Hi friends and hello new friends — so happy you found me. So many new faces this week! I’m Catherine Greer, author, Canadian-Aussie, lover of beaches and baking. Now that you’re here, you’ll get a little shot of inspiration in your inbox every Sunday.

Let’s go!

Last month, we visited Canberra to pick up the world’s sweetest puppy and we stopped for tea and cake at a gorgeous cafe and bakery called Via Dolce Pasticceria.

The rose crockery!

The Italian vibe!

The walls of cakes!

The entire cafe was filled with joy. Of course it was—because how could you not enjoy the absolute miracle of being alive in a place that looks like this?

The tiny cafe had decor that sings, “Get in here, girls, and celebrate something!”

And so we did.

I’m a big believer in scanning for the joy…and the reason is not because my life has been easy.

Honestly, I haven’t swanned around with everything working out for me. And I’m guessing neither have you.

Is EVERYTHING coming up roses?

Does everything always work, and all at the same time?

Nope.

We’re wise enough to know that there’s rarely a time when all the worries float away, and every little thing is great. Life is such a mix of joy and pain, with loads of privileges (hot water, living in safety, people to love) and so much hurt and disappointment.

That’s why, when things are rough, I believe in asking this question—I wrote about it in my best-loved book, The 10 Minute Fix.

(Whoops — Evie just ate that sticky note! And yep, I still read and re-read my own book because I need all these reminders, too.)

How is this working in my favour?

We can ask this of the good and the bad, and we always, always, always have the option to look for what’s working and take tiny steps forward.

I hope something unexpected and fun comes your way today. (And yes, I hope that for you, almost everything’s coming up roses).

Love, Catherine x

PS. The fun stuff!

• Happy Canada Day! 🇨🇦 Have you watched the beautiful Carlotta Edwards on this frozen lake?

• Need to regrow thinning eyebrows or a gap where you over-plucked? This serum is pricey but it works for me. I’ve used it for two months, every night, and my eyebrow gap is filling in. (I noticed the change after 7 weeks of continuous daily use).

• The history behind the saying, ‘Everything’s coming up roses’ is here.

• You can take a look at Via Dolce Pasticceria here. Yum!

• New friends — you can meet me, my family, my life here.

• And because so many of you are new — my best loved book, The 10 Minute Fix, is here in Canada, in America, in the UK, in Germany and in Australia. If you love to write, there’s a beautiful 6x9 inch The 10 Minute Fix Journal too, and every page is different, with over 200 writing prompts. You can get your journal here in America, in Canada, in the UK and in Australia.