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Ink & Ashes, Tamworth (2026)

11/10/2026

🔥 FROM THE ASHES — Sunday Reflection
Week 7 — What Would You Tell The Person You Used To Be?

Imagine you could go back.

Not to change anything.

Just to sit beside the person you used to be.

The version of you who didn't know what was coming.

The losses.
The mistakes.
The battles.
The nights they'd wonder if they could keep going.

You know something they didn't.

They survive.

You are the proof.

Maybe you'd tell them to walk away sooner.

Maybe you'd tell them to stop blaming themselves.

Maybe you'd tell them they're stronger than they know.

Or maybe you'd say nothing at all.

Maybe you'd just sit beside them and whisper:

“I know you're scared.”

“But I've seen who you become.”

“You make it.”

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🔥 THIS SUNDAY'S QUESTION

If you could sit beside the person you were five years ago, what would you tell them?

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An apology.

A warning.

Forgiveness.

Advice.

Or maybe just two words:

Hold on.

Whatever your answer is, remember this:

That person had no idea who they would become.

But you do.

Because you're standing where they were trying to get to.

🖤 Your story matters here.

Some stories aren’t written in ink…
They're written in survival.

04/10/2026

🔥 FROM THE ASHES — Sunday Reflection
Week 6 — When Did You Realise You Were Stronger Than You Thought?

Strength doesn't always feel like strength while you're living it.

Sometimes it looks like survival.

Getting out of bed when everything inside you wants to disappear from the world.

Walking away from something that was destroying you.

Starting again when you have absolutely no idea what comes next.

Asking for help.

Saying no.

Staying when giving up feels easier.

There are moments in life where we don't get to prepare ourselves first.

Life just happens.

And somehow…

we find out what we're made of while we're already in the middle of it.

Maybe you didn't feel brave.

Maybe you were terrified.

Maybe you cried behind closed doors and then walked back out like everything was fine.

Maybe nobody knew how close you were to breaking.

But you kept moving.

And sometimes it's only years later, looking back at the person you were, that you realise:

“I don't know how I did that.”

But you did.

Strength isn't always standing tall while everything burns around you.

Sometimes strength is crawling through the ashes.

Sometimes it's rebuilding.

Sometimes it's simply deciding:

“I'm going to try again tomorrow.”

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🔥 THIS SUNDAY'S QUESTION

When did you realise you were stronger than you thought?

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Maybe there was one moment.

Maybe it was surviving something you never thought you could.

Maybe it was leaving.

Maybe it was staying.

Maybe it was rebuilding your entire life from nothing.

Or maybe you're still inside that chapter right now…

and you haven't realised your own strength yet.

You can answer with a paragraph.

A sentence.

A single word.

Or keep the answer entirely to yourself.

But take a moment today and look back at something you once thought would destroy you.

Then look at where you are now.

You're still here.

And maybe that's evidence of strength you've never properly acknowledged.

🖤 Your story matters here.

Some stories aren’t written in ink…
They're written in survival.

30/09/2026

Remember when I said something was happening behind the scenes, but I wasn't ready to share what it was?

Well, today I finally got to experience it.

This morning, I had my very first author interview.

I was interviewed about my writing, where my love of words comes from, the experiences behind what I write, and why I choose to explore subjects such as trauma, addiction, recovery, healing, identity, survival and finding purpose.

Even saying the words “my first author interview” still feels surreal.

Writing began as a way for me to make sense of things I couldn't always explain out loud. I never imagined those words would eventually lead to opportunities like this.

But apparently, the universe isn't finished yet.

Because while I can finally reveal what was happening behind the scenes...

Something else is now happening behind the scenes too.

And this one means more to me than I can properly explain yet.

It's not about money, recognition or having my name somewhere.

It's about my story.

It's about lived experience.

It's about taking some of the most difficult chapters of my life and allowing them to become something that may help others see things from a different perspective.

In the grand scheme of the world, it might seem like a small opportunity.

To me, it is enormous.

There was a time when I wondered whether anything meaningful could ever come from everything I had survived.

Now I'm beginning to understand that perhaps none of those chapters have to be meaningless.

For now, that's all I'm going to say.

Today was my first author interview.

And somewhere behind the scenes...

another door has just opened.

I'll share more when the time is right.

27/09/2026

🔥 FROM THE ASHES — Sunday Reflection
Week 5 — What Are You Carrying That Nobody Sees?

