Journey through the Seasons

Emma Wise and Sue Wood

Join Sue and Emma as they journey through the seasons. With lots of original content created to help forge a sense of connection to the rhythm of the year and cyclical living, Sue and Emma share seasonal poems, self-care ideas, recipes and more

  1. Journey through Winter ~ Gratitude

    JAN 27

    Journey through Winter ~ Gratitude

    Edited by: Dan Lange (thanks Dan, it was a toughie!) Music Credit: Reiki Healing from Purple Planet Music (https://www.purple-planet.com/home) Opening words: Sue reads Mindful by Mary Oliver In their gratitude chat, Sue mentions Beth Kempton (dowhatyouloveforlife.com) as an inspiration  Wassailing - Emma mentions Kate Rusby's song Cornish Wassailing Recipes: Emma's carrot cake porridge recipe: Mix 1/4 cup oats, heaped tsp chia seeds, 1/4tsp mixed spice, grated zest of a clementine, a small carrot - grated, a small handful of raisins, a generous cup of plant milk (I like cashew or almond) in a small saucepan and warm gently on the hob.  When the liquid is absorbed and porridge is nice and hot, transfer to a bowl and top with a handful of walnuts and some maple syrup if you like.  Emma's warm smoothie recipe: Add to a food processor a cooked sweet potato, dried ginger, cinnamon, a scoop of protein powder, a small handful of almonds, some warm plant milk. Blitz until smooth then enjoy. Seasonal Living - Sue refers to Lia Leendertz's The Almanac Seasonal words - Emma reads David Whyte's words from his book Consolations, on gratitude, which she found on the website Grateful.org What's On Our Bookshelf - Sue is watching Top Gear and Friends series 2 and reading When God was a Rabbit by Sarah Winman.  She is listening to Small Ways to Live Well (https://www.buzzsprout.com/2280335/follow).  Emma recommends the books Godmersham Park by Gill Hornby and Circle of Grace by Jan Stevens.  She has watched the film Train Dreams and listened to Bill Nighy's podcast Ill Advised. Tasks - You can download a copy of the intention setting template that Emma uses here: https://calmchristmas.substack.com/p/the-calm-christmas-planner and she mentions her Riverford veg box Sue shares a card from Pippa Best's Sea Soul Blessings pack of oracle cards. Timings: Opening words: 0.57 Gratitude chat:2.09 Seasonal Living:13.50 Recipes: 21.46 Self-Care:26.37 Seasonal words: 34.53 What's on our Bookshelf:41.25 Tasks: 46.52 Blessings Card: 51.49 Farewell:52.41

