i wish i were kidding...
you know those posts i kept putting up in december, about keeping things in perspective, staying mindful, trying to destress amidst the high intensity season... about finding beauty and goodness and love? i did do some of that... but there was a lot of stress... and i must have felt it building because those posts were affirmations for myself as well...
as i started to take the ornaments off of the tree - all of the needles dropped off... and i said 'thank you' to the tree, my giving tree, for shedding its needles, absorbing my stress and allowing my hair to stay put... i felt badly that it had to do it... and i vowed 'never again'...
it was so symbolic to me... now you might tell me that i should have watered it more or it was the dry heat... but, honestly, it isn't often that you see a tree look like a pile of kindling at the curbside... and i had to take that as a sign...
while i was on stephanie lee's blog, i saw that she has a journaling class... and i knew it could be considered 'frivolous' to sign up (not by me), but it called to me... and the inner voice said, 'no time like the present.' (let me here explain how keeping a diary and journaling differs for me... in the past, keeping a diary was more like a recording of events and thoughts around them... this is writing for a certain amount of time with prompts...)
'let the gentle bush dig its roots deep
and spread upward to split the boulder.'
~ carl sandburg
just a few months ago, i started keeping a journal that i draw in... so i can put down those ideas that swirl around my head at bedtime and capture them on paper... so i can get to sleep... so come morning i can remember what exactly i got so excited about the night before!
having experienced such a rapid rate of creative growth in the past year, i feel a bit unbalanced... i realized that while i am expanding in many ways, i need to go deep and search the self... because only then can my work have the intention i wish for it to carry... it will always be authentic, but it just feels like the right time... for all of it... for me to really get in touch with my 44 year old self... my word for the year was 'nascent'... funny how things happen, isn't it?
in the aftermath of the tragic earthquake in haiti, people are wondering what they can do to help... deryn mentock is holding an auction to raise money to donate to hope for haiti...
take a look, won't you? her necklace is absolutely sublime...
Great thoughts, maire. Good luck with your journaling! I confess that's mostly why I do my blog - just to have an outlet for all my (crazy) thoughts :-)
ReplyDeleteOh, and I have a suggestion for your Xmas tree in its current state. Last year, I went on a fishing expedition with my son's Cub Scout troop. We kept seeing these funky things poking out of the lake and the ranger finally explained that they dump old Xmas trees into the lake because they make perfect shelters for the baby fish to hide out in until they are big enough to head to deeper waters. So, see if there's a local lake or pond you could donate it too. That way it can keep on "giving."
Jounaling is a wonderful way to focus your thoughts, let them go if you need to, or develop them if that is right for you. I think you are natural for journal writing. Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteYou will excel at journaling. It is in your soul!
ReplyDeleteIn fact I think your jewelry is halfway there, it tells such wonderful stories!
I think so too! There is a lot of depth to your work:) Enjoy the class!!
ReplyDeleteI can't think of anything that is a better fit for you than a journaling class, how anyone could think that the process of self discovery through writing is frivolous is beyond me! There's so much growth in your writing just from blogging that I'm sure the structure of a class will open so many new doors for you :)
ReplyDeleteI have heard Stephanie Lee's class is just the springboard to unearth past experiences and bring them out into the light of day ~ a journey into the reflective and creative self. Happy travels into the great known and unknown!
ReplyDeleteDefinitely not frivolous. sometimes the only way to stay sane. Big hugs.xo
ReplyDeletejournaling ... i have yet had the calling to try it. but i agree with the ladies that you'll do good. you know ... your blog, i consider that your journal in words. i dun find many blogs like yours, with deep thoughts and considerations, applications of art to life and vv. it is so personal ... it is so you. unconsciously, i think you already have a journal in mairedodd, but perhaps has never viewed it in this light. i have never as well, until this post ... then i thought ... isn't mairedodd already IT ... bless you my fren :) you are such an inspiration!
ReplyDeleteAw, just look at your tree! I have a hard time letting ours go every year and we just did so a few days ago.
ReplyDeleteI think you and journaling go hand and hand...the perfect extension of something you seem to do so effortlessly (writing). I really admire Stephanie Lee's work...I agree you should go for it! :-)
Cindy
I've never used a journal...I'm not sure why ...I probably should...
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your experiences with journaling...you do seem to have talent for putting your thoughts and words on paper so to speak!!!
Cheers
You've read my mind! My word of the year is "horizon", I have to keep looking towards the horizon so I won't lose direction. Journaling is a good idea, I've tried picking it up but can never seem to keep it up. Good luck with yours!
ReplyDelete