In this creative feature, we have photography from someone supported by Future Pathways.
These are examples of multiple exposure photography. This means making a photograph from more than one picture. We also find out more about the creative process.
“The project is about being multiple. At first, the pictures might look a bit random, but they’re really intentional — and that’s an important word in photography. Like us. Many of us were made intentionally by trauma. We’re showing truth in layers.
They show that we can lean into the ugly truths, and that some kinds of beauty can come from it. Hopefully the photographs help people feel — and maybe they can also give some hope to others going through hard times, that creating can be a way through.
Lots of us see the results before the shots are taken. The picture is already ‘there’ before the lens. Sometimes the photo ends up looking that way, sometimes it doesn’t — but more and more, it does now.
Working more with film especially has been different — more challenging, because it means slowing down and trusting the process. Not running ahead in a flee response. Waiting, seeing, and accepting whatever develops.
We’ve not had any formal education (school or photography) — everything has come through trying, failing, and finding our way. Learning as we go has worked best. It means the work isn’t about following rules, but about making something real.
It’s also been important having supportive relationships with other photographers. Sharing, learning, and being encouraged has helped us grow, and it makes the process less lonely. That kind of support, alongside the photography itself, has made a huge difference.”
Get creative in the kitchen! ND, who is registered with Future Pathways, shares his recipes with us. Made alongside his friend SN.
Below we have the recipe for banana bread. You can download the booklet which has recipes for:
- Banana bread
- Carrot cake
- Quick pizza
- Leek and potato gratin
- Creamy chicken and mushroom soup
- Easy chicken noodle soup
- Rhubarb custard tart
Banana bread
Ingredients:
100 grams, soft butter
175 grams, caster sugar
2 eggs
2 ripe bananas, mashed
1 teaspoon of baking powder
2 tablespoons of milk
You will also need a loaf tin, one that is about 17cm x 9cm x 9cm.
Method:
Pre-heat the oven to 180C / 350F / gas mark 4. Lightly grease the loaf tin with a little bit of butter and line it with non-stick baking paper. Set aside.
1. Put all the ingredients into a mixing bowl. Beat them together for about 2 minutes until they are blended well. You can use an electric mixer or do it by hand with a wooden spoon.
2. Spoon the mixture into the tin and make sure the top of the mixture is level.
3. Bake for about 1 hour, until it is well risen and golden brown. When you put a knife or a skewer into the loaf, it should come out clean.
4. Take the loaf out of the oven and leave it to cool in the tin for a few minutes.
5. Loosen the edges with a knife and turn the loaf out.
6. Remove the lining paper and leave the loaf to cool on a wire rack.
7. Serve the loaf in thick slices.
Looking for more recipes? Check out ‘A Taste for Flavour’, with recipes for cookies, soups, pasta and more.
Rikki shares his experience of volunteering with different groups and projects. He talks about two projects at Future Pathways – Making Pathways Together and Voices for a Better Future. He also shares his experience of opening up at Andy’s Man Club. And about advocating for support with Stroke Association and Stroke Awareness Month.
Please note that the article contains a reference to suicide.
Voices for a Better Future
To be perfectly honest with you, and with everyone I’ve met around the desks and tables, my induction felt like putting on a new pair of slippers. Comfortable, familiar, and quietly life-changing.
After bouncing back from a dark and lonely chapter of my own choosing, I found myself, at the age of 58, under the umbrella of Future Pathways. And that felt safe. I got involved with a group called Making Pathways Together.
One of our first tasks was to design a front page of a newspaper. My headline was a photograph of my great-grandmother from 1893, dressed in her Sunday best with her children. Alongside it, a photo of me and my three brothers from 1963, also in our Sunday best, taken at the Glasgow Barras.
The contrast struck me: in 70 years, children’s lives hadn’t necessarily improved. Perhaps because the grandmother had once been the matriarch, the anchor.
When I spoke about changing the status quo, my voice cracked. Four members of the group responded, saying I couldn’t have spoken a truer word. That moment made it easy to come up with the name Voices for a Better Future.
The rest followed naturally. To celebrate our third birthday felt emotionally taxing like having a child of my own.
Andy’s Man Club
Having a stroke was a scenario I didn’t see coming. It took me three days to accept that I was entering a new chapter one that would change me inside and out, in both the waking world and the quiet corners of my mind. I took the pain and the loneliness and ran with it.
