We started with a few minutes to relax, get comfortable in our seats, take some deep breaths and close our eyes. Then with our eyes closed, we thought about the associations sweets have for us, with suggestions to help us to think of:
memories from our own childhood, the tastes and smells of sweets we were given, where we were given them and when
sweets that remind us of other people, for example, children in our lives both in the past and the present, our parents, family & friends
sweets associated with places we know or places we’ve visited
Then we passed around a selection of old-fashioned sweets from a wonderful sweet shop in Hawes, Wensleydale in the Yorkshire Dale, where I’d had the pleasure recently to step back in time to my childhood. Eating some of the sweets and talking (when our mouths weren’t full!), we shared lots of memories, most happy, others not. Read on for the stories some of us have chosen to share with you in this blog post.
Our latest Stories of Our Lives session took place on the 18th of October at our new/ old home, Chorlton Library and was co-led by our wonderful guest speaker Merryn Myatt, who is a writer, celebrant, public speaking coach and retired journalist and broadcaster, and now runs lifestory.vip.
Participants engaging in a lively discussion during the Stories of Our Lives session at Chorlton Library, led by guest speaker Merryn Myatt.
It was an extended session today as we had so much to cover! We began by sharing our intentions for the morning. One participant used the lovely phrase “panhandler” , meaning sifting through life’s detritus for nuggets of gold. Others offered words like open, sisters, motivation, consideration, collaboration, encouragement, celebration, gentleness, and gratitude. Someone summed it up beautifully: “I can hear my critic, but I answer then with let’s get involved, let’s get curious.”
Together we reflected on our purposes for writing memoirs or life stories. These included validating our lives, showing the many sides of ourselves, and declaring with clarity and pride: there is more here than just what you see. Many spoke of wanting to leave a story behind, something that helps family and future generations see the whole person, not just what’s visible in the present. Others saw writing as a way to make sense of memory, to look back with compassion, or to celebrate what’s been achieved.
Merryn then shared examples from her work supporting people to create their own memoirs and explained her process. We discussed rhythm, method, and form, how our personal styles shape our writing journeys. I also shared a short presentation about voice transcription tools, which we’ll return to in a future session.
A big theme of the day was the power of photos, how choosing, labelling, and presenting them clearly can bring memories alive. Merryn offered practical tips on clarity, formatting, and choosing meaningful images. We even imagined creating boxes of memories, collections of photos or objects that can spark conversation and reflection, perhaps for people in care settings.
Towards the end, I reminded the group that Merryn is available for one-to-one support via merryn@lifestory.vip, and we talked about other ways to keep writing and stay connected. Many of us left with fresh motivation, one person said, “I’m remembering that I can do this.” Others planned to set aside a regular time to work on their project, even just fifteen minutes a week. Someone else said they felt newly inspired to embrace technology after the session, and another said they now want elocution lessons from Merryn because of her beautiful voice! (Merryn kindly refused, pointing out quite rightly that this request was asked by someone who has a beautiful voice of their own).
It was a gentle, purposeful, and encouraging morning and a brilliant reminder that our stories and authentic voices matter, that they’re still developing, and that sharing them can be both an act of genorosity as well as creativity and care.
We started off 2025 with a brilliant session led by Jean Byrne, who talked about her work with Friends of Longford Park. She demonstrated how creating a community map of groups and resources brought people together in lasting ways. Jean also reflected on how much she learned from the project, discovering the incredible contributions of so many local people and organisations.
Inspired by this wonderful example, I led a follow-up session, where we shared an interactive activity using a giant web of wool to explore the different ways we’re all connected. Together, we considered how these connections are not only shaped by place but also by the histories and stories that tie us to each other over time.
In our recent session, we had a wonderful conversation about the vital role of nature and green spaces in our lives. We discussed how the sense of safety that birdsong brings, the calming effect of fractals on our minds, and the beauty of petrichor—the smell of the ground after rain—are all crucial to our well-being.
We also touched on how we often seek these green spaces as we would a lake or a well when the green inside us feels dried up, quenching our thirst for nature. Our talk highlighted the significance of urban design and how living in the city heightens our craving for green spaces. (We love that where we live is so green and lush, even though it’s right by the city!)
Joyce opened our first meeting on this topic with her definition of art as “creative expression of communication of ideas and something, in my opinion, to be treasured”. We enjoyed seeing examples of her textile art she had brought with her. In the lively discussions which followed, both in person and online, we shared varied experiences and thoughts about art, but all agreed on its importance in our lives. We shared how other people in our lives helped us in the past or help us now to appreciate art in all its forms.
On 18th May, as part of Chorlton Arts Festival, we gave participants in our session a taste of what we do in our meetings. Some of us then read out our writing from the blog post which follows. We hope you enjoy reading our thoughts and welcome any comments of your own at the end.
I picture creativity as a constant companion we all have, one who can always be relied on, even though how they appear is sometimes not as we expect or want them to be.
An example of this is worry. Sometimes I have found myself catastrophising over terrible things that might befall me or my loved ones, and the detail has been so vivid that I have had a physical reaction; heart racing, clenched stomach, tension in the shoulders and given enough time, tiredness. As much as I don’t enjoy these side effects, I acknowledge and welcome the creativity that caused them as a loyal friend. It is doing exactly what my brain requested it to, painting pictures in my head, so well that I believed them for a minute. I also embrace this form of creativity because it has a conjoined twin who, guided by intention, brings me the ability to visualise positive possibilities for myself and others. When I combine this form of imagination with the energy of hope, I can turn what I have pictured into moments that bring intentions to life.
On Monday 19th July, under the bright sky of an extraordinarily warm day, a group of excited people gathered at the West Didsbury and Chorlton Football Club. We weren’t there to watch a match, though in its own way, it was a game of two sides. One side was a collection of young people from Chorlton High School and the other local people who ranged in age. Instead of football, we played music. The results of the match were fantastic for both teams. Read on to find out more!
We had such a joyful time sharing our thoughts and memories about spring at our Zoom meeting on Easter Saturday morning. We hope you enjoy seeing our photographs and reading our writing inspired by the session. If so, we’d love to read comments and reflections from you too.
I love the spring, the feelings and the memories it brings. My partner and I have shared some wonderful early holidays in Crete, Cyprus and Spain: walking in places we’d find too hot later in the year, along coasts and on hillsides, seeing orchards of apple and almond trees in blossom and cyclamen growing wild.
Joe led us in a second great session on journeys and transport, this time concentrating on the ways in which we regularly got around, whether on foot, by bike, train or in the cars we owned. There was so much to talk about! We shared stories of travelling to school, holiday outings, regular commutes to and from work, some within Manchester and some far away. As well as vividly re-living those frequent journeys, the people we were with, or were on our way to, featured strongly in our fond memories.
Most of us said “leaves” when Lucy asked us to say one word we associated with Autumn. We talked of their vibrant colours on crisp yet sunny autumn days, the feel of them underfoot, watching them fall and their distinctive Autumn smell. Despite some wistfulness at leaving Summer behind, we shared memories of poetry, new starts at school, college or university, walks in parks, bonfires, days out, holidays and excitement at the start of the football season.
Our recent experiences of Autumn included the joy of seeing a much-loved toddler pick up a leaf from the pavement and gaze at it in wonder, and the happy sound of children twittering like birds as they returned to school, after such a long time.
The Stories of Our Lives 