Bargaining My Soul
This poem captures the tension experienced on what Robert Frost called ‘The Road Less Travelled’. Ailsa Gillies dialogues with the soul when she takes it to auction. Continue reading Bargaining My Soul
Tag: ailsa gillies
A Plea in the Passing of Time
No one talks about that silent space during transformation. Where you’re ready for your new life, but not quite done with your old one. This poem captures exactly that – vulnerable, desperate…and ready. Continue reading A Plea in the Passing of Time
5 things you didn’t know about Ettrick Bay
Tea parties, concerts, donkey rides, shipwrecks, history-making flights and hurricane destructions — and that’s just a standard night out in Rothesay.
These are 5 things you might not know about Ettrick Bay. Continue reading 5 things you didn’t know about Ettrick Bay
The Lamb’s Lament
A lament for all those who were ever told they were ‘too soft’, ‘too sensitive’ or told to ‘toughen up’.
Ailsa Gillies uses the extended metaphor of a lamb to symbolise the predatory behaviour of the corporate world that exploit and shame vulnerabilities and kindness. Continue reading The Lamb’s Lament
A Psalm from the Window
‘How easy humans are to love when they’re not performing’, says Ailsa Gillies in this piece that finds reverence in the ordinary and compassion for humans when they’re the most ‘themselves’. Continue reading A Psalm from the Window
Something Borrowed
Everything in life – time, love, possessions, and experiences – are something borrowed. Ailsa Gillies explores the fleeting nature of life and the illusion of ownership. Continue reading Something Borrowed
The Price of Pomegranates
Transformation. Death and rebirths. The duality of beauty and pain. The messiness that comes with ‘pomegranates’, the metaphor for a life rich with experience.
These are all the things that Ailsa Gillies explores in this visceral and raw piece of lyrical prose. Continue reading The Price of Pomegranates
Lilac & Lemon
This poem explores the eternal bond between sisters, rooted deeply in the fabric of time. It navigates the themes of unconditional love, shared history, and the interconnectedness of all life—whether through blood, roots, or stories by the fire. Continue reading Lilac & Lemon
Royal photography: truth or illusion?
Photography has the power to reveal – or to deceive. Ailsa Gillies explores the fine line between authenticity and artistry, from Lord Snowdon’s intimate portraits of Princess Margaret to Annie Leibovitz’s regal spectacle of Queen Elizabeth II. What do these images truly show us? And what do they conceal? Step inside The King’s Gallery with me, where perception reigns supreme. Continue reading Royal photography: truth or illusion?
How a dream led me to leaving my corporate job
At 24 years old, Ailsa Gillies had everyone questioning if she’d lost her mind after giving up her high paying job and her flat in the city in the wake of a strange dream.
After what appeared to be a spiritual awakening, Ailsa began pursuing a life of service and embracing a role of a compassionate leader of a ‘soft rebellion’ movement, which led to the publication of her poetic manifesto: Conversations with Nature. Continue reading How a dream led me to leaving my corporate job
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