yet people see there is far too much to do and still do something. A friend from my Dynamis course, Sandy, is out in Tanzania as I type, Jeremy and Camilla Sherr set up and run Homeopathy for Health in Africa - with an absolute awareness of the enormity of the task, and yet still do their stitch at a time, patient after patient, gradually helping more and more people. Other friends have visited the project, other friends regularly support the project. A little at a time, a stitch at a time, a patient at a time. We can help. We can start to create change. Even, and especially perhaps, if the task is enormous.

Thank you for reading,

With love

xx

1st December. World AIDS Day since 1991 when a group of 12 individuals brainstormed and came up with a simple idea. The red ribbon bow - a symbol of passion, a heart and love.  12 artists. One huge movement.

I was thinking this morning about how many of us can feel too small to do anything worthwhile. And so we do nothing. But how about the flip side - do something even though it may amount to nothing? How about giving the big issue seller a spare £1 even if you haven't time to read the magazine? Or 'dropping' a couple of 20ps on a street to be discovered by excited children. A kind word to someone you've never met before? My daughter has complimented a train conductor on his tie and it was lovely to watch his face light up. A tiny act that can do so much.

So today being World AIDS Day I'd love to suggest, well I'm going to suggest, that you help out a small but powerful organisation, working with tiny doses of life changing medicine.  Life saving, life changing, status altering medication.  I was so heartened to read the following from co-founder of Homeopathy for Health in Africa just recently:
'Aids prostitute for 15 years and a patient of ours since 2010, she just phoned me with the news that she has gone negative!! My weekend is fixed. And probably next week too — feeling wonderful.'

Working against huge disadvantages, Jeremy and Camilla Sherr and their team of volunteers in Tanzania are doing phenomenal work.  We as homeopaths, I believe, have a duty to get behind them and support it. The boundaries of possibilities are being tested and pushed back and a new day is dawning.  Donations can be one offs, monthly direct debits, gifts are available to purchase for elements of the project, our fabulous 2014 calendar is available to brighten up your months with some gorgeous calendar girls (and guys). Even if you just sponsor us £1 right now for our Santa Fun Run we're about to head out and do (you can do this by texting RYJQ35 £2/£5/£10 or other required amount to 70070 or online here) then we'd love it.  It's so easy to make a little difference. Or not to.

Thank you,

With love and gratitude,

Em x

Isla and I have decided that we're going to do the Skipton Santa Fun Run as a fundraising event for Homeopathy for Health in Africa. The date, co-incidentally, of the fun run is that of World AIDS Day and the Tanzanian NGO does most of it's work with people who have HIV and AIDS. So it felt to make sense to us.

I would love to raise £500 - Isla, who is sometimes a little more ambitious than me - would love to raise more than this. She's gone to sleep tonight full of fundraising ideas to help us to get more. We're apparently off around her school selling wristbands (we do have children's wristbands here so if you'd like one in return for your sponsorship please just let me know).

I would love it if you could sponsor us - even just a little makes a difference (I know it's over said but it's so true)...

https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/emmacolley3

Thanks so much,

Em

You never, ever know where it might lead you.  About 20 months ago my good friend Amber asked me if I'd like to do the Great North Swim. Well, knowing that there's THINGS that live in Windermere, knowing full well it's not hot (no volcanic springs in the Lake District apparently) then I thought I knew the answer. Going to bed and asking to dream about the right thing to do left me with further knowing the next morning.  I'd dreamt about me standing on the bank, holding her children's hands and watching her swim in. That was enough for me.  So I did the sensible thing and said no. 

But then she asked again. And by that point I'd decided to get on with life, say yes to new and unusual possibilities. So it was harder to say no, and I didn't.  I got on and joined our local triathlon club and started training in a local lake. Which was a challenge in itself. It was cold, there were fish (sometimes you'd even see a dead one) and it was murky water. Plus I was being told what to do. Which I'm not very good with!  Anyway to cut a long story short I did a mile swim with Amber and raised £500 or so for Homeopathy for Health in Africa.  Having joined the Triathlon club I continued to train with them throughout 2012 and watched the Olympic Women's Tri with them.  Our chairman recommended Chrissie Wellington's autobiography which I duly read, then went on to read more Tri texts finally chancing upon Scott Jurek's Eat and Run.  Which I would say changed my life.  I went on as a result of that to adopt a Whole Food, Plant Based (WFPB) diet, study a diploma in Nutrition as well as look further at WFPB eating, and in the end adopted a raw vegan diet for myself (which I love!). 

So I dare you - you never know where it might take you... Enjoy the ride!

... conference by the Society of Homeopaths this weekend. From cutting edge research to fundraising to remedies, philosophies of life and healing, a broad range of topics were covered and the energy of a large group of Homeopaths gathered together was simply fantastic. Great to see such amazing work going on and to have a taste of more to come.

And of course, thanks to the Homepathy Action Trust and Conference Aston for the brilliant 70s disco on the Saturday night. And in a random twist, our night ended with being serenaded by a barber shop quartet which was a magical end to a wonderful evening.

It's my very special birthday tomorrow! And what I would really, really like is loads of wonderful, life giving presents.  I've made it really easy and they're all available from my website (couldn't get more straightforward really could it?)...

Just here in fact and you can get me anything from the chance to help de-worm 5 children to running a Maasai school for a month.  So very appreciative of your time reading this - thank you and have a beautiful day.

Em xx

PS If you'd like to get one of the gifts for someone else I'll absolutely promise not to be offended at all (and can even send you a card to pass onto them with details of how it helps).