Category: Blog Articles

Written by John Walters

This year, on February 6^th was the day that Her Majesty The Queen celebrated her commitment to the Throne, and she is the first British Monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee which marks 70 years of service to the people of the United Kingdom, the Realms and the Commonwealth.

And to mark this historical, and momentous occasion, we here in the United Kingdom will have celebrated over a 4 day period of festivities, parties, gatherings, concerts and many other events over a 4 day weekend starting on Thursday 2^nd June – Jubilee Weekend!

And on the Thursday, our founder John travelled in to London to witness the Trooping of the Colour as a guest of the Royal British legion.

Over 1400 parading soldiers, 200 horses and 400 musicians came together in a great display of military precision, horsemanship and fanfare to mark not only The Queen’s official birthday, but also her 70 years on the Throne.

The streets were lined with crowds waving flags as the parade moved from Buckingham Palace and down The Mall to Horse Guard’s Parade, alongside Members of the Royal Family on horseback and in carriages. The display closed with an RAF fly-past, watched by Members of the Royal Family from Buckingham Palace balcony.

“It was an incredible occasion to witness and experience, a real piece of history which will never be witnessed again by anyone alive today, I am so honoured and grateful to have been here and see first hand, it’s something I will never forget”

The weekend celebrations carried on with John camping with friends and loved ones. A time spent in nature walking, exploring,  playing games, cooking on the BBQ, and of course enjoying a few drinks and raising a glass (or three lol) to Her Majesty.

We’re sure that you will all agree that the 4 day weekend was well received, much appreciated, and thoroughly enjoyed no matter what you were doing. Whether you celebrated the Jubilee or not, having a 3 day week followed by a 4 day weekend was pretty special wasn’t it, and we do hope that you all managed to find some time for reflection, recuperation, and rest. What ever you were doing or did, we just hope you managed to enjoy it.

The Good, The Bad, The Struggle

Written by John Walters, Founder & Director of Questae Collective

Father’s Day is celebrated on the third Sunday of June every year, so this year that’s Sunday 21^st

Father’s day is about celebrating, and giving thanks for the male role models in our lives, and to be fair this doesn’t mean Dad’s in the literal sense, it can (and should) also be a time to celebrate any male role model, so that can be a grandfather, uncle, brother, step father, or even a family friend. It can also sometimes mean Mum – yea, why not. I’m sure you, as I, know a number of Mum’s who have no choice but to be Dad as well, so why shouldn’t they get to celebrate two days, I mean some of these ‘super mums’ are literally doing both roles! And yea some Dad’s do as well so remember this when it comes to Mother Day as well eh.

The history of Father’s Day is interesting in that Mother’s Day, or Mothering Sunday to be correct, is a traditional Christian celebration whereas Father’s Day was started by a lady called Sonora Smart Dodd in the USA back in the early Twentieth Century. The UK then followed suit and Father’s Day as we know it was born.

For more history on Father’s Day here’s a link Father’s Day In The UK (labante.co.uk)

There is no doubt that Father’s Day is a wonderful day and, as a Dad myself, a day that I very much appreciate, but I know that there are a lot of people that struggle, and this can be for many reasons.

As I say above, I love Father’s Day, but I very rarely get to spend it with my children, and I never get to spend it with my Dad, I would call him of course, but it wasn’t the same, and because of this I used to really struggle with the day, I would shut myself away, watch films, drink a few beers, eat crap food, and mope the day away in solitude.

And sadly this is an experience I know a lot of people will recognise. In fact the leadup to the day can also cause a lot of anxiety, stress, and depressive episodes as well as emotions such as sadness, loss, anger, loneliness, confusion, bitterness, fear and a lack of self worth.

Written by John Walters, Founder & Director of Questae Collective

This is the second iteration of this article.

Why? Well for those of you who follow my personal instagram feed (@johncawalters), you will have seen that on the evening that I penned this, I inadvertently overwrote it, and I can tell you what, every single item from my resilience tool kit was used in that moment, every single one…oh and a very large glass of red wine!

My friend Jess suggested that the second draft would actually be better than the first. Well I do hope so – thanks Jess! Then another fiend of mine’s husband came to the rescue and the document was retrieved, happy days…and I enjoyed the wine even more lol. Thank you Scott and Lauren!

So cold water swimming, what is it all about then, and why has it become so popular?

Is it a fad, a trend, something to do to be cool (haha bad pun intended!), or is there something deeper, more meaningful, and real about the many
benefits claimed to be enjoyed? Well let’s take a look shall we, but before we do I want to be honest here and say that I cannot take 100% credit for this article. You see since April last year my youngest daughter Mia, has been joining me at least once every month. She gets in no matter the
temperature and I am so proud of her for doing so, and this last weekend she created a chart outlining these benefits I will be speaking of – so thank you Mia for your input, inspiration, and cold water swimming companionship!

Written by John Walters, Founder & Director of Questae Collective

We celebrated the spring (vernal) Equinox on March 20th which is when the sun is in direct line with the equator giving us equal light and equal dark.

The Equinox marks the passing and end of winter, and we step into Spring. The season where everything reawakens, new life reaches out from the slumbering earth, the branches are filled with blossom, the sun
shines longer, it’s warmer against our skin, there is a sweet freshness in the air, and often we feel lifted and liberated escaping from the dark long cold wet winter.

For many there is excitement and anticipation for the longer, lighter (and warmer) months ahead, and it is at this time of year when we start to think about the spring clean, but what does that really mean?

For many it is a simple task of opening the windows and letting that freshness of air rush through to cleanse our homes. For others it maybe a time to clean out the mind, to reset, recalibrate our thoughts, our emotions, and how we see the world. Less obvious than the New Year’s resolutions yet still apparent and there for us to consider.

I’m John, founder of Questae Collective. My mental health journey started many years ago, but I always managed to paper over the cracks. After serving in the Army, I built a career in the world of office design and furnishings, working with many of the field’s most forward-thinking, respected creative visionaries along the way.

After the very difficult breakdown of my first marriage left me with no contact with my three children, my mental health suffered, and I left my home city of Manchester. I relocated to Margate, remarried, and after seven rounds of IVF, was blessed with twins. I also started to rebuild my
relationships with my older children.