    54 min
  2. Journey through Winter ~ Appreciate

    JAN 6

    Journey through Winter ~ Appreciate

    Edited by Dan Lange Music - Reiki Healing from Purple Planet Music: https://www.purple-planet.com/home Opening words: Sue reads Winter's Cloak by Joyce Rupp Seasonal Living - you can find more info on Twelfth Night here: https://www.countrylife.co.uk/out-and-about/twelfth-night-what-it-is-when-it-falls-and-why-its-the-biggest-celebration-we-no-longer-enjoy-251278/https://www.discoverbritain.com/history/traditions/british-twelfth-night-traditions/ Seasonal Recipes: To make mulled apple - simply heat some good cloudy apple juice in a heavy bottomed pan with some mulling spices - cinnamon sticks, cardamon pods, star anise and cloves, for example. Nigel's Slater's new year's lentil soup recipe:  175g red lentils/ 3 tbsps oil/ 1 tsp yellow mustard seeds/ 1 tsp cumin seeds/ 8 cardamom pods/ 35g ginger/ 3 cloves garlic/ 1tsp turmeric powder/ 2 small chillies/ 1 tbsp tomato puree/ 250g chopped tomatoes/ 3 tsp tamarind pastes/ 750ml water/ 1/2tsp salt.  Make a start by rinsing lentils thoroughly.  Use a pestle and mortar to grind the cumin seeds and the seeds from the cardamon pods.  In a food processor, blitz the ginger and garlic (both peeled) with the turmeric and chillies and ground spices, plus 1 tbsp of the oil to make a smooth paste. Add the remaining oil to a heavy based pan and fry the mustard seeds for a minute or two, then add the spice paste and cook for a further minute until fragrant/  Stir in the tomato puree and the chopped tomatoes and cook for a few minutes to allow the tomatoes to soften and collapse a little.  Then add the drained lentils, tamarind paste, water and salt, bring to a simmer and allow to simmer gently for 25 minutes before serving (ideally with Nigel Slater's treacle and rye bread!) Seasonal Words: Sue read The Year's Midnight from Gillian Clarke (https://x.com/PoetryBookSoc/status/815278176196763648) and Surrounded by Treasure from Donna Ashworth's Wild Hope.  What's on our Bookshelf ? - Sue is reading: Chill by Mark Harper, The Almanac by Lia Leendertz, Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens and Seas The Day by Rachael Boughton.  She mentions Twelve Poems, a poetry collection from Martin Jones based on the seasons at Old Rectory in Quinton (and available to buy from Emma!) She'll be watching the film The Voice of Hind Rajab. Emma recommended the film The Ballad of Wallace Island and podcasts From the Oasthouse (Steve Coogan) and Human Intelligence, presented by Naomi Alderman.  Over the festive period she watched Riot Women on BBC iPlayer. The blessing card was drawn from Pippa Best's Sea Soul Blessings cards. Thanks to Sue’s friend Alison for bank holiday babysitting so we could record this episode! Timings:  Opening Words -0.55/ Appreciate Chat - 3.30 /  Seasonal Living - 15.45/ Recipes - 22.12/ Seasonal Words - 27.45 / Seasonal Self Care - 31.15 What's on Our Bookshelf - 34.47 /Tasks - 39.50/ Blessing - 43.17/ Goodbyes - 44.09

    46 min
  3. Journey through Winter ~ Immerse

    12/16/2025

    Journey through Winter ~ Immerse

    Edited by Dan Lange Music Credit: Purple Planet Music: Reiki Healing - https://www.purple-planet.com/home Opening words - Sue reads words from Adam Maxwell Martin Immerse chat: Sue had been meditating at her local Buddhist centre: https://meditateinnorthants.com and Emma attended an Aga cooking demo at Aga Oundle: https://www.agaliving.com/store-locator/aga-oundle Seasonal Living: The moment of winter solstice 2025 is 3.03pm on 21 December.  Sue shares words from The Almanac 2026, by Lia Leendertz Recipes: To make fire honey, mix a small (225ml) jar of honey with the the finely chopped peel from a lemon and an orange, a c5cm chunk of ginger, grated,  one finely chopped red chilli, a teaspoon of turmeric and a teaspoon of cinnamon.  You'll need one teaspoon of fire honey in one cup of hot water for an immune boosting drink.   You can find the recipes for frangipane mincemeat squares here: http://www.daffodilkitchen.com/christmas-frangipane-mincemeat-squares/ Self-Care: you can read more about Jolabokaflod here: https://jolabokaflod.org/about/founding-story/ Seasonal words - Emma shares Robert Frost's Dust of Snow and reads words from Nina McLaughlin's Winter Solstice essay collection What's on our Bookshelves:  Sue is reading The Ladies Midnight Swimming Club by Faith Hogan and This Way Up by Jay Forman and Mark Cooper Jones and watching videos by Ed Pratt, which you can find here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuNy42Y5egf07cSiHbF23wg .  Emma is reading Nancy Mitford's Christmas Pudding and about to read Freya North's Christmas at Flora's House.  She has been to see Nuremburg and was recently interviewed for the podcast Gathering Garden Ghosts, hosted by Melanie Hicks: https://open.substack.com/pub/melaniehick?r=1l6l79&utm_medium=ios This month's blessing card was drawn from Pippa Best's Sea Soul Blessings pack. Timings:  Opening Words -0.55/ Immerse Chat - 01.58 /  Seasonal Living - 15.56/ Recipes - 21.06/ Self-Care - 27.54/ Seasonal Words - 30.43 / What's on Our Bookshelf - 35.36 /Tasks - 42.10/ Blessing - 46.07/ Goodbyes - 46.57

