Free Intuitive Heart eCourse by Lauren Luquin

Have you checked out this beautiful ecourse yet?



Lauren, beautiful soul that she is, decided to offer it for free!

You can read her lyrical, eloquent description of the course by clicking the image above.
Participants decide their own level of participation, no pressure or expectations.
:-)
That's perfect for me - I'm in hibernation mode right now, moving slowly and being cautious about commitments.

Lauren notes:
"*all Intuitive Heart members will get 11% off everything in my Etsy shop,

VisionWise - Earth Livity 1111, for the duration of the course*"

A few photos

Having a camera (albeit crappy quality) on my cell phone has been making me more aware of my surroundings when I am walking about town, more present.

This old tower is in front of a modern office building where I have regular appointments and I enjoy it so much every time I see it! I love things that encourage me to look UP and notice the sky.

I really like the lines, angles and shadows.


This combination of 'fire dept' and ice made me smile:

My New Year's wish for you

May you find joy in the simple things in life
>^..^<
A very Happy New Year to you all!

feline model: my cat Ninja

New Camera Excitement!

I am so excited!
I have a new camera... finally!
The Fujifilm Finepix S1800 which has a clever enough Auto Mode that I can take nice pictures easily and flexible enough manual settings that if I ever learn more and want to adjust them on my own, I won't feel trapped by too simple of a camera.

My favourite part is that the Macro function is easy to use (simply press one button) and it works.  Pictures are actually in focus - something that has been an issue with the macro function on all of my previous cameras.
Equally exciting is that fact that it has a Super Macro function (simply press the button twice)... I didn't even know about this before purchasing so it was a lovely surprise.  The Super Macro function can take pictures as close as 2cm or around 0.8 inches!  So awesome :-)
Come spring and summer, you will likely see many flower, plant and hopefully bug close ups here on the blog.

What I find very interesting is how much more aware I am of nuances in my surroundings now that my creative mind is looking for 'photo-worthy' images.

Batteries are charging as I type this and I will be posting photos soon!

(the camera takes 4 AA batteries which is another thing I love about it - I use rechargeable NiMH batteries and they have saved me so much money over the years as well as being more environmentally friendly.)

Critters in the Gardens

I am a person who can get over-the-top excited and happy about a bug.
A praying mantis to be precise. (if you're freaked out by mantises, scroll down to the tiny amazing gold beetle instead :)
A few weeks ago I was having a very glum day and sat down on the steps outside.  Something made me look down to my right and I gasped!  A beautiful praying mantis was sitting in a plant less than foot from my leg!
I put down my hand and it crawled on.

Look at those amazing segmented antennae!

I was in heaven and just sat there for ages looking at how incredibly delicate and intricate it's body was.
It never ceases to amaze me that such an effective predator can be so calm and gentle with humans!  I have caught and held mantises (mantii?) since childhood and have never had one show aggression toward me though I have heard it can happen.  The word 'caught' is actually misleading because when I put my hand in front of them, they simply crawl onto it. :-)

tickly little feet :-)

It also kind of amazes me that I can enjoy such a big bug and not get creeped out.
Mantises enjoy crawling up which meant that it wanted to crawl over my face to sit in my hair.  Except for a butterfly, there is no way I would let any other bug that big do such a thing!  And not many small bugs either.

Also seen in my garden recently was an amazing tiny beetle that looked like it was made of liquid gold.
Unfortunately, the macro function on my camera didn't work (it has since been taken to the camera graveyard) but I'll include this picture anyway in case anyone can help me identify this shiny little bug:
To be honest I think it is the one that has been chewing huge holes in my morning glory leaves but I don't mind. :-)

UPDATE: I found out that this beetle is the fascinating Golden Tortoise Beetle - it can actually change colour!  So cool :-)

The day before yesterday I was sitting on the steps with my (indoor) cat, giving him some fresh air.  We were lucky enough to see a big grey mouse run around the corner and disappear under the steps below my feet!  In broad daylight.  Very happy cat ;-)

Then yesterday, most wonderful, sitting in the same spot... we saw a HUGE TOAD.  Likely the biggest toad I've seen in my life.  As big as my fist, more than 3" long, about 2 feet away from my feet and not minding our presence one bit. (once again my cat was pretty happy about this)
It was feasting on big flying ants that have been all over the place recently.  Toads are so cute and funny when they eat.
No photos I'm afraid.
A neat toad fact I hadn't known before today: when growing, toads shed their skin!  Every few weeks!  (and they shed it in one piece and eat it... ick).

