Mar 5, 2016

5 min read

Tracy on Medium — Articles, Memoir and Musings, and Fiction

#1 Articles

Why Can’t We Be Treated Like Intelligent Citizens?

Keeping us in the dark in lockdown increases our anxiety

medium.com

Successful Writers Know What Habits to Break

Hearing the dawn chorus before bed is a bad writing habit

medium.com

Get Out of Jail Card for the Lonely

Loneliness is a hidden threat that needs urgent attention

medium.com

With Life on Its Head Materialism Is Left Behind

This pandemic has opened our eyes to what matters

medium.com

Locking Us up to Stop Coronavirus Will Do More Harm Than Good

Banning outdoor exercise needs careful consideration. It isn’t just our physical health at stake.

medium.com

Beyond Veganuary: Turning Over a New Leaf About Food

The plants vs animals food war is raging but with climate change threatening our future, it’s time for a truce.

medium.com

Jewel in the Crown: New Zealand’s Yellow-Eyed Penguin

Bird of the Year 2019, this charismatic penguin lives on the brink

medium.com

Autumn Is the Perfect Time for a Feast Of Fungi

Head to the woods for the magical mushrooms

medium.com

Catios and Collars Cool for Cats and Wildlife

An outdoor haven for cats and a collar that warns birds could be the purr-fect solution to cat predation on wildlife

medium.com

Middle-Aged? Forget the Retirement Dream: There’s Work to Do

Generation X has the clout to tackle the climate crisis

medium.com

Why Do Meat-Eaters Feel Threatened by Vegans?

Is there any rational basis or is it just personal?

medium.com

‘No Outsiders’ storybooks for children met with intolerance

Do parents have the right to stop schools teaching diversity because it goes against their beliefs?

medium.com

Climate Change Activists Attacked by Eco-Hating Denier

Spiked journalist unleashes a venomous attack on Greta Thunberg and London protestors fighting for change

medium.com

Can We Justify Killing Some Animals to Save Others?

Humans have a complex relationship with animals, ranking them in a hierarchy of utilisation and affection according to…

medium.com

Why Veganuary is becoming a little tiresome (even for vegans)

After the customary behaviour of overspending in a Christmas shopping frenzy and eating until our zips are fit to pop…

medium.com

Plastic waste: be part of the solution not the problem

Covering 71 per cent of the Earth’s surface and deeper in places than Mount Everest is tall, oceans have long been a…

medium.com

Books to inspire you to a healthy compassionate life

Books that challenge our beliefs and behaviour have the power to change us

medium.com

Why there should be no black and white in veganism (if animal welfare is the priority)

How can veganism not be a black-and-white philosophy? After all, causing pain and suffering to animals is black and…

medium.com

Education and communication: the cornerstone for change

Education is the foundation from which societies improve on past ways of living. Whether knowledge is communicated in…

medium.com

Why ‘Heads Together’ is not spreading helplessness (quite the opposite)

Supported by Princes William and Harry and the Duchess of Cambridge, the Heads Together campaign is a collaboration…

medium.com

Vegan quibblers hinder positive change

I recently read a post on Plant Based News reporting that health expert Dr Oz dedicated an entire episode of his show…

medium.com

Blind love for cats is killing our songbirds

As cat ownership soars, we need a radical change in attitude to save mammals and songbirds

medium.com

How watching a housefly can change your view

A small housefly landed on my yellow-eyed penguin coaster. It shuffled to the penguin’s white breast and stopped, dead…

medium.com

Create a cafe for garden birds and feel good

Help garden birds through the winter and feel the warmth of nature

medium.com

Why we need to re-think cultural traditions

Since starting my Nature in Mind blog, my research on wildlife conservation and animal welfare has left me reflecting…

medium.com

Must we teach our children to kill?

The slaying of Cecil the lion epitomises everything that’s wrong with a hunting culture that seems to be more about…

medium.com

Pet trade spurs poaching of African grey parrot

Our fascination with intelligent parrots drives the harvesting of wild birds, including the much-loved and fast…

medium.com

How to Become An Overnight Social Outcast

Make a decision to lose weight, change career, or have children, and friends and family generally meet the change with…

medium.com

New Zealand dairy cruelty divides opinion and loyalty

The dark side of the dairy industry could see more consumers making ethical choices.

medium.com

Owners deny cats are killing wildlife

Research suggests owners are reluctant to accept the cat predation risk to wildlife and a cat welfare approach may be…

medium.com

#2 Memoir and Musings

Invisible in the Cloak of Depression

To beat depression, we need to find our voice

medium.com

Free Range to End of Range

Food menu discourse appeals to our desires but there is a dark side to satiety

medium.com

Emigration: A Journey of Loss, Survival and Love

Moving to New Zealand was meant to give us a better life. But we left behind more than we ever imagined

medium.com

There’s a Chav Outside My Window

I want to scream in this crazy coronavirus lockdown

medium.com

Searching for an elusive owl

An extract from my short memoir on searching for New Zealand’s native owl.

medium.com

If We Could Choose Our Dad, Choosing a Card Would Be Easy

Choosing a Father’s Day card has always been a difficult task for me. It isn’t the lack of suitable images that makes…

medium.com

“I’m not lonely. I’m fine.”

A book came today, unexpectedly. I hadn’t ordered anything. I’ve been considering Persuasive Copywriting or White…

medium.com

To lonely mums today — you’re not alone

Today is Mother’s Day in the UK, Ireland, Isle of Man, Jersey, and Guernsey. On this special we show appreciation for…

medium.com

Spellbound

Standing in shallows where surf meets sand, quickening ripples lick my toes and lap my ankles in frothy delight. Master…

medium.com

Laburnums and loneliness

She leans her bike against the wall and talks to her friend, at least I’m guessing friend because she’s smiling. As I…

medium.com

Time to get off my backside and confront him

He’s been coming round a lot lately, persuading me and pretending to have my best interests at heart when really he’s a…

medium.com

Grief has many faces

For several years I’ve been grieving, although at first I didn’t know my feelings could be described as grief. No-one…

medium.com

Miscarriage

It was seven years before I could look at pregnant women, babies and toddlers without feeling a deep sense of loss. I…

medium.com

Spiritual harmony with simpler way of life

“There is more to life than increasing its speed” — Mahatma Gandhi

medium.com

Thank you Mr Edwards

A letter to thank a dedicated teacher and all those like him

medium.com

#3 Fiction

Top Dog

I know what you’ll think. Forty two years old, still living with Mother and no long term relationship on the horizon…

medium.com

Iced Coffee

Well stuff you, Kerri said under her breath as she strode back to the coffee machine.

medium.com

Lemon Moments

Jane measured two and a quarter cups of self-raising flour into the bowl. She had made these lemon muffins many times…

medium.com

Respite in Nature

A short story of urban stress and the need for respite in nature.

medium.com

Tracy is a freelance writer, copywriter and copy editor specialising in health, nature, sustainable living and education. Get in touch at
tracybrightenwriter.com | Nature in Mind | @TracyBrighten1