    50 min
  4. Journey through Winter ~ Embrace

    11/18/2025

    Journey through Winter ~ Embrace

    Edited by Dan Lange Music Credit - Purple Planet - Reiki Healing Opening poem - Sue reads Winter Dark by Lilian Moore You can read more about the micro-season of winter in Vermont here: https://www.boston.com/culture/wickedpedia/2023/12/01/noah-kahan-stick-season-vermont/ Sue's Wrap around earphone headphone was bought from Amazon: https://amzn.eu/d/d9aDfW3 In Lunar Living, Sue references star gazing apps  - both Stellarium and Star Walk 2 are favourites of hers.  She talks about St Lucia’s Day - you can read more about it here: https://www.britannica.com/topic/St-Lucias-Day.  Sue shares some words about the Leonids meteor shower taken from Enchantment by Katherine May.  You can find out more about the Leonids meteor shower here: https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/space-astronomy/leonid-meteor-shower-when-and-where-see-it-uk  Harriet Powers story of stitching quilts can be found in Stitching Stars: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/851725.Stitching_Stars In the Recipe section, Emma mentions Jolabokaflod which we will talk about in our next episode.  For a sneak preview check out this website: https://jolabokaflod.org/about/founding-story/ This month's Quincemeat recipe is taken from Winter in the Highlands by Flora Shedden.  Ingredients: 1kg quince/ zest and juice of a lemon/ 500ml cider/ 350g light soft brown sugar/ 200g suet/ 200g raisins/ 100g golden raisins/ 200g sultanas/ 100g pitted prunes/ 100g dried apricots/ 100g dried mixed peel/ 75g flaked almonds/ 1/2tsp ground mixed spice/ 1/2tsp ground cinnamon/ 1/2 tsp ground ginger// 1/2 nutmeg finely grated / 100ml brandy// Method: 1. Sterilise jars 2. Put grated quince, lemon zest and juice, cider, sugar and suet into a large pan and cook over medium heat until simmering. 3. Add fruit and nuts and simmer gently for 15-20 mins until the fruit is swollen and the mixture thickened.  4. Take off the heat.  Stir in the brandy then spoon into jarsIn Seasonal Self Care, Emma talks about her daily morning practice based around A Course in Miracles:https://acim.org/acim/en.  Sue mentions her Mindfulness calendar - Wellbeing, Mindfulness, Creativity - Escape, Breathe and Make Time for Yourself .In Seasonal Words, Sue shares Nikita Gill's With Love from Midnight from her new poetry collection Wild Embers and an extract from The Christmas Chronicles by NigelSlater  In What's on our Bookshelves, Emma is reading cookery books - A Little Bit Brilliant by Na Hansell, Winter in the Highlands from Flora Shedden and Lucy Brazier's Christmas at River Cottage.  She's been listening to Jilly Cooper's Riders and has now moved onto Rivals.  Emma's been to see the Bruce Springsteen biopic Rescue Me from Nowhere.  Finally, she recommends Beth Kemptons's podcast Calm Christmas (Sue has signed up for Beth Kempton's free midwinter writing retreat, which you can find out more about here: https://dowhatyouloveforlife.com/?add-to-cart=184064) Sue has been listening to The Examiner by Janice Hallett and talks about the Jackson Brodie series of books by Kate Atkinson.  She's been dipping into her copy of 800 Years of Women’s Letters, edited by Olga Kenyon.  Sue will be venturing out to her Village Cinema to watch Thursday Murder Club .  Sue also mentions refreshing poetry in her local park.  You can follow Sue's adventures in poetry via the instagram account @findpoetryinplacesSue will be stocking up on dried fruit from at her local refill centre Market Harborough Eco Village. Sue will be making candles using beeswax obtained from Ali from Clipston Hives and Waxworks  Our card pick is taken from Pippa Best's Sea Soul Blessings oracle packTo finish a reel on kindness https://www.instagram.com/reel/DOq25OjjY67/?igsh=cTJ0eWl5bG9vdmQ= You can follow the show and access bonus content on Substack: https://journeythroughtheseasons.substack.com - where you can also buy a subscription to help support the podcast, or you can buy us a coffee - at https://buymeacoffee.com/journeythroughtheseasons Timings: Embrace Chat: 0.58/ Lunar Living: 14.28/ Recipe: 21.49/ Self Care: 27.07/ Seasonal Words: 31.24/ What's on our Bookshelf: 34.20/ Tasks: 43.37/ Blessing: 48.50/ Close: 49.55

