My work is fab!

"LOVE IS NOT ALWAYS BLACK AND WHITE"*

Acrylic Mixed-Media Collage - 12" x 16"

What a post title, what a bore, what a snob and elitist?!  Well, not really.....I don't think.  This week while sitting in on a conference call with my Life Coach and some of her other clients, I reflected upon a happening that took place earlier in the week.  With an amazing blurt out of joy and almost giddiness I allowed as how my rediscovery in the last few years of my own personal mark of creativity has and continues to give me an unbelievable amount of energy and productivity, along with a peacefulness and sense of spirit-filled work.  My ideas flow from one piece into the next, I have no fear of pleasing others, I'm content with my completed and continuing work...........what artist could ask for more?

The day AFTER I shared that giddiness with my friends, I suddenly felt my "lizard brain" - many of you know about that phrase from authors, coaches, lecturers across the land - kick into gear.  The questions and doubts were tumultuous, convincing, ridiculous!  The LB suggested that "my ideas will quit coming, nobody will want to review my work, or even like it, or consider owning it.  I'll look foolish, feel defeated and who do I think I am anyway pretending to do art?"  Oh my, I was devastated!

And, THEN, with a couple of great Life Coaches in my bag of tricks, I gave the "lizard brain" a kick across the room with the following:

*My ideas are fabulous - they will continue to flow - stop fretting

*My creativity is original and innovative - it makes me smile and others too for that matter

*People will like my art and will travel to see it - they do already

*Viewers will click on my site and say wow - they have and they do

*I love my art and that's a significant detail, this creation is from me, for me and it's all gravy if someone else likes it too - delicious gravy

*The joy of creation and the sharing of it is the purpose and product of my work - what could be better

So, how about you?  Do you have a "lizard brain" from time to time?  Please kick it across the room - the "lizard" will instantaneously feel relieved of its mission and with any luck at all will die a quick death in the corner of your studio.  

Say to yourself right now - my work is fab! - and believe it!


*xoxo to a fab photographer who gave me permission to use his graffiti heart shot in this collage

January - almost gone

I suspect that New Year's Resolutions are still made by many and even kept by a few for a while.  Garnering advice from the blogosphere, I gave up resolutions a few years ago in favor of a single "word" for the year.  For 2010, the word for me was SAVOR.  Indeed it turned out to be a year to do just that!  Even if only the books I read, the movies I saw, Life Coach Tonya with whom I work(ed), times spent with old and new friends and family, travel, the Big 5K - even if those events were the only ones to be savored (and there were more), the year was a full and rewarding one!

Continuing to Savor the events in my life, this year's words are going under the suggested label (from LC/Tonya:) of "Beacon Words" and they are:

Fearless/Creative/Energized

Working with this combination of words in my head for almost a month now - even as my spouse and I traveled, I recognized that often when I thought the word "fearless," I sort of giggled and thought -"who are you kidding?!" -  THEN ignoring my dopey lizard brain and to emphasize my resolve, I'd say the word out loud......other two words, almost the same reaction.  

This week upon returning from our travel (SE Asia cities - amazing!),  with some trepidation, I stepped into my studio to continue working on the upcoming one woman art show I've scheduled for the month of June and my first thoughts were - "what was I thinking, do I really think I can pull this  event together, I haven't a creative thought in my head?!"  That's fearless, huh?

Then reciting the three word mantra out loud several times, I began - I could give you the brush by brush story, but bottom line is - that was Wednesday, this is Saturday; I have two pieces completed now that I had begun before we left town, one grand re-work going, and two brand new pieces begun that I had only envisioned prior to my last time in the studio.  

I don't mean this post to be about my prolific talent or about brainwashing, or mantras;  it's about reminding myself to believe in my abilities and how with just a few adjustment/suggestions from a stranger (LC/Tonya again), I've set out on a wonderful journey of my own to manifest all the sleeping imagination that has been living inside me for years - thus the fulfillment this year for me will be proceeding boldly - Fearless, Creative and Energized. And you......do you have a word or beacon words for the year?  Could you use a little kick from a stranger to get your brain and act in order?

