Snap = Happy

I really didn't  want to go out on a dog walk today, instead I wanted to sit in the warmth of my kitchen and write Christmas Cards.  But, I braved the elements, armed with my camera, Jasper and I headed on up to the beach.

I left the Diana Mini at home and took my Panasonic Lumix Digital camera. I like digital.  It's fast and immediate and you get a real sense of connection with the camera. It feels more like the camera is an extension of yourself.  Taking pictures really gets you to work in the present, I get totally absorbed and lost in the moment. I am grateful that my dog Jasper has patience and can keep himself amused whilst I get lost in taking pictures. Walking on the beach, I noticed the top layer of sand was being whipped up, and as it twisted and twirled into a mini sand storm, I was reminded of the ever changing landscape, nothing is permanent, it always looks the same and yet it isn't - the impermeance of nature.

I signed up to SWAY by Lisa Baldwin Zen at Play.  During November I received eight ponderings, delivered by email, twice a week. I read them, pondered them, and filed them.  Then, yesterday, I got a real understanding of what it was like to SWAY, to feel the impermeance, to feel a place so vulnerable within you that you are left gasping, knowing you have a choice, to LET GO, or to hold on. 

Nature, teaches us beautifully that to LET GO is the only way of being.  I read this yesterday -

The leaves have fallen and we have choices. We can rake them into a pile and bag them or let the child within have a little fun. We can get rid of them or let nature take care of them for us. The one choice I have never seen or heard anyone make is to glue them back on the tree…

"Like the leaves, we have life experiences that have served their purpose and now have fallen from our lives; yet our temptation is to hold on and attempt to make them true for our current life; it is like trying to glue them back on. The harder we hold on to those past situations, the more stress and frustration we create in our lives.

Keep the lessons so you do not have to repeat the past and let go of what is done. Allow new situations to grow and mature like the tree budding back to life in the spring… Kenny Brixey

Every new experience allows us to grow stronger, more beautiful and more able to live our amazing lives.

Expressions of an amazing life:

A beautiful feather on the beach

Tree refected in a puddle

 

Jasper - looks like he's in a wind tunnel!

 

 Namaste

Free Fallin

Free fallin' into the Diana Mini - just opened it up now.............ah, feels like a real camera!!

She's so cute!! -can't wait to start taking pictures with her and she uses film!!

The list for today:

read: Diana mini instruction leaflet
taste: quorn chilli
see: Diana Mini
smell: excitement using the Diana Mini
hear: A Face In The Crowd - Tom Petty
think: taking pictues with Diana Mini!!
feel: excited about taking pictures with my Diana Mini!

A list to share

I'm procrastinating, I'm writing a blog post instead of getting to grips with my College work. Anyhow, I've just read Tara's blog, in which she talked about a a recently discovered blog she likes to read called Bohemian Twilight  by Monica.  Monica does these lists and as Tara was in the mood, she borrowed it and made her own list.  I really liked the list idea, so I borrowed it too!


read: Tara's blog 
taste: quorn meatballs in a chilli sauce for tea - very yummy. 
see: beautiful Christmas decorations adorning the house
smell: Christmas cake baking in the oven
hear: Eyes On Fire - Blue Foundation
think: when will I start my Christmas wrapping?
feel: slightly guilty for writing a blog post instead of writing up my College work.


Time to make a cup of tea and then make a start on the College work :)

Angelic Connections

This time last Saturday my day spent as a student at a spiritual/psychic art workshop was coming to a close.  Hosted by Rosalind Coleman, a professional artist, Reiki Healer and Life Coach, Rosalind ’s work is dedicated to helping you develop your spiritual awareness and abilities and  connect/communicate with your spirit guides, guardians and angels  through art.

After the introductions, Ros took us through our first guided meditation, from this we were encouraged  to pick up our pastels and begin drawing, being guided to whatever colours we were drawn to. Ros says that in her opinion "all art that is created whilst in a state of joy, contentment, bliss, grace, etc. is spiritual. The artist Jackson Pollock would spend a fortnight staring at a canvas in deep thought, then he would quickly, in a highly focused trance state, create a painting in a short space of time.