    58 min
  5. Journey through Winter ~ Prepare

    10/21/2025

    Journey through Winter ~ Prepare

    Edited by: Dan Lange Music: Reiki Healing from Purple Planet Opening Words: Sue reads from Anne of Green Gables, by LM Montgomery Podcast Developments: You can now follow the show and access bonus content on Substack: https://journeythroughtheseasons.substack.com - where you can also buy a subscription to help support the podcast, or you can buy us a coffee - at https://buymeacoffee.com/journeythroughtheseasons Seasonal Living: Sue and Emma discuss the Pagan festival of Samhain Recipes: Emma's Butternut Squash Galette is adapted from a recipe by Lazy Cat Kitchen: https://www.lazycatkitchen.com/vegan-pumpkin-galette/ and the mulled cider recipe is taken from BBC Good Foods: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/mulled-cider Self-Care: You can find information on Pratyahara and the breathwork practices Sue suggests at:  https://ekotexyoga.co.uk/blogs/yoga/what-is-pratyahara https://www.artofliving.org/in-en/yoga/pranayama/ujjayi-breathing Seasonal Words: Sue reads Rainbow Bridge by Donna Ashworth and Emma shares an article by Katherine May from the beginning October issue of the Ocado Magazine, Indoorphins Boost What's on Our Bookshelf: This month, Sue recommends poetry books The Works by Pam Ayres, Loss by Donna Ashworth and a collection of poetry from Radio 4's Poetry Please.  Sue is watching Married at First Sight and has plans to watch Put your Soul on your Hand and Walk and Emma Thompson's new film The Dead of Winter.  Emma mentions The Appeal by Janice Hallett, ( Sue mentions The Twyford Code by the same author), Ian McEwan's What We Can Know,  Netflix series' Mrs Biggs and The Escape Artist  and the podcast Strangers on a Bench Card: Sue draws a card from the Sea Soul Blessings pack by Pippa Best: https://seasoulblessings.com Timings: Prepare Chat: 0.55/ Lunar Living: 16.43/ Recipe: 21.10/ Self Care: 27.56/ Seasonal Words: 35.32/ What's on our Bookshelf: 42.44/ Tasks: 50.00/ Blessing: 55.16/ Close: 56.28

    58 min
  6. Journey into Autumn ~ Passage

    09/30/2025

    Journey into Autumn ~ Passage

    Opening Words: by Peggy Toney Horton Sue shares tree wisdom from the book The Hidden Life of Trees by Fred Bernard and Peter Wohlleben Cyclical Living: Sue quotes from Lia Leendertz's The Almanac  Self Care: You can do a mini-quiz to identify your Ayurvedic dosha at: https://www.pukkaherbs.com/uk/en/dosha-quiz.  The Pukka Herbs website also has general info about Ayurveda.  If you fancy booking an Ayurvedic massage with Sue's friend Kate, you can contact her via her website:  www.samawithkate.co.uk Emma's favourite Apple and cinnamon cake recipe is from Fit Waffle Kitchen: https://fitwafflekitchen.com/cinnamon-apple-cake/ Seasonal words: Sue shares the poem Gift of Presence Mary Anne Byrne (Spirit of a Hippy) On Our Bookshelves: Emma recommends Life in the Garden by Penelope Lively, Our Evenings from Alan Hollinghurst and Lucy Steed's The Artist as well as the BBC series Mixtape. Sue recommends Sarah Winman's Still Life, Robert McFarlane's Is a River Alive and is considering re-reading Why We Swim by Bonnie Tsui. She will be binge listening to the latest Richard Osman Thursday Murder Clib mystery The Impossible Fortune. At the end of the podcast, Sue shares a card from the Sea Soul Blessings Oracle card pack, from Pippa Best: https://seasoulblessings.com Enjoy our Podcast?  We'd be so grateful for your support in leaving us a review, following the show, recommending it to your friends or helping with a small contribution towards our production costs at buymeacoffee.com/journeythroughtheseasons Timings: 16.49 - Cyclical Living/ 21.25 - Seasonal Self Care/ 27.00 - Recipe/ 33.39 - Seasonal Words/ 36.12 - What’s on our Bookshelf/ 41.08 - Seasonal Tasks/ 44.06 - Sea Soul Blessing