Learning to walk again felt like mimicking a Madagascar monkey but I’ve always found it easy to laugh at myself. After three months and two hospitals, I was discharged. Six weeks of shouting at the care I was receiving led me to discharge the early discharge team myself.
Then came a turning point: a visit from the wellbeing team. As she was walking out the door, she asked if I’d ever heard of Andy’s Man Club. That weekend, I read everything I could about the charity. By Monday morning, I was asking to join a Zoom meeting.
It was a wake-up call. Anger and frustration were still flowing from my pores, but what I heard from those men of all ages stopped me in my tracks. Stories of suicide, grief, loss of sons, daughters, siblings, friends. My head and heart poured out for them.
After three months, the affiliated members asked if I had any wise words for the group. I started sending feedback to Facebook, telling the outside world what I’d learned. A problem shared is a problem halved.
At the last meeting, I sat quietly and thanked them for having my back, like I had theirs.
Stroke awareness work with Stroke Association
Stroke Awareness isn’t just something I do, it’s something I live. I didn’t see the changes at first. But I feel them now. I feel like a content man.
My journey began with confusion, pain, and a stubborn refusal to be boxed in. I’ve spoken at forums, shared poetry, and offered practical advice to others navigating recovery.
I advocate for better transport, digital access, and respectful care especially for survivors in rural areas. I use humour to soften the hard edges, and storytelling to make the invisible visible.
Whether it’s helping someone find the right train platform or sharing a poem that captures the fog of fatigue, I try to make life a little easier for those who follow.
Closing Reflection
And if I were to bottle this journey, it wouldn’t be neat. It would hold:
- A bat’s left eye—watchful in the dark
- A Cyclops’ toenail—ground into powder, stubborn and strange
- A whisper of Queen—A Touch of Magic still ringing in the air
- One of Medusa’s living snakes—truth that can’t be tamed
- A mezcal gusano larva—hold the tequila, keep the grit
- Coconut water mixed into a drinkable cocktail of memory and resilience
- And a coin for the ferryman because every crossing deserves honour
People don’t want miracles but a light to guide them will do.
Find out more
Making Pathways Together
Making Pathways Together was a project that looked at how we can improve the experience of the people we support. The project was online and ran from 2020 to 2022. The people who took part created posters. These were like the front page of a magazine or a newsletter. They showed their ideas for how to improve Future Pathways.
Voices for a Better Future
Voices for a Better Future is a survivors voice group. It brings together people who experienced abuse or neglect while they were children in the Scottish care system. Members of the group want to make a difference. They want to help improve services and support.
Andy’s Man Club
Andy’s Man Club offers free peer-to-peer support groups for men across the United Kingdom. Groups are both face-to-face and online. They aim to end stigma about men’s mental health through confidential, judgement-free spaces where men can open up.
Stroke Association
The Stroke Association is Scotland’s leading stroke-specific charity providing lifelong support for all stroke survivors and their families. It provides information and support online, by phone and in the community.
ND likes to make jewellery. He does this with his friends. Together they teach other people how to make jewellery too. Below are examples of their brilliant work.
ND makes lots of jewellery. He says: “Your working hands will make your jewellery of 100% good quality. Each person that does the jewellery can get enjoyment, relaxation and the time it takes will help you feel calm. You can learn quickly if you pay attention. You could help others to do the same or you could do this as a hobby at home. Give yourself a pat on the back for making jewellery.”
ND kindly sent Future Pathways a kit for making a bracelet so that we could show pictures of the process. These are included below, along with instructions for how to make a bracelet.
You will need:
• 21 beads
• 21 different coloured beads or ‘spacers’
• Elastic
• Clear nail varnish
• Scissors
Optional: if you want to add a charm to your bracelet, you will also need a charm, a charm carrier and a jump ring. (A jump ring connects different pieces together, for example it will connect the charm to the charm carrier.)
1 – Start by threading one colour bead onto elastic then another different colour bead.
2 – Repeat this 20 times.
3 – Add the charm to the charm carrier using the jump ring. Then add the charm to the bracelet.
4 – Tie a knot three times.
5 – Coat the knot with clear nail varnish. This will help it stay tied.
6 – Cut off the longer ends of the elastic and your bracelet is done!
Donald loves to be creative. Here, he shares examples of jewellery that he has made.
Beatrice writes about lots of different topics. She writes poems about different emotions, stress and also the memories of people who have passed away. She has written two books. One is called ‘Tales of Ether: Stories of Wonder’. And the other is called ‘Tales of Terra: Poems of Life’. These books are full of different stories and poetry. Beatrice has dedicated her books to her teacher and to her niece.
