This newsletter was first sent to subscribers on Friday 5th June 2026. It goes out the first Friday of each Month, so next one will be sent 3rd July. If you'd like to subscribe and get it first, you can sign up here:

Hello there! Lovely to see you :)

3 Massive Shifts: A Waterfall, A Gathering, and An Ambulance

Three substantial shifts to share with you. May was so big that I can feel myself naming it MASSIVE May, if you’ve been reading for a while, the return to alliteration might just bring a smile!

Thankfully, it was a month where I was gifted five weeks rather than four between writing Flow with Felicity. Here is why that extra week was a much-needed blessing:

• A meander became a waterfall: A huge shift in the energy force within my being.

• An event became a heartfelt community gathering: Memories of belonging and not belonging awakened.

• Failing to balance led to my first time in an ambulance: A life lesson not yet learnt?

   

There is a connecting thread between the first two, but the third? The third momentarily felt like life was putting a hard stop on everything.

I always love to hear from you. Whatever this stirs up, or if you feel drawn to come down to Poole, hit reply or drop me an email: felicity@bendtheriver.org

When a Meander Became a Waterfall

Last month, I wrote about feeling ‘pulled towards’ something—a shift in my attention from inward to outward.

Well, that pull completely amplified in early May.

It turned out to be less of a gentle tug and more of a huge waterfall. It was a coalescing of conversations, ideas, and snippets that merged into one massive, powerful torrent of water. The clarity of what my work is arrived in an instant. The ability to create, write, and invite flowed seamlessly. Hand on heart, it has been exciting, fulfilling, and deeply satisfying.

You all helped. It felt bold to tell you about Move Together with Nature (now ‘with’, not ‘within’). I remember writing that I felt envious of people with polished-sounding offers.

So I thought, sod it, what could my offer look like? What holding structure could I create to give those who’ve never been coached the curiosity and confidence to come and walk alongside me?

Taking the Theory U process (see last month) at its word—prototype, and prototype fast. I set out to answer the essentials: What would I do in a session? Where would I do it? And who would want to join me to learn? How I already had my Why, as shared with you last month.

In the space of 4 weeks I went from nothing to bringing it life to 5 people this past week, with a 10 day holiday (and ambulance trip) in the middle.

For the 'What', I drew on my experience and a brilliant conversation with Ashley Crocker on 8th May. I wanted to offer an introductory walk around Invitations—inviting people to do something a little different, stepping safely onto the boundaries of their comfort zones. For the 'Where', I mapped out local locations based on access and vibe. I discounted a few and settled on five.

Then came the 'Who'. On 12th May, while shaping this, I realised I could invite people at the You Are The Media Creator Day on the 14th. Was it possible?

I decided to share The Experiment without knowing all the details. Alongside a LinkedIn post, I popped a note into the 'Ask for Help' section of our online community: "10 people local to Poole/Bournemouth wanted." Setting it up as an experiment equalised the field, it also welcomed playfulness into the work. Heading out to the pre-event gathering, I spied a few familiar faces in a local café and wandered in to say hello. I was greeted with: "We’ve just been talking about joining you!" It became real. I am so thankful for those first, genuine, warm yeses. Over the next three days, the 10 spaces were filled.

To turn my scraps of paper into a coherent structure, I treated Gemini (my AI tool) like a team member to help carry the load—refining copy, drafting communication emails, and making suggestions. I then did a practice run-through to check out one lesser known location to discover it was overgrown. After coming home covered in nettle stings, I needed a completely new route! 

Message Me felicity@bendtheriver.org

Going Live

This first week of June, I stepped outside with five individuals across three locations. Once out there, the ideas and structuring took a back seat to pure presence. I've a long time believed that the quality of what emerges always depends on the quality of the relationship container; when you get that right, the rest follows.

I am so grateful for that fifth week this month. I now have the felt experience of working with this light structure and witnessing the shifts in others. The advocate in me wants to shout from the tree-tops: Come do this with me! Come learn to coach in this way! I want to throw many seeds into the air and see what flowers.

