A Mandala A Day - Superchicken Rides Again

Last weekend, I spontaneously created a private group on Facebook, to offer a safe space, in which to share a process, of creating a mandala every day, to see what would happen... I've never created a group before, but I took up the challenge, & it's going very well.

Last year for a month, a couple of online friends joined me to do this, and the effect was amazing... the boost in creative thinking was very noticeable, and I've been working hard ever since...

The image above is a personal symbol of mine, that I call "Superchicken". She appears from time to time, to encourage me to rise to life's challenges, and to remind me that I can do so many things if I just try...

Superchicken arrived this morning, to re-assure me that I'm doing well, in spite of feeling overwhelmed by the shear volume of work I've taken on this year.
She tells me that:
I AM the Little Red Engine ( I think I can, I think I can...)
I AM my own  Powerhouse
I AM staying afloat over big waves, as my creative babies all need my attention

I DO sprout blooms & bells off the top of my head...

Superchicken is kitted up to fly, and with a lot of fiery energy beneath her wings...

She tells me firmly, that I must make a supreme effort... and I'll be alright.

Art as therapy is powerful medicine!

Creativity comes in Disguise

The table in my studio is a sacred place for making things appear that otherwise wouldn't...
It's a place of joy, where beauty arrives, and departs to places where it is needed...

Just now, it's covered with paper from a course I'm doing online... I'm struggling.. the goal posts keep changing, & more assignments need to be done, as I ask more stupid questions... I'm learning not to ask anything, & to have as little interaction as possible...

I gained this qualification, Certificate IV Training & Assessment, in another guise, in 2004. Now I'm upgrading it, so that I my credentials are current & relevant...

I'm impatient to finish... I want creativity & colour in here, & I have online courses of my own that I want to offer online..

My sacred space is invaded by the outside word... Yes, the dry, automated world, that I've so far managed to keep at bay, by living a secluded life on a mountaintop & spending most of my time in a forest... 

"But wait!",I tell myself, "this is an inspiration in disguise". Artists need to earn their living, & the mundane world needs some joy. I can offer some bright, creative juice... I want to offer the world some real lushness so it can flourish...

So, I am treating this study as a sacred exercise, and making a promise to myself that when I offer online courses, my expertise as a trainer will shine through, as I offer real people well crafted programs, that evoke joy, a dash of whimsy, a splash of colour to people's lives... 
I want to help them put a song back into their day-to-day... 

                                          AND...

I vow to allow people to ask as many questions as they like, and I aim to make the work so enjoyable, that they will LOVE doing extra work! 

I'm learning quite a bit, actually...

Friendship & the Sacred Heart

A new note to myself appeared this week, reminding me to be my own best friend... 

... to entrust myself with the care of my passionate, vulnerable heart...

... to be the one that shows up when I'm needed...

... to honour the relationship I have with me...

... and guard it fiercely...

... remembering that friendship is a sacred bond...

... and that a heart, precious beyond anything else, can be broken 

.... so easily...

Note to Self: Priorities

Time becomes increasingly precious...

My imaginary bank account of hours, diminishes with my material one...

Priority must surely be given to that which fills me with joy... and makes the world a gentle place...

Not all daily doings are pleasant, but they must hold relevance & meaning... 

Here it is spring... time for cleaning & sorting...

Now is time for softness... 

self-nurture... 

of heart... 

of soul...

 

Stardust and Salty water...

Something that's been on my mind this week...

How empowering it would be for everyone to let this truth drift down to settle deep into their knowing...

Because, this is really how it really is...

Blessings of Imbolc, blessings of spring!

 
Wishing you sweet springtime blessings this Imbolc....
of Earth, Sea and Sky, may you always feel abundance,
and may golden wattle blossoms always fill your heart with joy.
X

Note to self - just because you can't see it, doesn't mean something's not there...

The past few days, I've been focused upon forcing my mind to go where it doesn't want to...

It resulted in a pain in the neck, followed by a nasty headache!

The more I tried to force my brain to concentrate, the more it wanted to fly away....

So I made myself sit & draw... 

with no idea what would manifest...

An anxious mind can need discipline to relax...

This was what appeared, & I feel much revived because of it...

Knowing there is love & beauty all around me, even when I'm oblivious, makes me smile...

And I hope the knowledge that it's all around you has made you smile too...

It's your circus, you know... another note to self...

Had no idea what would reveal itself to me today, when I started drawing... 