A great little holiday

Image by urzzz via Flickr

Most regular readers here know that I engaged a Life Coach this year and that I've found great delight in shedding some of myself:) as well as discovering a great deal about the energy and creativity I have to give and that I am offering to others.  Today on Tonya's site, she offers a reading regarding the "10 most important minutes of your day" as well as inviting readers to submit their ideas for "ruling your own little holiday season."  I decided I'd share with you my short first take on ruling a great little holiday here in the Pacific Northwest -

What a great idea "ruling one's own little holiday!"  I'd be in the company of my beloved spouse, my sister, my brother, my in-laws, my outlaws, (divorced but still family)my beloved children and grandchildren.  We'd all be laughing around a gorgeous decorated tree and telling stories of where we've been, where we are, and where we want to be in 10 years.  We wouldn't be counting regrets.  Some of us would be slimmer, some might even have gained a little weight but we would all be living with thankful hearts and the blessedness of knowing what it means to be the best we can be in God's plan for our lives.  We'd acknowledge the power of self-awareness in our lives - of what joy that brings to us personally and the joy it is to share that gift of self-awareness with others!  We'd know that we didn't DO or bring about our style, our homes, our material goods all by ourselves.  There were others who encouraged us, who shared the best of themselves to give us a hand, a boost, a hug when we needed it.  We'd feast on fine food, lovingly prepared and presented, again all the while remembering those in this world who have not yet found or been given that boost that they need to find themselves, their place, their own little world!  That would be an amazing little holiday for me!

So my little story would make for an amazing holiday, yet, my imagination cannot make all of the story above actually materialize as I would have it.  It seems the holidays are sad times for many, many people as they wonder WHY they are NOT experiencing a perfect holiday season like everyone else is?  Well, the sad truth is that everyone else is NOT necessarily celebrating a perfect holiday season.  Life is sad, life is not the way we want it always to be as in our imagination, but LIFE is good, it is a GIFT, it is to be loved, appreciated and celebrated.  I pray that your holiday season, though maybe not as perfect as you imagine, may be filled with the realization of your own life, your own gift - and with just that bit of knowledge, your holiday will be celebrated!

The Versatile Blogger?

The "Versatile Blogger Award" allows the recipient(s) to sport the pretty little green badge seen in my right hand column today.  Thanks from me to Contemplative Photography for gifting me with this honor! I hope you'll visit Contemplative Photography yourself for a view of her lovely  photography, a read of her always challenging and thought-provoking posts; don't miss the constant newness in the site's left-hand column - gifts to yourself in prose, photography and daily poetry!

Part of the fun of this Award is that I'm allowed to gift or present it to 15 of my favorite versatile bloggers.  Bending the rules a little I'm bestowing it upon 10 of my blogger peers - they are not in preferred order or even alphabetical - just bloggers I always enjoy visiting:

1.  Christine Kane
2.  Diamonds in the Sky with Lucy
3.  Country Parson
4.  Anchors & Masts
5.  A Seat at the Table
6.  Seedlings in Stone
7.  JustBLiving
8.  Contemplating the Moon
9.  Textures Shapes and Color
10.The Whole Blooming World

Finally, as an award winner, I am to share seven things about myself that my readers/followers might not know - you already know I'm a Christian, a spouse/mother/retired person, exercise and travel lover.............hmmmm, things you don't know - here goes!

1.  I enjoy waking as many days as possible without an alarm sound of any kind ringing in my ears
2.  I'm hooked on the Netflix (no commercials) version of "Grey's Anatomy" - I'm into Season 3 now
3.  I'm going to have a one-woman art show in June 2011
4.  I've lost 8 lbs in the last 5 months and in the meantime,  added a number of lbs of muscle (BTW - they're lost and there is no reward for your finding them and returning them!)
5.  My current record of push-ups is 25 in a row
6.  I have a Life Coach with whom I adore working and would unhesitatingly recommend
7.  My birth year is 1942

Thanks again for the nice award from one of my fellow bloggers and to my readers for commenting or just viewing as you feel called to do:))

Too Old - for what?

A Life Coach - who in the heck works with a Life Coach?  I'm organized, happily married with adult children and adorable young grandchildren, retired from a successful business career, I'm a community leader, and a spiritually grounded individual.  I repeat - who in the heck works with a Life Coach? Me? Probably not......though through exposure to the term Life Coach, mainly through bloggers whom I had followed over a couple of years on the internet, I felt comfortable with the idea that LC's were valuable particularly for young people attempting to organize their lives, to climb the corporate ladder, to step out into the dating world with confidence.  Certainly, a charming notion but nothing to which I could relate in my more mature stage of life, right?  Right........well maybe?

One evening last spring, my spouse and I were vacationing and I was settling in after a beautiful day at the beach, a nap, a leisurely dinner, an awesome sunset.  Relaxing before bedtime included writing a post for my blogsite and, as well, a quick visit to a couple of my favorite bloggers' posts.  Christine Kane is one of those sites I visit often; she's a Life Coach, a songwriter, an entrepreneur extraordinaire and always has an entertaining and informative word of the day on her site, so I clicked over there for a quick look.  That day Ms. Kane was featuring another LC and one whose specialty  caught my eye - Tonya Leigh Williams, a Life Coach specializing in weight loss issues.  I couldn't click fast enough; I was very curious!

