"Simplicity is the glory of expression." ~ Walt Whitman

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Three more days until the giveaway :)...
Have you entered yet?

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On this day, pipe cleaners.

More often than not, rummaging will reveal some sort of buried and forgotten treasure in our closets. Though not sure what our search is for, we still know it when we see it. Thankfully, even the simplest activity can bring the easiest of smiles.

Thanks Angie at Wonderfully Crazy for this idea!

I watch intently now, as creativity brings out willingness and possibility.  The simple act of changing a thing from one to another, to give it shape, texture, and perhaps some color, draws the sense that creativity is more than just an ability, but a tone and a manner of feeling.

I turn to my own projects now and I see my newly felted nest and some tiny black words cut out for another collage.  And though they don't go together, I see that they really do.

Without too much thought, and as I fill our nest with simple, lovely truths, I can only hope magic and joy is what will emanate from our little moments of creativity.

Joining Stephanie in Saturday's Artist...

Have a wonderful weekend...

"You don't have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body." ~ C.S. Lewis

We are in week 3 of Soul Restoration with the Brave Girl's Club online course, and we are in the thick of it now.  Last week, our task was to create a timeline of our lives marking the most significant and life changing moments we remember, good and bad.  I have never considered doing this before and why would I?  Though I have visited the past often, the emotions that arise from there are not ones that I want to sit with for too long again and again.  I feel that I have done my work there, so why revisit?  Well, if there is anything that I have learned for myself, it is that there are rarely coincidences for me, only signs, and I was about to get a big one.

I had posted that I began reading Women Who Run with Wolves the same week I started soul restoring.  At the very end of this book, the very same day I received my timeline project, the author suggested for readers to create their own timeline of their life, from birth to present day.  This was the same exact assignment I had just received from Soul Restoration.  It took me a a few days to process these messages, this sign, and take it all in.  One thing was for certain, I had to do it, and I did.

I did not find anything of what I thought I would.  I thought I would feel pain or regret, but perhaps I truly had come to terms with all of it, because they didn't show up.  Instead, what had unfolded was a story greater full of triumph than of tribulation.  I found that I had greater moments of resilience than moments of weakness, more joy than of sadness, and more success alongside trepidation.  What I found was I had not given my journey justice.  When I had thought of my past, I primarily thought of the difficult times, the times where I have been hurt, wronged, or lost.  I put heavy weight into those times as I knew I gained something from them, but I now know those parts are truly small in comparison to the entire story itself.  The role these dark places played contributed more as shifts, shifts for the greater purpose to find light, and never should they define who we had become.  With this timeline, the light gave me the ability to see that what I've had all along was a brilliant, beautiful, magical and epic story, more balanced than I ever thought.  Everyone has this same beautiful, meaningful story, and I encourage anyone to really *see* their own, in its entirety.

(In case you are interested, the Brave Girl's Club has put up the dates for the next Soul Restoration online classes.  Go on, you can do it :).)

Being brave

I've started something  this weekend.  Something that is turning out to be much bigger than I had originally expected. Something good, really good, and I want to share it with you, especially apropos on Martin Luther King, Jr. day.

Originally, my thought was "Ok, this sounds fun and I'll probably learn some good art techniques. " So I went ahead and signed up for the 6 week Soul Restoration online class over at Brave Girl's Club.  I knew there would be some very positive talk, maybe some affirmation-type exercises, but, this is turning out to be far more than some fluffy feel-good creative art project.  There is some digging going on around here. Melody Ross, co-founder, artist, and instructor calls it "soul restoration".  I call it coming face to face with the current condition of my spirituality, and identifying honestly, if it is exactly where and how I want it to be.

I hadn't planned on digging so deep on this, not now, not when I have so many other things I want to do. But I think the Brave Girl's Club is onto something here.  If the source of all my thoughts, emotions, and actions stem from the condition of my spirituality, perhaps a little tending is in order? If all my integrity, hope, courage, as well as my doubts, fear, and negativity stem from the condition of my "soul house", perhaps it is a good idea to do a little soul housekeeping?  The voices in my head that say "Who has the time? I'm too busy! This is a luxury!" are exactly the thoughts I need to look at.  This is how a soul house turns decrepit from neglect. There is so much more to this than mod podge and paint. This is unearthing some dust and dirt. This is reconstructing a foundation and a source for strength. This is looking at how we really think of ourselves. This is being brave. 

It's too late to join in the online course now, but they do have a camp, and they do have an online community as well as daily emails.  Just take a peek, I highly recommend it.  And when the next online course comes up, just do it, be brave. I promise you won't regret it.