Breathing Space & More...

This summer has been a journey in the pursuit of my creative person!  It started with the desire to seek a new path, to try on some new ways of thinking, and to shift a bit from the usual patterns.  My soul was yearning to make more time for creativity, so I have been using the past two months to honor that spirit in me. I thought that I would start from the very beginning-try putting myself through an elementary art class.  That meant going through a step-by-step process of learning how to draw, watercolor, use oil pastels, paint, etc.  I got started with a kid's art book from the library and a trip to The Sketchy Artist.  I bought a few supplies and sat down to start my lessons. The lessons didn't last.  I am completely interested in playing around with all of the supplies and trying out techniques, but I found a rigid plan to "be creative" isn't what I need. What I am coming to understand is that creativity is more than an art class.  Creativity ...

This week the same phrase keeps running through my head, "Comparison is the thief of joy."  Over and over... again and again. I understand why it is haunting me.  I need to hear it.  I need the gentle reminder that when I start to make comparisons, even simple ones, it takes away from me .  It makes a question mark stand out about how my life is or how it stacks up. Comparison takes the joy out of what is and pulls out the attitude of "oh, I wish" or "isn't that neat"  or "why can't I do that?" or "how does she do that?"  It is a simple thing and it happens all the time.  It's automatic.  It creates a wishing or longing that comes from the head, not the contentment that the heart could feel if those simple thoughts were kept in check a bit more. There are so many different ways to live in this world.  So many ways to look at life.  So many possibilities and ideas that become important or inspiring.  It's uniqu...

This past week I was able to listen to an interview with Elizabeth Gilbert, the author best known for  "Eat, Pray, Love" and now "The Signature of All Things."   She shared of herself with ease, admitting that she wasn't a guru, but with insights that only come from someone who is wise to the ways of the world.  Someone who has taken the time to observe and reflect on her own life and the spinning of the world around her. I needed to be at the interview and I needed to hear what she had to share! Something that might not seem profound to the person down the row from me, hit my soul.  Buried into my heart. She talked about the word balance and it's impact on women.  She said the word was a "weapon against women."  That sounded harsh, but I hung in with her, and what I took from her explanation was the idea that women are trying to have it all, striving toward something that isn't achievable.  We juggle and cope, work and caretake, always...

"What if it were easy?" That is the question that I am pondering this week. What if everything in my life was easy?  How would life go?  What would each day feel like?  What would each day bring? Here's what might happen... My concerns about having enough money and time would fall away. I would feel light and have an abundance of energy for whatever came my way.  Decisions would be a snap because I would be sure of what my heart desired. I wouldn't waffle or let the "should" voice step in to distract me. I would feel more joy in everyday moments. I would take more risks. I would choose things that filled me up and not things that felt like obligations. I would laugh, dance, and create more. I would care less about my appearance and how clean my house is. I would let things roll of my back and not take things personally. I would see the light in other people and feel more friendly.   I would take every interaction as an opportun...