To Sing with Bards and Angels

To Sing with Bards and Angels is an invitation to travel through landscapes evoked by beautiful language, into the heart of nature and imagination.

Step into the magic of a creative spiritual journey through the descriptive voice of a contemporary Bard, as she shares her quest to live and work in harmony with the Creative Spirit, writing her way into being, turning her life into poetry and story.

With help from an angel and a full moon shining on the ocean, Iona Jenkins blends this potion of inspiration from a treasury of memories, her love of wisdom, sacred places, native landscapes, legends, the arts and nature, all served in a cup of creative possibility for those aspiring to live with wisdom and soul as spiritual artists. A few sprinklings of practical suggestions, optional meditations and tasks are added to help readers discover inspiration flowing through the unique song of their own lives.

Iona Jenkins is an author, creative writer, and poet with an MA in Education (Guidance and Counselling) from Brunel University, professional diplomas in Person-Centered Counseling from Metanoia Institute London, Clinical Hypnotherapy then Hypnotherapy and Psychotherapy with the Institute of Clinical Hypnosis, London.

Iona began working life as a French teacher in her home county of Yorkshire. Several years later, in London, she mentored newly qualified as well as trainee teachers in the languages department of her school, attending evening lectures and seminars to complete her MA. Enthusiasm for mentoring and the therapeutic content of the degree course inspired her to retrain on weekends as a counselor/psychotherapist and clinical hypnotherapist. Employed on a part-time basis with clients in multi-ethnic settings, Iona was also able to freelance as a counseling skills trainer and to develop her private practice, including employee assistance programs and hypnotherapy. She achieved B.A.C.P accreditation which she held until she retired from the profession. Moving from London to the Vale of Glamorgan in Wales brought Iona a more relaxed, creative life. Her long-held dream of sharing a vision of beauty, harmony, peace, and wisdom through creative, mystical writing began to blossom into reality when she won a competition for her first self-published collection of poetry and reflections, followed by descriptive prose showcased in Kindred Spirit Magazine and poems published in various editions of Touchstone.

A passionate interest in personal and spiritual growth spanning many years has inspired Iona's exploration of Eastern and Western spiritual philosophies and practices, the idea of a language of angels, as a stream of inspiration, creative wisdom, and beauty, flowing through everything, the energies of sacred sites both at home and abroad, and labyrinth walking. After meditating with Tibetan Buddhists in London, then studying mindfulness with Samye Ling Wales and the Mindfulness Association, Iona finally found her spiritual home with the Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids. She is also a Companion of Chalice Well, supporting the Trust's ethos of "Many Paths One Source."
Exploring growth and change through her creativity, Iona's path of art and soul is inspired by angels, wisdom, nature, land, and legend, living by the sea on the south coast of magical Wales.