Some of the heaviest things we carry have no weight at all.

You can wake up.

Get dressed.

Go to work.

Laugh with people.

Answer “I'm good” when someone asks how you are.

And still be carrying something nobody around you knows exists.

Grief you don't talk about.

Memories that still find you.

Fear about the future.

Pressure to keep everything together.

Regret.

Loneliness.

Exhaustion that sleep doesn't seem to fix.

Sometimes we become so good at functioning that people stop asking whether we're struggling.

And sometimes…

we stop asking ourselves.

We convince ourselves that because we're still getting things done, we must be okay.

But surviving quietly doesn't make what you're carrying any less heavy.

You don't need to reach breaking point before you're allowed to admit:

“This is hard.”

And you don't need to explain every detail of your pain for it to be real.

Sometimes healing begins with simply acknowledging the weight.

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🔥 THIS SUNDAY'S QUESTION

What are you carrying right now that nobody else sees?

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Maybe it's something you've never said out loud.

Maybe only a handful of people know.

Maybe you've become so used to carrying it that you almost forgot how heavy it actually is.

You can answer with a paragraph.

A sentence.

A single word.

Or you don't have to share your answer publicly at all.

This isn't about forcing yourself to reveal something you're not ready to share.

It's about giving yourself permission to acknowledge:

“Yes. I'm carrying this.”

And maybe today…

you don't have to pretend it weighs nothing.

🖤 Your story matters here.

Some stories aren’t written in ink…
They're written in survival.

21/09/2026

Something exciting is happening behind the scenes at Ink & Ashes.

I’m keeping the details quiet for now while everything comes together, but this feels like another really meaningful step in a journey that started simply with putting thoughts, experiences and emotions into words.

There are moments when you stop and realise those words are beginning to travel further than you ever imagined they would.

I’m incredibly excited for what’s ahead, and once everything is finalised, I can’t wait to share it with all of you.

For now… watch this space.

20/09/2026

🔥 FROM THE ASHES — Sunday Reflection
Week 4 — What Recovery Means Today

Recovery changes.

What it meant at the beginning may not be what it means now.

At first, recovery might simply mean making it through another day.

Getting through the cravings.
Surviving the chaos.
Breaking one destructive cycle.

Then life starts changing.

And suddenly recovery isn't only about what you've stopped doing.

It's about what you're building instead.

Peace where there was chaos.

Connection where there was isolation.

Routine where there was instability.

Self-respect where there was shame.

A future where you once couldn't see one.

And sometimes recovery looks incredibly ordinary.

Going to work.

Paying your bills.

Eating dinner.

Laughing with someone you care about.

Going home and feeling safe in your own space.

Things that might mean nothing to somebody else…

but everything to the person who remembers when life looked completely different.

Recovery doesn't have one definition.

And it doesn't have one finish line.

What recovery means to you today may be completely different from what it meant five years ago.

And maybe that's the point.

Because recovery isn't just about leaving something behind.

It's about discovering what you want to live for once you do.

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🔥 THIS SUNDAY'S QUESTION

What does recovery mean to you today?

Not what you think recovery should look like.

Not somebody else's definition.

Yours.

Maybe it's sobriety.

Maybe it's stability.

Maybe it's rebuilding relationships.

Maybe it's finally liking the person looking back at you in the mirror.

Maybe right now…

it's simply getting through today without returning to yesterday.

Whatever your answer is, it matters.

🖤 Your story matters here.

Some stories aren’t written in ink…
They're written in survival.

13/09/2026

🔥 FROM THE ASHES — Sunday Reflection
Week 3 — Forgiving The Person You Were

Sometimes the person we struggle most to forgive…

is ourselves.

We look back with everything we know now and judge the person we were then.

The choices we made.
The people we trusted.
The things we tolerated.
The ways we escaped.
The moments we hurt ourselves or others.

And we ask:

“How could I have done that?”

But there's something unfair about judging an old version of yourself using wisdom they hadn't learned yet.

That person didn't have what you have now.

They didn't know everything you know now.

Maybe they were surviving.

Maybe they were scared.

Maybe they were hurting so badly that getting through the next hour mattered more than thinking about the next year.

Understanding that doesn't mean pretending every choice was okay.

Accountability still matters.

But accountability and self-hatred are not the same thing.

You can acknowledge what you did.

You can repair what you can.

You can learn.

You can change.

