End of Summer 2026
We are now moving into the latter part of summer here at Naduir. The garden is full, the greenhouse is thriving, the honey harvest is coming in, and we are beginning to notice the first signs of the season slowly turning.
Summer in the garden
The greenhouse we built last year is really beginning to settle into itself. The grapes are thriving, and we have planted peach trees and several more vines, so we are hoping for an abundance of fruit in the years ahead.
We have also had Luis, our garden helper from Spain, working with us for the past four weeks. He spent seven weeks with us last year, and it has been such a delight to welcome him back.
It looks like it will be a very good year for apples. The beetroot is doing well, the potatoes have been amazing, and there is more basil than we quite know what to do with. The leeks, meanwhile, have all gone to seed!
The harvesting and preserving have already begun. So far, I have made honeygar, lemon balm cordial, orange cordial, pickled onions and crème de cassis. Coming into late August and September, I will begin pickling beetroot and beans, freezing vegetables and preparing food for the big pots of stew that will carry us through the colder months.
Soon we will reach that point in the year when something needs to be harvested almost every day. It is such a full and satisfying part of the seasonal cycle: gathering what has grown and finding ways to preserve a little of the summer for later.
A family wedding at Naduir
In June, Josef’s daughter Emma married Victor.
We had several very full weeks of preparations, visitors, flowers, food and celebration. Victor’s family stayed with us for the week before the wedding, and it was wonderful to have both families gathering here.
We hosted some beautiful big dinners, held the wedding brunch at Naduir and arranged the flowers for the wedding. There was a real feeling of family and community, with everyone working together to bring the celebration to life.
We wish Emma, Victor and Louis a long, happy and wonderful life together.
The World Massage Championship
In July, I travelled to Copenhagen as part of Team Ireland to compete in the World Massage Championship.
It was a fascinating and very rich experience. I came home with many new insights into massage, bodywork and the difference between working in the treatment room and presenting a treatment within a competition.
It gave me a renewed appreciation for the many layers of touch: rhythm, movement, creativity, responsiveness and the relationship between technique and the person receiving the treatment. I am still allowing everything I experienced and learned to settle into my hands and into my work.
Remembering Poppy
Our lovely old dog Poppy died this summer at the age of 14.
She had been slowing down over the past few years, and during the last few months it became increasingly clear that she was nearing the end of her life. She died very gently in her sleep. Poppy was always a little bit ditzy, a little bit odd and a very funny little dog.
Sunday mornings in Furbo
I have recently joined a local walking and running group that meets at Furbo Beach at 8am every Sunday morning.
There is a four-kilometre loop, with the option to walk, run or continue onto a longer route. I am really enjoying the rhythm and routine of meeting people there each week.
I have started working with a new coach as I gradually find my way back into running. Since breaking my leg, returning to it has been a much slower process than I expected. I am also steadily working on my handstands again. Both can feel slow and laborious at times, but there are signs that things are changing and becoming stronger and more stable.
Sunday morning at 9am on Furbo Beach, our sea swims continue as always, although they are often more like sea dips. We float around, chat, laugh and solve all the world’s problems.
There is something very special about that combination of connection, cold and resilience. We often find ourselves saying how grateful we are that we can do it, that we choose to do it and that we have the health and wellness that allow us to keep showing up.
Honey from Naduir
It has been a very good year for honey, and the new summer honey has now been harvested.
Jars are available for €12 from the little shop at the road and from the waiting rooms at Naduir.
We still have a small amount of last year’s Winter Wellness honey available. This is made from ivy honey and contains propolis. Once the remaining jars are gone, the next Winter Wellness harvest will not be ready until October.
There is a lovely continuity to the honey year: as one harvest comes to an end, the next one is already beginning.
Josef teaching in Kyiv
Josef has recently returned from teaching craniosacral seminars in Kyiv.
His time there has brought another layer of awareness and experience back to us at Naduir: an understanding of the intensity people are living with, the day-to-day challenges and the weight placed on the nervous system when vigilance and uncertainty are woven into daily life.
There is something deeply moving about people continuing to gather, study and practise the arts of touch, support and co-regulation while living under such pressure.
Ducklings, fish and the summer river
We currently have lots of little ducklings. We have had to cover their enclosure carefully because the heron comes looking for them. We can see the marks from its beak on the protective netting above them.
The very dry weather has also affected the little stream beside the ducks and geese. As the water level dropped and stopped flowing, some of the fish began to die. We have been pumping water from the river into the stream to improve the flow and oxygenate the water. We hope this will support the fish and help the stream return to health.
Living here keeps us in very direct contact with these delicate relationships between rain, river, soil, plants, animals and ourselves.
Returning to yoga in September
In September, I will return to teaching in-person yoga in Knocknacarra, alongside our online morning yoga practice.
The intention for September will be Connectivity.
We will explore connectivity within the body and our relationship with our bodies; the connection between our inner experience and its expression in the outside world; and the many ways our habits, relationships and daily choices support our wellness.
How do we experience connection within ourselves?
How does one part of the body communicate with another?
How do we connect with what resources us?
How do we create greater connectivity between the practices we value and the way we actually live?
Our online morning yoga will run for 21 days during September, creating a steady rhythm of movement, awareness and connection as we move into autumn.
Life in the clinics
The clinics at Naduir are thriving.
We have some lovely craniosacral students preparing to enter their second year of training in September. They are doing beautiful work through the student clinics and developing their confidence, presence and sensitivity.
Acupuncture, homoeopathy, psychotherapy, craniosacral therapy, massage and our other therapies continue throughout the year. It is wonderful to feel the treatment rooms being used by such a diverse group of practitioners and to see people coming through the doors for support, connection and care.
For now, we are continuing to enjoy the latter part of summer: cycling, walking in the mountains, camping, outdoor fires, marshmallows, sea swims and long evenings.
There is still plenty of summer left to live, harvest and enjoy before we return to our fuller rhythm in September.
GIFT VOUCHERS AVAILABLE
Give the gift of wellness with massage, craniosacral therapy, or general Naduir gift vouchers. Perfect for your loved ones or for yourself! Email info@naduir.com for more details.
NEW CLINICS
We’re thrilled to welcome 2 new therapists: our very own Sinead, who has been part of the Naduir team for a long time and is now joining us as a therapist offering Life, Parenting & Addiction Coaching Online. And Almu, who practices Neuromuscular Massage & Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy here in Naduir. Instagram @almucraniosacralyoga so wonderful to have new practitioners of such skill joining us!
With love from all of us at Naduir.
Ciara, Josef and Sinead (The Naduir Team 🌿✨)
