Somerset
Online
Open
Katharine Thompson
I am a Spiritual Director who also loves trail running. In recent years I have experienced the healing wisdom that comes from listening to our bodies and now find myself working where faith, nature, and embodied practice meet. Whether sitting quietly while tuning into physical sensations or through gentle movement. I live in the Mendips Hills in Somerset where running in nature has become an expansive and reflective space to encounter God. My roots are in the Christian tradition and I find myself increasingly open and curious as I encounter the mystery and connection between all things.
I am recovering activist having spent more than three decades in international development and social justice work before a mid-life invitation to shift the emphasis from ‘doing’ to ‘being with.’ After training as a Spiritual Director I love to journey alongside and as a trail runner much of my life sits at the meeting point of faith, nature, and embodied practice. I offer one‑to‑one accompaniment from my home, online, or out walking or running in the Mendip hills where I live. The transforming power of movement in nature came to me in my late forties and quickly became a spacious, reflective rhythm where I believe the gentle pace and changing terrain help us listen, restore balance, and notice the quiet ways God speaks.
Whether we are sitting together in person or online, or out in nature, when I accompany someone, my hope is to create a space where you can bring your whole self—your joys, questions, and sorrows—into the loving presence of God. I see spiritual accompaniment as a ministry of compassionate presence, grounded in the here and now, trusting the Holy Spirit as the true director in our conversations. Whether we sit together or move through nature side by side, I aim to be an attentive, unhurried, and welcoming companion as you explore who God is for you and who you are for God.
I trained as a Spiritual Director at Sarum College, Salisbury. My roots are in the Christian tradition and my belief in unconditional love and acceptance shapes the way I accompany others—gently, openly, and with a deep trust that God meets us in the ordinary movements of our lives.
A place that feels thin, holy, or spiritually alive to me
The woodland paths near home
A book I return to because it stays fresh and keeps me company
Earthed in God by Christopher Chapman
A question I find myself living with these days
What it means to be truly present in the current moment
A simple daily practice that steadies me
My time of silent meditation in the morning
A meal I love making for other people
Any meal where the majority of ingredients were homegrown or locally sourced
A journey that changed me, outwardly or inwardly
A year in Mexico working with street youth in my late teens
Something that reliably draws my attention back to what matters
A grounding breath that brings me back to the here and now
A piece of music that still stops me when I hear it
Brian Eno’s An Ending – this piece of music was playing as our first son was born and it still takes me back to that moment
A moment when I realised something important had shifted for me
The moment I realised that the most helpful thing I could ‘do’ for someone I deeply cared for was absolutely nothing!
Something ordinary I find unexpectedly meaningful
Watching the sun break through the clouds always gives me a sense of hope