Welcome to this month’s Tell Us About blogging challenge! Each month, a small group of us from around the world come together to write about a shared theme—interpreting it however we fancy. It’s always fascinating to see how differently (or similarly!) we all approach the same word. Last month we wrote about Thursdays. This month’s theme is Blooming—and as always, it’s wide open to interpretation. You’ll find all the other fabulous bloggers taking part linked at the end of this post—so do pop over and see what blooming means to them!
Let’s be honest—when most people hear the word blooming, they think of gardens or glowing pregnant women. Lovely if that’s your thing, but I’ve never been much of a gardener (I’ve drowned more houseplants than I care to admit), and motherhood wasn’t part of my path. So for a long time, I didn’t feel like I belonged to the blooming club.
But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve realised that blooming isn’t about tulips or tiny humans. It’s about becoming—in your own time, in your own way.
I didn’t bloom early—not in the way that really mattered. I was always a bright kid, a bit of an old soul. My mum used to say I was “ten going on twenty” whenever people asked my age. I seemed mature, capable, and outwardly together. But for all that, I hadn’t fully grown into myself. Back then, I still believed I wasn’t creative, wasn’t brave enough, wasn’t enough, full stop. I followed safe paths, said yes when I meant no, and doubted myself more often than not.
But blooming can be slow. Some flowers don’t open until dusk. Some need wild weather or strange soil to thrive. And maybe that’s what I needed too.
These days, I feel like I’m finally blooming—not despite being in midlife, but because of it. I’m blooming into my witchy, soulful, creatively rebellious self. I’m blooming through writing, through filming YouTube videos in my own voice, through dressing like a pirate-gypsy-fae hybrid when the mood takes me. I’m blooming in ways no one can see—through spiritual practice, healing old wounds, letting go of old stories. And I’m blooming even when it looks like I’m standing still.
This kind of blooming doesn’t come with fanfare or flower crowns (although I wouldn’t say no to a flower crown). It’s quieter, but just as powerful. It’s about claiming joy. Creating magic. Trusting yourself more than you trust the world’s idea of who you should be.
So no, I’m not that kind of blooming woman. But I am blooming—in a way that feels true to me. And honestly, that’s the best kind.
As I often do, here’s the AI image that didn’t quite get it right and err…made me laugh lol…
And here are the other lovely co-hosts of the Tell Us About challenge:
- Debbie tells us about the many ways she’s been boldly blooming since she was made redundant, and how it’s not about being fearless – it’s about showing up, growing and embracing a new way of being. Debbie – Deb’s World
- Now that she and her husband are both retired, Leslie and her PC are finding new ways to bloom and experience life to its fullest. Leslie – Once Upon a Time and Happily Ever After
- Marsha is a lot like that smelly flower, the Corpse flower. It blooms once every ten years. After a little more than ten years, she is blooming once again. Marsha – Marsha In The Middle
- Sue has been watching her orchid slowly come back to life and bloom. She reflects on the joy of anticipating the Bloom and finding Beauty in the Becoming and how our own lives follow that pattern. Sue – Women Living Well After 50
- Rosie talks about a blooming friendship. Rosie – Rosie Amber
- Mary Katherine from MK’s Adventures in Style
