Hello

Thank you for your subscription or donation. Thank you for standing with me.

Your contribution, whether through a subscription or donation, does more than keep Despite the Hammers (DtH) online or help me cover running costs. It fuels something far bigger: a space where anyone weathering life’s blows can find hope, perspective, and a quiet sense of possibility.

In choosing to back DtH, you’ve become part of a small but mighty ripple effect where one person’s resilience can inspire a hundred more. Thank you for being part of this shared work.

About Despite the Hammers

Despite the Hammers (DtH) is for those who have had enough of feeling vulnerable or being susceptible to real or perceived threats. Depending on who wields the hammers, the blows are debilitating, such as hunger or poverty, and physical or psychological suffering.

Life’s blows sometimes arrive with brute force while others seep in through subtle or systemic pressure. But all of them can become an onslaught on our character, culture, morals, ethics, beliefs, security, safety, and wellbeing. This blog explores how we could respond to this.

What DtH is For

Posts will cover topics related to fortitude in the face of adversity and associated topics guided by readers’ feedback. Examples are:

· Finding motivation and inspiration to unlock opportunities and chase that dream.

· Setting yourself free from shackles.

· Supporting others without losing yourself.

· Learning to feel satisfied again, even in the smallest things

· Exploring your own thinking.

· Provocations to rise when you’re ready — and rest when you need to.

What DtH is Not

As with any tool, DtH can be misused or misunderstood. Please note DtH is not:

· A political movement or call to civil disobedience.

· A license to attack or denigrate others who are not like us.

· A scholarly journal or academic study.

· A promise of easy answers.

· A panacea to cure all of life’s ailments.

· A religious tract or sermon.

· A professional advice column. (Please see the Disclaimer).

· A reason to push through when common sense says pause.

Posts

I can brainstorm, plan, and do all that is necessary to prepare for DtH’s content. However, I’d also love to respond to reader questions, insights, and stories. How this happens will unfold as the blog grows. It might include comments, Q&As, or community exchanges.

Some posts will offer practical ideas. Others might be stories, quotes, exercises, or reflections. Not every piece will resonate with everyone, and that’s okay. DtH is here to invite thought, not impose one way of seeing.

New work will be posted roughly every two weeks.

About Me

For years I hovered at the edge of security and fears. I lived hand to mouth, sometimes barely scraping by. For much of my life, I was an introvert who preferred pages over people. Written words were my playground and, later, my lifeline.

Pursuing a degree in Language and Literature taught me how to turn my love of words into a craft. But it was the lived stuff: two brushes with homelessness; and the quenching of my fire, my being, which taught me to deal with things. These days, I’m a granny with grit. What I do, and how I respond, is up to me.

What I believe

I have a peculiar outlook on life, for example:for example:

Life is like a coin. A coin has two sides. You cannot have the one without having the other. Heads: life is good, enjoy it. Tails: life is not good, deal with it.

Metacognition, i.e., thinking about our thinking helps us notice what’s real and what’s just old noise or fear.

If one person changes from something they read here, others around them may follow. Ripples start quietly.

Nature, if we care to look, offers life lessons in abundance. It is a quiet teacher. For instance, I have seen a spider that lost four legs still dash off on the remaining four. (Nature survives by what it has.) When farm fields flood, waters leave behind an enriched soil for the next harvest. (Nature restores.) A bamboo cutting takes weeks to grow its roots, but once it sprouts, it can shoot up at a rate of about 35 inches (89 cm) per day. (A slow start does not imply slow growth.) Challenge an elephant and it will spread out its ears to appear larger. Felines arch their bodies and puff out their hair. Dogs growl and bare their teeth. Cobras rise and hiss. (When threatened, animals show they can defend themselves.)

Life is not a journey. Life is art. And like art, it requires practice, patience, and perception to be able to live well.

We all experience threat or loss differently. We should not minimise any suffering or loss but empathise with each other. Comparing pain helps no one. Empathy and respect, on the other hand, go a long way.

It is okay if you do not agree with me. That is the thing about life: we each have our own lives, thoughts, and ways. For example, look at a ladybug. There are about 5,000 species, each with their own arrangement of dots. If I have made you think about your life and your thoughts, I am satisfied.