And eventually…

you can stop sentencing yourself to a punishment that has no end date.

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🔥 THIS SUNDAY'S QUESTION

What are you still learning to forgive yourself for?

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You don't have to tell us the entire story.

You can answer with a paragraph.

A sentence.

A single word.

Or you can keep your answer completely private.

But whatever comes to mind…

Try looking at that version of yourself with the compassion you would give someone else who was struggling to survive.

Maybe forgiveness doesn't mean saying:

“It didn't matter.”

Maybe it means finally saying:

“It mattered. I learned. And I don't have to hate myself forever because of it.”

🖤 Your story matters here.

Some stories aren’t written in ink…
They're written in survival.

13/09/2026

“I was keeping my old wounds fresh as evidence for a trial that would never come.”

There comes a point where healing means accepting that you may never get the explanation, apology, accountability or closure you once believed you needed.

Sometimes the people who hurt you will never understand the damage they caused. Sometimes they will never admit it. Sometimes there will be no moment where everything is finally acknowledged and justice arrives exactly the way you imagined.

And that can be incredibly hard to accept.

But keeping yourself wounded so the evidence remains visible doesn’t punish the people who hurt you. It only keeps you living inside something that already happened.

You don’t need to keep bleeding to prove that you were hurt.

You don’t need to carry every detail forever to prove that your experience was real.

You are allowed to heal without receiving an apology.

You are allowed to close the case yourself.

Not because what happened was acceptable.

But because your peace deserves more than spending another lifetime waiting for a trial that may never come.

06/09/2026

🔥 FROM THE ASHES — Sunday Reflection
Week 2 — The Version Of You That You Miss

Sometimes healing means becoming someone new.

But sometimes…

It means grieving who you used to be.

There can be versions of ourselves that existed before everything changed.

Before the trauma.
Before the addiction.
Before the loss.
Before survival became part of everyday life.

Maybe they laughed more easily.

Trusted more freely.

Dreamed without immediately thinking about everything that could go wrong.

Or maybe the version you miss came later.

The person you were during a particular chapter.
The confidence you once carried.
The life you thought you were building.

We talk a lot about letting go of our past selves.

But we don't talk enough about missing them.

And maybe you don't want that person back completely.

Maybe you've grown beyond them.

Maybe you've learned things they hadn't yet learned.

But there can still be pieces of them worth remembering.

Pieces worth carrying forward.

Because healing doesn't always mean leaving every part of your old self behind.

Sometimes…

it's finding the pieces you thought you'd lost and bringing them with you.

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🔥 THIS SUNDAY'S QUESTION

What version of yourself do you miss the most — and what do you miss about them?

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You can answer with a paragraph.

A sentence.

A single word.

Or keep your answer entirely to yourself.

But today, think about that person.

Not with judgement.

Not with regret.

Just recognition.

Maybe there's something about them that deserves a place in the person you're becoming.

🖤 Your story matters here.

Some stories aren’t written in ink…
They're written in survival.

30/08/2026

🔥 FROM THE ASHES — Sunday Reflection
Week 1 — Give Yourself Credit

Sometimes we become so focused on how far we still have to go…

that we forget how far we've already come.

We remember the mistakes.
The breakdowns.
The things we lost.
The moments we wish we could change.

But we don't always give the same attention to the person who survived them.

The person who got back up.

Who kept going when nobody knew how difficult simply getting through the day had become.

Who carried pain quietly.

Who adapted.

Who somehow found another reason to keep moving forward.

Maybe you didn't handle everything perfectly.

Maybe there are things you would do differently now.

But you're looking back with knowledge that the person you were then didn't have.

And sometimes, surviving something deserves recognition too.

Not because what happened was good.

Not because you're grateful for the pain.

But because you made it through something that once felt impossible.

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🔥 THIS SUNDAY'S QUESTION

What is something you survived that you never gave yourself enough credit for?

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You can answer with a paragraph.

A sentence.

A single word.

You don't have to tell the entire story.

And if you're not ready to share it publicly, that's okay too.

Read the question.

Sit with it.

Answer it privately.

But whatever your answer is…

give that version of yourself some credit today.

They got you here.

🖤 Your story matters here.

Some stories aren’t written in ink…
They’re written in survival.

Ink & Ashes

11/10/2026

04/10/2026

30/09/2026

27/09/2026

21/09/2026

20/09/2026

13/09/2026

13/09/2026

06/09/2026

30/08/2026

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