Hello,

Welcome to Wild Words by Kelly Hargie.

When I take the time to reflect upon my life to date the one constant thread that runs throughout is words. I recall vividly learning my words in primary school, large letters on scraps of green card that were stored in an old tobacco tin. Before long I was piecing those words together to form sentences, reading them aloud for my teacher and parents. The real magic begun when I could read whole paragraphs in my head, creating images inside my mind, transporting me to other times and places. I devoured books. Stories about horses were my absolute favourite. I would sit up way past bedtime, completely immersed in tales of stallions galloping across wild and rugged moors, until my mother would appear and switch-off the light reminding me I had school the next day.

I started writing little poems, short essays and stories and kept a daily diary, a small floral-patterned book complete with tiny golden padlock. I cannot recall a time in my life when I haven’t written things down. Usually just my thoughts and feelings and general musings on the world around me. Putting pen to paper has been my way of making sense of the world, a way of capturing my own experience of life as a human on this wonderful planet. Writing, I would say has been a constant lifeline to me, a container for my hopes, ambitions, fears, doubts… a safe place to store my anger, excitement, ideas, musings… a wild place to set intentions, dream big, to write into being the futures I’ve dreamt of for myself and family. I’ve filled hundreds of notebooks with words from I was a small girl, right through my teenage years, as a university student, as a mother and wife and so on. Writing has been my constant companion in all my pursuits in life.

I love words. I love their power. The possibilities they create. It truly blows my mind that scratches on a page can help us to connect, communicate, offer alternatives, show empathy, aid us to visualise other modes of being in this world. All my life I have dreamt of being a published author, hence the constant pursuit of all things connected to writing – degrees in Journalism and English literature, endless visits to libraries and bookstores, this blog, magazine and newspaper articles, a huge pile of to-be-read books by my bed, courses and workshops on writing… my whole life has been tilted towards writing. I am a sunflower seeking the light…

Over the past few years this blog space has been dedicated to my family’s adventures here in Northern Ireland and my outdoor community Wild Women Events. I’ve shared about our out and about experiences of hiking, swimming, travelling and creative living amongst other things and posted pictures of the wonderful landscapes on this beautiful island we inhabit. I have loved doing this and am so proud of the many blog features on the site. Now, I feel ready to move away from reporting-style writing and to go a little deeper into the things that make me excited as a person. I believe that all situations have meaning. That all the moments of our life matter. That seeking joy and beauty and connection are worthwhile endeavours and that to speak from the heart matters above all. I love anything related to nature, healing, personal growth, connection between body, spirit and mind, the complicated beauty of the human experience… and so, these are the things you will find me writing about here. Learning and evolving, always.

Here I am, showing up at my keyboard, believing that the thread that has brought me to this point has so much more yet to unravel within me. I hope you will join me on this journey of exploration.

Kelly