I get so excited about critters in the garden
:-)

The Magical Forest - returning to my heart

Yesterday during a meditation I was reminded that painting is the pathway to my heart... in a way it is my heart.
I have been drawing, sewing, doodling and more but haven't painted in over a month.
It takes a bit of prep work to begin and once I do, a time warp occurs and I emerge finding hours to have passed!  So I'm more likely to take an 'easier' or 'faster' creative path.

Yet when I do take the time to paint my spirit soars!
I am more in the moment than any traditional meditation can bring me.
I feel free, joyful, excited and immersed in a state of wonder at the beautiful colours and shapes that blossom.

I'm calling this piece The Magical Forest after the woods that live inside of me with my heart at their centre.
The heart is not seen directly here but the glow from behind the trees is from it.

The Magical Forest

Watercolour

8.5"x11"

Apologies for the photo quality.  When I get a camera upgrade, I will update the photo. :-)

Technical stuff for those interested:
I didn't use watercolour paper for this because I wanted some of the paint to be more diffuse and spread into the paper itself (watercolour paper has 'sizing' added to help prevent this).
I used 135lb smooth drawing paper.  Acid-free.
Tips:
Tape paper on all sides with green painter's tape, pressed down firmly onto a metal clipboard.  can use masking tape but it is more likely to rip the paper when removed.
Wait more than 12 hours to remove tape.
The wait is worth it - it may feel dry to the touch and you may despair at how it's still warped but if you leave it long enough, this weight of paper will shrink almost flat again if the tape is pressed down well (and didn't get horribly soaked by water or paint).

Back From Omega Institute Retreat - Wonderful!!

I had a truly wonderful time last week.
I went on a Rest and Rejuvenation retreat at the Omega Institute in the country near Rhinebeck, New York.
It was beautiful, peaceful and definitely rejuvenating!
My campsite was at the top of a big hill and the entire grounds are hilly so I can't say it was restful but the exercise was good for me.
The food was buffet style, abundant and wonderful - gluten-free options at every meal.

I spent many hours at a table in their cafe or on it's patio drawing and painting.  My favourite drawing was gifted to a woman there who gave me an Eden Energy Medicine session that I could immediately tell had changed my life.  The results have stayed and it's so awesome!  The photo is unfortunately not the best quality but I'll share anyway:

I found myself just being present and, as a result, only took photos on the final day - and not many!  I have a few regrets about the lack of photos but zero regrets about being that present and relaxed.  I didn't worry even once about my cats, gardens or house.  In fact I hardly worried about anything at all (I'm usually a chronic worrier).

Here are a few Omega grounds pictures.  Click on them to see a larger view:

Pathway to library and gardens

Impressive organic cantaloupes!  They were delicious.

Stunning views on the drive there and back along the wonderful Taconic State Parkway

Summer Mornings... flowers and walks

Summer has been a time of less sitting in front of the computer.
I begin my mornings instead by visiting my flowers to see what colourful treats have opened anew each day.  Today I have, among other things, Morning Glories in blue, white, 2 shades of purple, pink, fuschia and red (cardinal climbers).  Scarlet and pink sweet peas astound me with their delicious scent.  Zinnias impress me with their long lasting blooms (over a month now!) and various colours of Cosmos satisfy my urge to 'deadhead' and keep blooming prolifically!  My camera is still getting repaired so I have no photos.  These poppy photos are from about a month ago:

'Poppy in waiting' and close up of a poppy petal shortly after it unfurled.

Many days I go for an early walk and marvel at wonderful skies, brave rabbits and the amazing aerial acrobatics of swallows harvesting bugs from the air! Although it was only a few individual swallows, it led me to find this awesome video - how cool would it be to see something like that in person!?!

I love being awake earlier.  When less people are out and about I feel there is more space and I can spread my spirit out.