There will be so much more to come on this thread: stories of fluffy moorhen chicks clambering on lily pads, visionary leaves, uncontrollable wind, talking feet, messages from gravestones, and the yawning response of a body trying to reset. It’s nature, it’s somatic, it’s spacious, and it's joyful.

Writing this on Friday, I’m shifting into a reflective mode. Taking a moment to pause and acknowledge what has been achieved in just a few short weeks. It's exactly what I need before the remaining six sessions of the Experiment next week (and for those of you who can count - that's 11 people, not 10. Lucky legs 11 as my grandad used to say!)

Thank you for listening, witnessing, and playing your part in bringing me to this point. 

It's been huge, like this massive open armed leaf of what I think is giant rhubarb!

An Event Becomes a Heartfelt Community Gathering

This was my third year at Creator Day, the annual event for the You Are The Media community. On the surface, "Creator" and "Media" can sound a bit hardcore, but at its heart, it’s about knowing who you are and how to share your message, your way.

This year’s theme was community: Where do you choose to show up? What do you choose to give and receive? It encouraged a collective looking outwards, and I noticed and felt a wonderful shift in the collective energy.

In the LinkedIn post that captured my thoughts and feelings of the day, I mentioned Katie Stokes. I had hoped to give you first sight of a piece I’m writing about the "DNA of belonging," catalysed by listening to her Floating Space podcast about third spaces.

It’s an exploration of how I’ve experienced belonging from childhood to the present day, and how I am finally understanding what true belonging feels like for me and why. It has also got me questioning the way we are slowly structuring organic moments of human interaction out of our daily lives.

The piece isn't finished yet—I want to enjoy the process rather than rush it—but while I put it together, I highly recommend giving Katie a listen and asking yourself: Where’s my third space? What's my DNA of belonging?

Wing Foiling, Waves, and a Dramatic Sea Rescue

Turns out that I have insufficient balance to remain upright on a wing foil board in gusty conditions.

Twenty minutes into my first lesson at FeelViana—wavy, windy, and on about my tenth topple—I fell awkwardly. The full force of the twist went straight through my left knee.

My lovely instructor, Andre, was on a two-way radio, so he heard my immediate scream. I had been quite vocal each time I fell, but this was different.

What followed was a dramatic sea rescue, a "queen chair lift" by the Beach Lifeguards, and an ambulance ride to the local hospital. There was a massive sigh of relief when the X-rays revealed that the excruciating pain wasn't a total ACL or MCL rupture requiring immediate surgery and a flight home.

However, it did raise immediate questions. Ten people had literally just confirmed to join me on my Move Together with Nature walks. Would that still be possible? What about exploring Porto with my mother in just five days' time? What about my 750k French cycle adventure in June? Or my time booked in on the Padel court?

I’ve always been a "which way, not no way" kind of woman, so saying "no" to things is tough. Luckily, with it being a meniscus tear/pull, gentle walking is actually good for recovery. My mother was frankly grateful that I couldn’t walk quite as fast or as far as normal! The nature walks could continue. Cancelling Padel play was hard—I love the social, sporty burst it brings to my week. The cycle ride on the 21st June. Well that's still up for debate.

When my life partner, Fi, tore her meniscus last October (far less dramatically, just twisting from the dishwasher to the fridge - eek!), she kept trying to push through with golf and skiing. We learnt then that we had to let go of certain aspects of our life. We just hadn’t realised life felt we needed to repeat that particular lesson quite so soon!

Reflection Q's

• What does this stir up for you?

• What lessons is life currently teaching you?

• What are you learning about yourself as you experience that lesson?

Sending you joy from my local area of Poole!

Thank you for joining me.

All the best, Felicity x

Move Together with Nature

This newsletter was first sent to subscribers on Friday 5th June 2026. If you'd like to subscribe, you can sign up here: