26 Things I Want To Share With You!
Sustack 102 ;)
**Love if you might hit play and hear me read this substack to you out loud or you might like to listen to this as a podcast while you’re out for a walk, a run or maybe you’re cleaning your fridge out haha ;)
5 Things You Might Not Know About Me:
I don’t close my curtains at night during the summer….(*I do live in the back of beyond in Ireland - only eyes looking in my window are the birds haha ;0) …. I started this habit many years ago when I decided I wanted the sun to wake me rather than an alarm. So every morning as the sun rises, I sense the light coming into my room and I allow the natural light of the day to awaken my body. There is nothing as amazing as being woken ever so gentle by the breaking dawn……I love it and I feel it has been so good for me too. If I am too tired I just turn over and fall back asleep but just waking to natural light whatever time it is, is just magical :) You might give it a go or maybe you won’t! :) As I always say, different strokes for different folks!
I’d like to write something funny in my future….as in a funny script…or something that will make people laugh…I’m not sure exactly what but there are a few shows that I just love and I feel - YES that is what I want to do at some stage in my life - I want to make people laugh…..I do enjoy funny people….I really appreciate simple humour….like quick wit…My dad was a very funny man….dry humour we would call it here in Ireland. It’s the kind of wit anybody can enjoy whether a child or an adult if that makes sense. Prime example of my humour would include this clip;
Last week I wrote a poem in approximately five minute and here it is:
‘Brightness’ is in the Eye of the Beholder
By Louise Coghlan
Without light, we would have nothing.
Dark would turn into dark. Night would turn into night.
Sunrise wouldn’t exist and daylight would be unknown.
But because of the light, we have day.
Because of the sun and its beautiful brightness, it allows our eyes to see.
It allows us to begin again each morning & it gives us hope every time we see it shining.
Without light, we wouldn’t know what the sky looks like on a bright blue day.
Without light, we wouldn’t know the sweet smiles on our loved ones faces.
Without light, we would truly be alone.
But instead because of the light, we see the brightness in the world.
Because of the light, we see the brightness in nature.
Because of the light, we see the brightness in each other.
And because of the light, we are ever burning lights of hope while all else seems dark.
Yesterday I received a letter addressed to Granny. It was a beautiful hand written letter from a lady in county Derry. She had written it to thank Gran for the ‘Letter of Hope’ we had written during the Pandemic and how proud and inspired she was because of Granny and her faith. My heart broke reading it yet I was so proud of not only Granny but to see how my own efforts to spread our love had reached so many people and even though this lady didn’t know Granny had passed on, the effort she went to hand write four pages was so lovely. This letter is the definition of how one person can have an impact on another even if they don’t know each other and the magic of how love, faith and hope transcends not only distance, knowledge but even heaven and earth. Your life and your actions of love can have an impact even when you are not here to see it.
I never drank alcohol all the way through my youth. Even though pressured by many at the start, I was always someone who didn’t need alcohol to enjoy myself and equally I was very much someone who did her own thing if that makes sense. Instead I was able to mind everyone if anyone got too tipsy and it was great that I never had a hangover either. I think I was the only one not drinking at my leaving cert party and I never thought twice about being different. Instead I was there to enjoy my friends with a pint of water in my hand instead of a pint of beer. I loved the freedom I had from not drinking alcohol when everyone else from ages 14/15 upwards were drinking it freely. Of course in years to come I did make up for those lost years but the part I hold onto most was my mindset to be myself even if I was going against the grain. I think I have held that part of me in many ways as I’ve got older. I did not do what everyone else did whether that is a good thing or a bad thing, who knows? But it has allowed me to feel very much at peace within myself. Who knows will my 90 year old self feel the same but in this moment I am happy with the choices I’ve made along the path. I did indeed drink alcohol a lot during my university years and all the way through my twenties and thirties. In the last decade I’ve gone the other way again. It’s strange isn’t it? Kind of like a circle of life. I rarely drink alcohol now and I love being the designated driver. I love being able to pick people up and drop them home. I definitely have found the more quieter side of myself once again and I love her. Amazingly people have an idea that I’m loud and extroverted all the time while this is true that I love being among people and engaging, I’m equally very quiet. I know SHOCKING stuff!
But I really am. There’s a book I read many years ago - Quiet by Susan Cain and she introduced me to the term ambivert - and this is what I am. When I’m with people I am very happy but equally I will lie on the grass on my own in peace and contentment too. If anything I need both. My favourite situation is small group dynamics where I can get to really know people with no pressure. A cup of tea and a chat- there is nothing like it. I love watching people’s body language, tone, choice of words and how they talk about different topics. Now of course I still enjoy a glass of red on special occasions or a bottle of beer with friends but really I would be much happier with a cup of tea. I have officially turned into Granny Nancy or maybe my mam Ollie but either ways I love both those women and they are two legends so if I carry any fibre of their being with me in my life going forward, then I have done well & will live a very happy life.
5 things about Granny Nancy You Might Not Know:
Granny was born on October 16th 1913.
Granny absolutely loved sweet things….She particularly loved jelly babies, rice pudding, buns (queen cakes) and loved apple tart. And every evening had a number of sweets before bedtime!
Granny never drank alcohol or smoked in her lifetime.
Even though known as Granny Nancy, Granny’s birth name was Anne.
Granny believed that priests should be able to marry and that we should change our government leaders and parties regularly and that nobody should ever miss a vote.
5 Dreams I Secretly Hold:
I want to be a best selling author (maybe not so secret haha) and would love to be able to travel the world speaking to people and sharing my light and hope with them.
I want to help people heal and feel less alone in this world.
I want to have enough money to live but really want to always have a heart or ten to always love and a heart that is loved.
I want to lead a life that is truthful, compassionate and meaningful and that when I leave this earth that I leave it having made an impact in a positive way. And hopefully someone somewhere will miss me from their table, their life, their heart!
I hope I die quietly and peacefully. Of course nobody has any control over this part and I guess that is a good thing really. I’m not afraid of dying at all but would be really grateful if I passed from this life to the next in a quiet sort of way. Just the way gran did. Just as the sun was rising and the birds were beginning to wake, Gran snuck away gentle and without a fuss. I love that I was holding her hand and I’m sure that helps when you are leaving to have someone you love close by so I guess that would be a nice dream of sorts. To leave this world with someone or a few of my favourite people close by. Sorry gone a little bit morbid here but if you know me, death is not a sad negative topic but rather a really important topic to open up as with thinking of dying it makes me really value living if that makes sense!
And because you are so amazing and in case you have forgotten……Five things would not be enough and since one of my favourite films has the line ‘10 things’ (do you know what film I am referring to?)
Here are……….
10 things I love about YOU!
You are beautiful
You are intelligent
You are generous
You are brave
You are brilliant
You are a best friend to someone
You are inspiring
You are a bright light in the world
You are loved
You are wonderful, magical YOU!
One Final thing:
*Asking for your support when August Arrives!
I will be switching on my paid subscriptions going forward for this Substack home for the month of August - What does this mean? A paid subscription is 7 dollars a month - which in euros comes to about 6.44 euros per month and to receive all my newsletters and communications, you will need to be a paid subscriber. After a year of writing twice a week and have written over 100 newsletters & podcasts (over 300,000 words), I want to build this community to become an even tighter magical space and a way to do this is to add more to this Substack home but I can only do that by being able to pay the Substack virtual electricity bill. I would be so grateful if you wanted to become part of a closer in house community. There will be additional fun held within the paid subscribers section going forward. I am going to trial this for the month of August and see how we go. I hope to run a zoom meet up and also you will receive all my news first before anyone else. You will get to choose topics I write on and also you will be supporting me in a way that will bring you closer to me as lots more exciting things are happening before the year is out. I would be really grateful if you might choose to become a paid subscriber and support an Irish writer as your support will massively help me to continue to help others and I want to stay close to you.
Thank you so much for reading my words this week and every week. You are the reason I write and I could not do this without you. Please do leave a comment below on anything you want to share with me and the community. Also is there any thoughts you had while reading or listening to this substack? I LOVE to hear from you because that lets me know I’m not here on my own.
All my love always,
Lou xx
**Also to mention, Substack is now an app on your phone. You can download it from the App store or Googlestore and its makes it even more enjoyable to access if you are out and about!
Louise Coghlan is an author, communicator and coach. If you need help, hope or just an injection of happiness or light at any stage, you can connect with her through her websites down below. Lou is presently touring her award nominated book ‘Granny Nancy - Ireland’s Oldest Lady’ across the country and can be found on Midlands 103 on the ‘Friday Panel’ on a regular basis. Here’s a link to her most recent guesting on there: Midlands Radio with Lou
To find her during the week and in between substacks, she is very active and streams daily on www.facebook.com/livingandlaughingwithlou.
Lou’s websites are as follows: www.livingandlaughingwithlou.com & www.loucoghlan.com