I think it's magical, the way much needed messages can spill out onto the page from the end of a pencil...

As I began, thought  it was silly to draw a tent & a clownish face... but I continued, in the hope that something would reveal itself.... and continued, without censorship, until I realised this is what I needed to remember...

... and possibly, Dear Reader, it might mean something to you as well, because you're reading this...

I saw a circus 2 days ago... 

Marvelous what the mind files away for future reference...

Prioritising Doing What You Love... (another note to self)

Doing what I love doesn't make me any money...
Doing what I love, can not be a sustainable career...
Doing what I love is not understood by the world, who sees it as a hobby...

And...
 

Doing what I love makes me feel tinglingly alive!
Doing what I love brings me back to my own authenticity!
Doing what I love makes my heart sing!

So...

Doing what I love must be priority for me...
Doing what I love needs to be the reason I do everything else...
Doing what I love, can be the home I live in, and everything else can be home maintenance!

*Warning! Following your bliss doesn't mean you don't have to "chop wood & carry water" in order to follow it! 

In need of a bigger size....

I'm thinking outer expansion can indicate inner  growth has taken place... an old way of being in the world no longer fits...
 ... remembering the discomfort of growing out of clothing as a child... 

..a pinching of too-tight shoes preventing me from moving comfortably... 
or, buttoned up high, a too-tight school shirt & tie, squeezing against my expanding throat, making it hard to speak... 
and, coats too tight under my arms holding me back...

For a time, I grew out of everything, it seems, although I never became tall...

I was a child who loved food...


Recently, I've put on a new spurt of outward growth... my ill-fitting clothing feels restrictive... 

I still love food...

 The symbol of outer clothing corresponds with ways in which I present myself to the world...

... I have outgrown old clothing... old ways of being...

Some items still fit... I'm noticing they were garments that gave me plenty of room to move when I originally selected them...

Some items are so small, that I haven't worn them for 40 years, but keep them, because I still think they are pretty... must be a part of me that no longer fits them, but that I continue to like... perhaps I am still attached to being a girl...

And food...
is what feeds me... 
another symbol...
I am delighted by new experiences, new ideas, new sensations... 
these are food of the mind, of the soul...

And on it goes... 

So, may you always clothe yourself in beauty, and feast on delights every day of your life.

Sales for Marigold and Treadwell

My prices are good, the quality is excellent, and the workmanship of the highest possible standard... Fine hand painted Merino wool yarn, and machine washable... you really can't buy better...

I wonder if anyone will see this... I might have to make my blog a bit more commercial... Something I never thought I could do...

@www.etsy.com/shop/MarigoldandDog

[ॐ] Omwoods: How to Make a Dreamcatcher

[ॐ] Omwoods: How to Make a Dreamcatcher: This tutorial is a guest post written and photographed by my sister Kaisu. She's the head elf of the Dreamcatcher Making Academy, locat...

note to self - you know what you need to know - art for the art therapist

Well, this was a surprise! There I was, thinking I should make an image of a warrior knight, or  queen - someone unassailable, because I felt rather wobbly about something...

I hauled myself back into myself, and told myself this.... intuitively, through this drawing...
.
.. what a surprise!

Now I'm sharing it with you, because I thought you might enjoy a reminder too...

The generations that have gone before us have left a trail of answers encoded within out D.N.A.
... just have to keep remembering this...

that is all
X

note to self... Desire, and the Art of Manifestation...art for the art therapist

..... self explanatory really... there is something I want to happen so very, very much... I need to remind myself:

Sometimes, the most tender things need to be nurtured in the dark... secluded from the wide world...

until their wings expand, and they can fly free, to be whatever they need to be...

only then to be seen, in all their shining glory...


that is all
X

Dreamtime - Art for the art Therapist.

Today I entered the creative process, to dream & drift whilst still awake...

to think of things I would not normally imagine...

and create a life far richer than I could ever make in normal, day-to-day consciousness...

My hands worked clay... but at the end of the day, what I had created was unexpected...

The clay went back into a bag for next time...

I had spent time with my self....

sculpting thoughts, instead of physical form...

that is all

X

Small Wonders... life as a garden

I'm reminded that every long view is made up of many tiny elements, like these....


A perfectly blue sky summer's day has me wandering the garden again... opening my eyes to vistas within the landscape, and focusing upon small details as well......

 Lately, I've been continually re-adjusting my outlook... trying to envisage a future life, then looking at the small things that might create a nurturing environment... 
Backwards & forwards... long and short... macro to micro....

