The Art of Starting Again

In collaboration with Club Avandra, we share Marianne Jones’ powerful reflection on reinvention, resilience and unexpected freedom.

We are delighted to share that we have recently partnered with Club Avandra, a private members’ travel club for women, offering curated, meaningful trips for those who value depth, connection and quality experiences.

Club Avandra works differently. Their approach is intimate, thoughtful and rooted in shared experiences, rather than superficial networking. They bring together like-minded people through travel, conversation and beautifully hosted gatherings across the world. It is about intelligent company, cultural immersion and the sort of journeys that stay with you long after you have unpacked your suitcase.

Photo by Drif Riadh on Unsplash

At Bowes-Lyon, we often find ourselves living vicariously through our members’ travels. We hear about spontaneous weekends in Florence, restorative retreats in the Alps and solo adventures that quietly shift someone’s confidence. Travel, much like love, has a way of expanding us. It reminds us who we are outside of routine and responsibility. Beginning this partnership with Club Avandra feels entirely aligned with our values. Both of us believe in curated experiences, meaningful introductions and the power of stepping into a new chapter with intention.

We are therefore pleased to share a personal piece written by Club Avandra’s Lifestyle Director, Marianne Jones.

Her words are raw, unfiltered and deeply honest. In our line of work, we meet many men and women who find themselves unexpectedly single later in life. Some feel unmoored. Others feel quietly hopeful. Marianne captures that delicate space in between with remarkable vulnerability. Her story is not simply about the end of a marriage. It is about resilience, reinvention and the surprising liberation that can come from upheaval.

We applaud her courage in sharing this so openly. It speaks to something we see time and again: that life rarely follows the script we imagined, yet it can still unfold beautifully.

 Below, in her own words.

‘Suddenly single at 60 – and I’ve never felt so free’

November 11th, 2024 is a Remembrance Day I will never forget. It was the date my marriage ended shockingly and suddenly. Just like that.

The remaining few weeks of that year and much of 2025 were a bit of a blur. My husband left home the following morning, at my request, and I spent a long time in a sobbing, sleep-deprived heap on the sofa, wondering what the rest of my life would look like.

Our 27-year marriage, much of it full of banter and joy, had been smashed to bits, after a confession I heard at 9pm, still dressed in my pilates gear.

It was the immediate and the practical, rather than my entire derailed future that hit me in the aftermath: how would I navigate our youngest son’s upcoming 21st birthday with one parent short? What would our first Christmas be like without him at the table? What about our plans for my big 60th birthday? (I was keen for us to return to one of my favourite hotels in Switzerland. It has since become clear why that suggestion was met with a lukewarm response).

Yet here I am, just over a year later, having reached that landmark age, not crying into my cornflakes but busy, thriving and liberated.

I would not insult anybody who has lived through a traumatic and sudden breakup by minimising the grief I have experienced. There have been times my sons, siblings and no-nonsense friends have scooped me off the floor like human spatulas.

But I have not only survived. In many ways I have thrived.

One of my friends recently declared; ‘You’ve phoenixed it’ which is an excellent verb to describe having risen from the ashes of my former life.

I managed it by doing the exact opposite of what I had planned. Instead of slowing down, I am running at life like Forrest Gump. Instead of saying no, I am filling my diary with yesses. Crying on the sofa became boring and pointless after a while and it also stained my velvet cushions. So, my sister came as my plus one to my son’s 21st and we had a brilliant time. She and my brother-in-law stayed for Christmas – a first for us all – and cooked the best roast dinner we’ve ever had (she is a chef, which came in handy). We laughed a lot.

I took my first ever solo holiday with a group of women from all over the world – a tour of Italy that was joyous and life-affirming. I made a friend called Hayley from New Zealand, danced like no-one was watching with the owner of a fish restaurant in Sorrento and ate sorbet in Capri made from lemons the size of melons.

As for my birthday, well I’m still milking it. Instead of a Swiss minibreak, I have enjoyed at least half a dozen parties across the country with friends and family, in part to say a huge thank you for their support.

Life is a strange pendulum and while my personal life was falling to bits, my career perked up like a dose of HRT, with opportunities I have mostly said yes to. 

A mate I hadn’t seen in some time recently asked how I was feeling. The first word that came to mind was not ‘broken’ or ‘lost’ but ‘free’. My future is not how I planned it. But I’m determined to phoenix the life out of it.

For those drawn to meaningful travel, intelligent company and the sort of experiences that shape a new chapter, you can explore Club Avandra and their forthcoming gatherings via their website.

As part of our partnership, Bowes-Lyon female members have kindly been offered an exclusive membership discount to Club Avandra, ask your personal matchmaker for the code to access this offer.