 

Curiosity, questions, answers, phone sessions and homework - that was almost 5 months ago.  Tonya and I are a solid team now.  Essentially she and I have addressed why it is that I gained the weight to begin with and why I could not lose two decades of it, no matter how much I exercised!  We've covered a lot of ground relating to body image - my attitude toward life, food,  and fitness - all great topics but those topics and the loss of weight have become incidental in the broader scope of expanding the life that is mine now, in this moment, in this time!  What topics you might wonder - how about a 5K race, taking on serious writing and art creation and continuing my studies of a foreign language?  Are those diverse enough, perhaps even scattered in their diversity? Perhaps, yet those topics and their implementation are breathing new life, curiosity and wonder into my being- and at my age? A Life Coach - who works with a Life Coach?!

P.S. Those of you who follow my posts regularly, will remember that on June 26, I did run my first 5K event - started, finished - loved it - no injury - no doubt there will be another event - I'm working on it!  I have a new bike (I had been thinking about that for about 18 months and just couldn't make the decision)  I enjoy stretching my body into yoga poses at least two times a week; my list of post topics is expanding; my artwork has been on the backburner for a few months but Tonya and I have been discussing a plan for that project's re-emergence......oh, and the weight loss? - that's just happening, I have no obsession about it not coming off anymore - it just is.  So a motivational Life Coach - with a specialty in weight loss?  I'm not too old for that!!??  In fact there's not too much that I can dream up that I'm too old to accomplish - how about you? ........too old for what?!!! 

The Mind, Body, and Spare Tire

Image via Wikipedia

Over the years I've experienced the fact that popular women's magazines, medical studies/journals, doctors, and particularly women friends, have repeatedly reminded me and other women that each decade brings a new "something" to our aging minds and bodies.  I've gone along with this surfeit of information for a long time - that is with the exception of being in my 20's when I was CERTAIN that none of the aging rules would apply to me, to my mind, to my body!

No longer in my 20's however, I look at the information in a different way.  For me, the minds part is amazing.  For example, I've developed what I consider to be common sense behavior that seems appropriate and applicable to the surroundings and circumstances in which I live.  I've learned new skills,   experienced forms of literature not studied in my youth, reached out to both old and new friends through mind, spirit and the internet.   Through occasional classes, on the job experience and just plain old living, I've savored good books, enjoyed visiting new continents and am entertained by both serious theological reading and silly slapstick movies!  At this time in my life, my curious mind takes me places that I might have, or probably would have, avoided in my youth.  Yes, the mind enhancing possibilities present or there to be enhanced in the aging process are, for me both intriguing and challenging!

However, the body part - oh yes, the body part, certainly challenging but not quite so intriguing!  On the positive side I've tasted new foods, experimented with new recipes, ordered expensive champagne on occasion, and found the delicious wines of our valley temptingly served at every social event I attend.  The body is quite pleased with all of the savoring going on through the aforementioned activities but the scales have confirmed that each decade definitely brings something new to it and the something new is usually at least 5 new and unwelcome pounds!   A nice spare tire around the middle and blouses that resist ever being tucked into pants' waistbands again!  Having read and swallowed the mind and body propoganda trends for a few of my own adult decades, I've still always believed in my heart of hearts that I was NOT doomed to gain 5 lbs or more every decade! So.....

I've happily engaged in vigorous exercise programs and not so happily in myriad diets over the years - Atkins, High Protein, Low Protein, Sugar Busters, Palm Beach, Weight Watchers, my personal favorite - the ice cream for dinner diet - and found, surprise, surprise that although the exercise is good for my heart and my joints, the diets work for a little while, a few pounds lost and then a few pounds more gained back and beyond.  What a pain!  What a disappointment.  Yet, that belief in the foolishness of those 5 lbs per decade being inevitable,  persisted.


I'm happy to report that I've lost two decades worth of added poundage - you do the math:) in the last 5 months.  No, I didn't find THE diet of all diets, I haven't had stomach surgery or liposuction - I just started to listen to my body.  Too simple, huh?  That's what I thought and found a bit too good to be true when I clicked on Tonya Leigh Williams' site,  JustBLiving.  There I found a no nonsense young Life Coach who worked not so much on what the outside looked like but what's inside my mind regarding dieting, body image, food, habits of breakfast, lunch and dinner, etc.  I've not missed a meal since I began working with her.  I've never felt deprived or left wanting for a special food item or dessert.  My scales moved to the back of my closet during the first week of working with Tonya and still reside there.  Her coaching has changed my mind set, my waistline-my personal spare tire, my life.


