Welcome to the Ravish London Blog

What would you say are the most important ingredients in your own happiness?

My answer would be roots and compassion.

Although I am a big fan of anything with ginger in it, the roots I'm referring to are the social connections and sense of belonging that one has to an area and the people in it.

Compassion, the ability to feel comfortable with love, to feel at ease with oneself and others is key to a sense of well-being.

The two things are closely linked through the concept of stability. Social stability provides the basis through which one can establish relationships and get to know and develop that sense of belonging to place. In stable times, and when one has developed a sense of belonging, then it is easier for compassion to flow.


So what the hell as any of this got to do with London?

London, a place where peope, from one reason or another, are torn from their roots, their origins and come together in this melting pot.

Here in London, people from all walks of life strive to keep their old roots alive, but at the same time, in this seething mass of people; struggle and strive to lay down new roots, new connections and new relationships.

But this is not an easy city to achieve a sense of belonging in. People come, and before you know it they've gone. One minute you're happy where you're living the next minute the landlord puts the rent up so you have to look elsewhere. There are nefarious influences; the worship of money; the importance of image about substance; the mistrust; the lack of a common culture; which keep us apart from each other.

It is nevertheless to a celebration, a study and an understanding of quite how all this is done; of how in this city of the individual; the individual is yet propelled towards finding acceptance, compassion and love; community and indentity that this blog and its website is devoted.

So tell me what is this blog about again?

So quite what, in practical terms, this blog is going to include I cannot say, for it is more or less the product of my own whims, feelings and flitting ideas; and has never been much more than that.

At the very least though, I can, as I have, given you an idea of what motivates to me to write, to understand how others both deal with the vicissitudes of life in this city; as they seek out the joys; as I seek to understand how I do the same. 

This blog is the sister site to the main site: Ravish London.