Naturally, details vary, according to individual people, but I am coming to understand the wisdom of noticing small details, which combine to create a bigger picture...

I find this comforting... small elements are so much easier for me to grasp...

that is all

X

Be your Self and GROW - Art Therapy for the Art Therapist

There are no "how to be yourself" instructions in Nature...

Tiny seeds already know how to become giant trees...

Everything is born with its own intelligence...

Even humans...

Even Me... 

If I say:"I don't know what do do", I am expressing disconnection from who and what I really am...

I have realised that all anyone can ever really "do",  is become that which they have been born to become...

That is all

X

Spiritual Emergancy - Art for the Art Therapist

 A little bird sits alone, without a nest...

vulnerable and weak, after emerging from an egg....

and  hugs itself...

Human hatchlings often find themselves feeling like this when facing times of life transition...

The difference between soul life and death, can be the kindness of other hatchlings who survived their own emergence...

Heartfelt thanks to mine...

           that is all
               X

Valentine's Day... another day when people who are Alone can feel lonely... more Art Therapy for the Art Therapist

The expectation of Valentine's Day, is for romance... and it's hard to romance yourself...

The precious, singular, secret, sparkly, solitary joys that accompany a life Alone are not the same as sharing love with Another...

Sometimes, I get caught up in waiting for someone to say:"be my Valentine"... 

but they never have... 

So this Valentine's Day, I thought I should buy myself some flowers, to show myself I love myself anyway... 

I felt ashamed....

I didn't buy myself anything special, because it felt I had failed... at being half of a couple... and at love...

What I still really want, is to be adored by Another... to be swept off my feet... to be valued and my affection prized...

I want to be loved wholeheartedly... unconditionally...

to be loved, simply because I am Me, and not for any special qualities I have, or anything I can contribute...

but I am not so loved.... 

I am Alone... 

and it's not through failure... it is a circumstance...

The confused Child Within must learn that being One of Two does not prove my worth as a person...

Alone means I can adore being Me... 

I feel romantic alone - I don't need to "surprise" myself with gifts!

I'm always here to keep myself company - I never stand myself up!

Alone, I can love Me wholeheartedly - no strings attached!

... I'll always be Here for Me... 

and You, Little Child Within, to whom being loved, means feeling safe...

                                              that is all...  X

Little Sister of the Moon - Art Therapy for the Art Therapist..

A belated Lughnasadh greeting to you! My harvest has brought me unexpected things, and not all of them pleasant, but I guess you reap what you sow, & now, this Crone's learning to plant what she needs...


Blogging my drawings again, as a way of disciplining my mind to create something new every day... and it's nice to share my process with someone else: 
You...

Today, my first sketch (not shown) reminded me I can choose to enjoy myself, although I feel overwhelmed by a completely new set of life circumstances... Needless to say, that image was rendered in an anxious state, & although the process brought calm, the result wasn't very attractive, so I continued working, because it felt right...

How glad I am that I stuck with it! 

Here is "Little Sister of the Moon", who reminds me it's o.k. to be frivolous... 
to let go of worry... 
to feel beautiful and happy... 

because I am acceptable to Nature, exactly as I am... 

and so are You...

I do not understand what is required of me, or know how to survive in a work-a-day-world, especially in my 59th year, after not having worked in a job for 12 years...

but I know about the moon... 
and women's mysteries... 

and that old women are the Beautiful Wise Mothers of this world...

... that is all...

The Indigo Vat: Newsletter

The Indigo Vat: Newsletter: Click here to subscribe to a newsletter for the latest subscription updates as well as some lovely wild musings.

Happy New Calender Flip

Summer Solstice came & went, bringing with the changing balance of sunlight enormous changes in my personal life...

A New Year, and a new diary, now confront me... I have no idea how I shall create the life I need... a new page, a clean slate, a virgin canvas, are all intimidating...

What if I make a mistake? What if I'm not as competent as I need to be? What if nobody understands what I create?

Art reflects life... and so I must create art, despite my fears, in order to discover visual metaphors... and symbols representing elements of daily life... These are as signposts, for travelers in unfamiliar territory...

Here's to a New Year of high creativity, of great illumination, and new vision.
Here's to a New Year of innovation, and of wonder... of prolific ideas, and deep insights...

As you mark the first page of your 2015, I wish you much joy and kindness in the year to come.