My Epilepsy
On the day I found that I had epilepsy,
it was hard for me to understand and take in
my lifestyle had to change a lot
which was not easy for me to do
I had to be bit more careful when out and about.
My epilepsy makes me very speedy and chatty
and sometimes unaware of my surrounding
I feel a little spaced out
When I am spaced out, I think I can’t do much on those days.
I feel I’m in a different dimension.
It’s like being in Alice in Wonderland or down
the rabbit hole.
Having epilepsy doesn’t make me any different person
but it makes me a special person to be around
Epilepsy is not something to be afraid of or run away from either
LET EMBRACE IT
LET BE STRONG WITH IT
LET SHARE OUR STORY WITH THE WORLD
My Dyslexia
I wish I was different and not broken
I wish I could hear and understand
I wish I didn’t have dyslexia.
And it is not my fault
I was born with it
But I’m broken
I’m hard of hearing and don’t always understand things
I do have dyslexia and I don’t care
Where I’m broken or not broken
I’m proud of who I am and what I have became in life
Read more of Beatrice’s poetry and writing
You can read and download both of Beatrice’s books as PDFs at the links below.
Donald shares his recipe for cookies. And you can also download a booklet of his other recipes (including coups and pasta) at the bottom of the page.
Donald’s recipe for egg-free cookies
Ingredients:
Butter – 250 grams
Caster sugar – 250 grams
Vanilla essence – 2 teaspoons
Self-raising flour – 400 grams (plus a little bit extra for dusting)
Baking powder – 2 teaspoons
Optional: you can also add in milk chocolate chips (50 grams) or cocoa powder (2 tablespoons)
This recipe makes around 18-24 medium cookies or 30 small cookies.
Method:
Heat the oven to 180C / 160C fan / gas mark 4.
1. In a large bowl, mix together the butter and sugar using a wooden spoon or an electric whisk. Do this until the mixture is light and fluffy.
2. Stir in the vanilla essence, flour and baking powder. If you need to, add 1 tablespoon of water to bring the mixture together. If you are adding chocolate chips or cocoa powder, put them in now. Then bring the dough together into a ball with your hands.
3. Sprinkle some flour over your work surface and on the dough too. Roll out the dough until it is 3mm thick. Cut out the cookies using cookie cutters. Then lay them out on baking trays lined with baking paper. Make sure you space the cookies apart.
4. Bake for about 12 minutes or until golden brown. If you are using two baking trays in the oven, swap the trays over halfway through cooking. When the cookies are done, leave them on the baking sheets for 5 minutes then transfer them to a wire rack to cool.
The cookies will keep in an airtight tin for 3 to 4 days. Enjoy!
Do you enjoy cooking and baking?
You can view and download more of Donald’s recipes at the link below.
In Beatrice’s writing about her dreamworld, she takes us on a journey to a mystical castle.
My lucid dream
I became lucid and then I went out of the window, and fall into the boat that was passing by with a person looking at and said ‘come and join me here’. When I looked closer, it was the double of me.
We rowed together across the river to the land for a bit, away from the window. We ended by the land with a castle and knight guarding it. On the facade there was huge banner like golden and a full phoenix-like bird which was protecting the castle and land around it, and all the castle was water and figures made out of stone. They looked like people.
As we both got out the boat, my twin started walk toward it. But I stayed still and unaware and frightened to follow her. She turned around and said to me ‘Come with me and meet the rest of dreamers here at the castle.’
I was unsure about this but followed her anyway as I was fascinated about it all. The few figures around the mound of the castle were scary to me. My twin say, ‘There are people that didn’t follow the guide line here’.
One statue stood out from the rest of them, it was a bird with big wide wings. I said to my twin about it and she said that it is the phoenix that guards the castle when we are here and not here.
But to right of the phoenix statue there was a warrior girl. She was slightly bigger than the bird statue and she was looking up at the bird like she was ready to get on it to ride it. I asked again who the girl warrior girl was. My twin said, ‘She is our lady of the castle here’. I than I said, ‘She has a name that she goes by?’ and my twin said ‘She is queen Iona and her phoenix has a name too which is Susan. They protect the castle and surrounding ground here for us all.’
I looked and I looked at the statue of warrior girl Iona for some time. During this I swear I saw her blink at me just as the phoenix blinked too at the same time to go and meet the others inside the castle here now.