If any of this post resonates with you, I highly recommend you visit Tonya's site, send her an email asking your questions, schedule a call with her - I'm here to tell you that you won't be disappointed! 

Choices and Change

Image via Wikipedia

"Choices and changes" - promised subject of the week.  What a whirlwind, exciting time of my life this is - five full and fast months have flown by in 2010, the second year of my retirement already!  Yet, I haven't not lived the months that have flown by, neither have I not savored them.  Some days just seem too good to be true!  Wow, you may be wondering what happened to me today, where did all of this energy come from, what's the celebration all about?  My simple answer would be "choices and changes."

You may have read my May 30 post with a quote from Eve Eschner Hogan, and I told you yesterday how my mind has been on full speed ahead mode in my reading and study of subjects I never dared to think I would enjoy.  Ancestry and family trees,  civil rights, personal freedoms, WWII, the South Pacific - global geography......oh yes, you can recognize the manic state right now, can't you?

Before you tune out or vote to have me committed, please consider some of the choices I've made this year and how those choices are changing my well-being status.  First, instead of New Year's resolutions, I named a word of the year - the word - SAVOR.  A simple word normally attached to one's taste buds or olfactory senses - but ever so useful in the enjoyment of myriad activities.

Activities such as throwing myself on to a surfboard for no reason other than fun - (I was in Maui at the time lest you think I have a large bathtub) I mean I even did it on a day when there was NO photographer to chance my victory of an upright pose; reading more books in 5 months than I'd have imagined reading in a year and not finishing books that I don't enjoy - now that's a choice I wouldn't have allowed myself at one point in time.  The same with movies - I love my Netflix - a great choice for me as I enjoy the privacy of the small computer screen and eating popcorn at $.50 a bag rather than $3.50 at the theater.  If I like the movie, I watch it - if I don't I push the delete button.  (My spouse hates movie theaters and my love of movie "control" works out just fine for both of us:)  I believe these books and movies - words and images that I take into my mind have power to change me and I believe they are - for the better.  When I sense a negative influence, I do my best to cease that input - the book, on the Kindle anyway, and the movies - as quick as the delete button and on to something of value for me and ultimately for this world in which I partake as a global citizen.

Stay with me now....the point is I've learned after all of these years to give myself permission to do as I wish without guilt!  I've learned from my Life Coach, whoops, did I mention I have a Life Coach right now - yep, decided I was stuck on a problem that God thought was pretty irrelevant in the universal order of things, and I think He just decided to turn me over to Tonya for a few months.  She's terrific, a great listener, a hard nosed inquirer with loaded questions for my reflection and action.  With my own decision/choice to seek some professional support, this young woman has shined a light on corners of myself that I had just been ignoring or rather fussing over that were not worth the light of day.  She's become a great friend and she too is thrilled to know that I've taken one activity out of my life and opened up a whole closet full of fun on which to concentrate instead.

With and without, before and after even Tonya's presence in my schedule, I've produced more art pieces than ever, having just had two pieces accepted in a juried show in Oregon, I've given up even thinking about what other folks are doing or not doing with their lives, their bodies, their health.....those issues are their business and God's business, NOT my business; I continue my yoga and stability ball classes, and ding, ding, new activity - I'm jogging again in hopes of a 5K race soon.  (My first race was rained out due to a muddy trail a few weeks ago:(  I say, jogging again, as I haven't really done any serious jogging outdoors for at least 20 years.  I hesitate to really call it running yet; more jog than walk each day - filling me with lots of energy and optimism.  The step up in exercise is also allowing me to take more guilt-free naps - I'm listening to my total body - not just the giddy side of my brain that can wear me out occasionally.

These are some of the choices/changes that I've put in the works this year - to some of you maybe just a pittance of what you're up to.  To others maybe a go-ahead for you to make some new choices/changes as well.  If you need a personal trainer, or a Life Coach, or a Spiritual Director, Talent Agent, or whatever it is that you think would help you move forward with becoming the person that you were created to be - give yourself permission to go for it!

And in the words of a friend that you might contact one day.....she asked that God let her know what words she could use most effectively in a talk she was to give and these were the words that came to her - "Tell them to slow down, relax and enjoy - it's ALL GOOD."  And I would agree that it is all good, and ya' know, even on the days when it's NOT all good, it still is!  

How about you?  Choices and changes for you already or coming up soon?  I've got more to say on the subject and I hope you'll contribute to the conversation.