    48 min
  7. 04/22/2025

    Journey into Spring ~ April ~ Blossom

    Edited by Dan Lange Music Credit: Purple Planet Music - Ambient (https://www.purple-planet.com) Sue opens the episode with the poem Blossom from Mary Oliver Sue quotes from the book A Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh and from Lia Leendertz The Almanac In cyclical living Sue talks about the Lyrid meteor showers which will peak on 22nd April which stem from Comet Thatcher. At the same time the Eta Aquarius linked to Halley’s Comet begin their run from April 20 and continue into May.  Emma's recipes: Rhubarb vodka, based on the recipe from Sarah Raven , Hazelnut and roasted asparagus recipe based on a recipe from Delicious Magazine and she mentions the recipe book Planet Friendly Baking from Honeywell Bakes, kindly gifted to Sue and Emma by the author Rebecca Honeywell.  Emma shares poems from:   Ogden Nash's Always Marry an April Girl, April by Laurie Lee, The Swimmer in the Glass by Paul Henry from Ten poems about Swimming selected and introduced by Samantha Wynne and William Carlos Williams' This is Just to Say Sue's Self Care, includes information from Kim Vopni’s  The Buff Muff Method Emma's flower press was sourced from These Two Hands Sue enjoyed a Soundbath led by Joanna Maroun at Optimum You yoga studio in Market Harborough  Sue's Instagram account for her guerilla poetry initiative is @findpoetryinplaces Sue draws a card from Louise Hay's wisdom cards Timings: Cyclical living: 17.21/ Recipes: 22.29/ Self Care: 30.01/ Seasonal Words 40.53/ Monthly Tasks: 48.52/ Wisdom Card: 56.37

  8. 03/25/2025

    Journey into Spring ~ March ~ Emerge

    Edited by Dan Lange   Music credit: Ambient from Purple Planet: https://www.purple-planet.com   Sue opens the episode with some words from The Tempest by William Shakespeare    Here's a link to Emma's spring jacket: https://www.thewhitecompany.com/row/Linen-Cropped-Jacket/p/A15190?swatch=Alabaster   Cyclical Living: Sue quotes from The Almanac by Lia Leendertz   Recipes:  Cleavers tea, add approx 2 tbsp cleavers, thoroughly washed, to a mug, top with boiling water and allow to steep for 15 minutes before drinking   Wild Garlic Pesto:  Ingredients/ 100g wild garlic/ 50g parmesan/ vegan parmesan grated (although I omit this due to my cheese aversion)/50g nuts or seeds /Olive oil (rapeseed works too) – you’ll need about 150ml/ lemon juice, to taste/ salt and pepper   Method/ Add the washed wild garlic leaves to a food processor and blitz until fairly well broken up/ Add the Parmesan, if using, and process further/ Add the nuts or seeds, blitz again/ Slow down the processor and add the oil until you reach your desired consistency/ Add salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste.   Sue mentions foraging with respect inspired by reading Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer    Seasonal Words:  Emma reads words from The Pocket Encyclopedia of Garden Phenomena, by Thomas Furly Forster taken from the anthology Spring, An Anthology for the Changing Seasons edited by Melissa Harrison , Today by Billy Collins, and Be Like the Bird by Victor Hugo.   Emma's breakfast smoothie includes: Spinach, tahini, seeds, avocado, berries, banana and almond milk   Sue mentions a new collagen supplement by Feel: https://wearefeel.com    In the Tasks section Sue quotes from Why We Swim by Bonnie Tsui   Sue reads a Sea soul Blessing by Pippa Best, from a deck of cards that can be ordered online at https://seasoulblessings.com   Our monthly Wisdom card is drawn from Louise Hays Wisdom cards, a deck of 64 positive affirmations.    Timings  17.49 Cyclical living / 23.40 Recipes / 32.20 Seasonal Self Care / 41.41 Spring words / 47.20 Tasks / 53.58 Wisdom card

About

Join Sue and Emma as they journey through the seasons. With lots of original content created to help forge a sense of connection to the rhythm of the year and cyclical living, Sue and Emma share seasonal poems, self-care ideas, recipes and more