So I went with her slowly and carefully into the castle. And on occasion I looked back at the two statues there. Just before we entered the castle and the door closes, I looked again and the statue began to sparkle and came to life. Then the castle door closed behind us.
Inside the castle hall there was others like us with their twin sitting and waiting on someone to arrive. We were all waiting for a bit then I asked who are we waiting on to come here. My twin said, ‘The lady of the castle, she be here soon’. But I didn’t understand. Then my twin said ‘No one question’ and ‘Be silent here, she coming’. After a little silence, the castle door opened again and the lady Iona and her phoenix come down the aisle to front of the hall and looked at us all sitting there silently.
The phoenix roared a fireball out and she said, ‘Those who are new here come forward to the lady Iona’. So everyone got up except me as I was scared. Then they walked up to lady Iona and the phoenix. Then lady Iona said, ‘There is one person missing from the group’ and that was me.
My twin said, ‘There lady, don’t be frightened, I’ll come with you, ok.’
So we walked up together to them both and then lady said, ‘There you, my child, come here at last. As we been waiting on you to arrive here. Now, since you are all here, let’s begin the welcoming of a new dreamer to the castle and land of untold dreams.’
Then the lady Iona and phoenix started to shine and give out energy and the phoenix also energetic movements to us all. It filled the whole hall, all the dreamers too there. It lasted for a while. Then all of a sudden it went dark and light come back off in the hall again.
Then phoenix is my guardian and the human was my souls in dream world. The lady Iona said, ‘One day you will all be able to do that when the time comes for you to do so.’ I asked a question to the lady Iona: ‘When we will know the time is right for us and will we get us a bird too?’. Lady Iona said, ‘You’ll know as you will shine and sparkle on the inside and outside my child. Each of yous will have a special animal gave to you too. Now let go out and get some food and drinking.’
Once we entered the big dinner hall, there sparkled and shined a circle hanging from the ceiling above the very long table which had every food and drink in the land out. The wall and columns shine brightly. They had paintings on the wall of dreamers that come and gone. They even had everyone who was there at night.
Once the lady Iona and phoenix come in, she said ‘Please all be seated and help yourself to the things on the table.’ So that’s what we all did. Some time went by and it was getting dark in the land of dream. Then Iona said to us all, ‘It is time you leave here and go back the your world. As it will soon be light in your world.’
So, we got up and went toward the castle door, which was already open for us to go through. Susan went, ‘One moment, I have something for you before you go.’ So Susan went to the lady of Iona and said ‘what is my lady?’.
‘Don’t stop dreaming of goals in life. Now hurry, it is almost dark here.’ As I run to where the boat was waiting, I looked back at lady and phoenix and the lady Iona was once more a statue outside the castle.
Discover more
Beatrice has written two books. You can read and download both of them as PDFs at the links below.
Trevor tells us more about why he writes and shares a poem from his latest book.
Trevor covers lots of different topics in his book In My Own Words. He writes about politics, alien life forms, artificial intelligence, world religions and much more. He also includes a selection of
poetry. Trevor always encourages people to think for themselves and have their own ideas. Trevor says:
“As humanity learns more about life, the universe, and the mysteries of existence, I believe we will also learn how to cooperate—to work together for the betterment of all life. History has shown us that enlightened individuals have used their intelligence for the common good. Despite the world’s challenges, there are always good people striving for progress. I trust there always will be.”
The Frustration of the Artist
The yearning to be understood
And not be merely seen as crude
For painting pictures in the nude
Which some folk think is very good
The artist paints, and with each stroke
Of brush, depicts weight of life’s yoke
The pan of ordinary folk
Who live life hard, it is no joke
Some people think his work a waste
And oft condemn it in their haste
But artists, working with life’s “paste”
Have sensed a life that few can taste
The humanness which drives them on
And bides them work from dusk ‘til dawn
Shows mankind’s spirit has not gone
And shows that Joy has not yet flown
We are all artists in our heart
And love is where we make a start.
Some minds would like to break apart
“It’s good,” they say, “but is it Art?”
Order your copy
If you would like a copy of Trevor’s book for free, he is happy to share it over email. You can ask for a copy by emailing Trevor at t.swistchew65@gmail.com or by emailing Future Pathways at
engagement@future-pathways.co.uk.
Please note that the book does mention some instances of abuse.
You can also order a printed copy of the book from Amazon. Search ‘Trevor Swistchew In My Own Words’.