Art has no rules unless the artist has specifically chosen to use them as part of the artwork. Spiritual art may look mature or portray a childlike naivety. Be produced very quickly; with precision or tentatively, as if exploring, or something else. Be laid own thickly and heavily, gently or sensitively.Appear crude and tribal or look fine and elegant. Change - starting out as one thing and transforming on the page to something else. Feel as though you are observing the picture being creating without your having a great deal of input, feel as if you are completely lost in the process of the picture’s creation.  "

Here is my first picture, drawn with my left hand (I'm right handed), I felt urged just to put colour down onto the paper, I felt myself getting quite frustrated as I felt confined by the smallness of the paper. I realised these feelings were not my own but belonged to the energy that was working with me, it felt large and powerful.

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For our second picture, we were asked to link specifically to the angelic realm, again, drawn with my left hand this is what emerged.  I felt drawn to specific colours and had no idea what was going to emerge out of it and I also felt quite tearful (in a nice kind of way)

For our third exercise, we were asked to link into our partners, this is what emerged, drawn with my right hand this time.

This felt very tribal/shamanic to me and at first I got the sense I was drawing a bird but then it changed into something quite different! - a bit Scary Mary!

There's me at the bottom left hand side in blue

Overlooked by Angels

Birdjoy

These starlings  were making a very pleasant noise sat amongst the trees, tweeting & chirping, it was quite a moment to be in and savour.  There were many more birds than what you see in the picture, but they began to fly away as I slowly approached.

What they were doing in such large numbers I have no idea....they couldn't be pre-roosting as it was too early in the day. This led me to look up strange starling activity on the internet but couldn't find anything to explain this.

What I did find however, was an article on the RSPB website warning  that we're not the only ones that will have a shock in store once 'winter' as we know it, finally arrives with a vengeance this week.

Garden birds will have a rude awakening too the wildlife charity says, but they don't have the luxury of turning up the heating or putting on an extra coat.
Instead, they will start to rely on the goodwill of gardeners and householders, and the RSPB is asking everyone to consider putting out extra supplies of food and water.

So, if like me you enjoy your feathered friends, please remember to feed the birds.

The Big Knit 2011

For the Big Knit, Age UK and innocent ask knitters of all ages to get creative and come up with their own designs for mini-woolly hats to be placed on top of their smoothie bottles and sold in Boots and Sainsbury's stores throughout November. For each hatted bottle sold, 25p is donated to Age UK to help make winter warmer for older people across the UK.

I've been busy knitting for the past few months and donated all my wooly hats to Age UK in October.  Imagine my surprise on Friday night whilst shopping in my local Sainsburys to find one of the hats I knitted sitting proudly on top of an innocent smoothie bottle!!

That's My Hat!

I felt compelled to buy it, now its sitting at home in my fridge.  I wonder if any other big knitters out there have found their own hats sitting on a supermarket shelf?

Nature always delivers

Some photos from my afternoon dog walk, observing patterns in nature

Beautiful Autumn Leaves

Flowering Ivy

Berries

Heart Shape Leaf

Pattern Love

After much ummming and ahhhing, followed by crystal dowsing, I decided to sign up for the Beth Nicholls's The Art and Business of Surface Pattern Design -  featuring Rachael Taylor.  I'm pleased I did. Although my eyes are getting boggled as you quickly start to notice patterns & textures everywhere!  Here's a selection of squares and patterns I noticed around the house this morning:

Partial pattern from a fairy picture

Mosiac t-light holder

Negative Squares

On a totally random theme, I noticed a shadow on my bedroom wall this morning, couldn't resist taking this and applying a few photo edits!

It's a nice sunny day today, so I will be taking my camera out with me on my afternoon  dog walk, can't wait to see what patterns I see in Mother Nature.