Morning Glory, Zinnia and Cosmos from previous years:

Under the Shagbark Hickory Tree

A provincial park near me has a wonderful tree that I love to sit under.

It's a huge, mature Shagbark Hickory that takes a while each spring to fill out... but when it does... it's glorious!

Lush, thick leaves tower toward the sky, providing welcome shade on hot summer days.  It has a nice amount of space under it where there are no branches - more than 8 feet of clearance.

I take a chair, blanket, snacks, book and camera and can happily spend a day there.
Some lovely sights within a few feet of my chair:

This is the sunny St. John's/Joan's Wort, the plant that helps keep my mood balanced without side effects since I've become sensitive to pharmaceuticals. It works best for mild to moderate depression but I have found that it does help lessen my severe depression and SAD, especially now that I've discovered some other supplements that help including (but not limited to :) folic acid, selenium, B12, vitamin D and 5HTP.

One of these days I'd love to grow and harvest it myself instead of buying it.

(please consult health care provider before using anything I mention :)

Does anyone know what kind of butterfly that is? 

P.S.

Just for fun... here's a photo of my cat sitting on a box... why not!?  ☺☺☺  He loves boxes and was a bit put out that 'his box' had been turned on it's side so he could no longer do his fancy leap into it.  But he made it work for him this way too ;-)

Creatively Processing 'Darker' Emotions

I am a person with tendencies towards deep depression at times and have found creativity to be one of the few things that can help get me through those times.
Sometimes the 'darker' emotions are strong enough that I feel stuck creatively.
Those are times when I pull out magazines and go through them to find material for collages or art 'journal' pages (a bit of a misnomer since there is often very little journalling... but I'm not sure what else to call them).


Often, the images I will be drawn to cut out reflect my emotional state.
By the time I have cut out images for a while, I've been brought more into the present moment and reconnected with my creative juice - and am then able to collage or art journal.
Sometimes, this process actually lifts me out of the difficult emotions.  It feels healthy and healing - like the emotions are actually being processed, not ignored or shoved inside to hurt me.

Here are a few pages I did a while ago - adding to them each time I was in a dark place.  Sometimes these pages get journalled on later.

I give  myself permission to be messy :-)
In the above page, the background was done, in part, using this technique I came up with to create a  random/chaotic look on thin papers that would warp with wet mediums.

In the above piece, I wanted a messy stamp and didn't have one so I carved one from an eraser (stamp carving is another thing that can totally absorb me and bring me into the moment).

Are there certain creative things that can help you when you feel sad, angry or down?

Finding Beauty In Everyday Things

I try to notice the beautiful in everyday things - pleasing colours, shapes, textures and light.
Here are some pictures of things that have made me smile recently (apologies for the poor photo quality - neither my camera or editing program are great):

Vibrant pollen on Jacob's Ladder stamens - these smell divine!

Variegated yellow corn on the cob dripping with butter looked so wonderful against the blues of this awesome plate my mom made (she's a potter)

Both of the cats fit together on the tiny stool!  Which is more impressive if you know how... erm... wide the cat on the left actually is :-)   The cats love open windows.

I loved the contrast of the purple and green on this spring violet.

Luscious buttercup soaking up the sun.

I couldn't resist another photo of this amazing plate.  It is the most perfect toast plate ever!  I eat some pretty curious food - that's gluten-free toast and sunflower seed 'butter' with stevia sprinkled on top (to make it sweet) and sliced organic banana on the sides.

Spring poem "THIS is being alive"

I awoke early today and was out walking as the sun just barely came above the horizon.  It is warm here in southern Ontario and the wind was delicious and smelled fresh.  It was a joyful walk and a wonderful morning

Upon return, I felt like writing for the first time in a long time.
I've posted the poem/prose over at my wordy blog May Words Flow.
It's called "THIS is being alive"

Redbird sings
sweet piercing
sunrise salutation

Robins, en masse,
hunt for breakfast

and a school janitor
quietly collects garbage
blown around by the night winds.

After walking,
I sit on a bench
and raise my arms to the sky.

Sitting here typing now,
I look out the window and see
a rainbow!

This
is being alive.