the middle

'the doors we open and close each day

decide the lives we lead'

~ flora whittemore

i have been sharing with you my journey through fear, through reluctance, through getting in my own way to attain what my heart desires and my inspiration pushes me to do... the beginning - the april challenge i set for myself... meeting a deadline for a publication (no news yet, but that's ok), a deadline to submit a piece to an exhibition at a museum, and teaching a demo at an art festival... 

behind this very heavy door was the registrar for the newark museum, it is nj's largest museum - and i had an appt this morning to meet with her~

because my piece had been accepted!
in early april, a forwarded email came in with a call for work from the museum for their 100th anniversary... my alter printed it out and decided that the piece i had just finished (thanks to erin's challenge) would be perfect... it's kismet - she argued... and so i spent the next week or so hammering out a cover page, resume and artist's statement - with the very generous help of friends - for i had never done it before! and now i have them to work off of... then there was/is learning about the photography specs - you know the drill... did i survive it? yes... was it stressful? yes... but am i elated i pushed through it? definitely... 

this middle is a process - these shifts have caused major tremors in my life... but it's about momentum and continued hard work now... and not letting the fear crawl up and over me again... 

'if you do not change direction,

you may end up where you are heading.'

~ lao tzu

be aware of the choices you make and how you treat yourself... life is a gift and very short... take risks... if i can do it, you can do it... xo 

show up

so have i mentioned this week how much i love my messages from the universe? on tuesday, with my nerves jangling as i was reviewing something i was about to send out, this arrived in my email...


dream it, mary jane.


show up.


boom.


getting up the courage to try things, to put yourself out there is not always easy... we all know this... but when you do, at least you give yourself a chance of getting what you want... if you don't show up, there is no opportunity... don't hold yourself back...  you may not always get what you had hoped for, but at least you will know you tried... there is no 'if only i had' to go to bed with... and it makes the next time a little less scary... april has been a huge test for me - and we shall see what happens...


i had the opportunity to take my first class last friday... it was near to my home and taught by the very talented ruth rae... what a wonderful woman - she shared everything about herself... i am so excited to use the technique i learned - fusing metal - but more than that i came away inspired... 


here is my simple little section of links - it is completely raw as i have not been able to come back to it yet... 

and here is chuck - the grass was cut and the sun was warm, so we took him outside (after making sure that the cats were inside)... 

'look at a day when you are supremely satisfied at the end.

its not a day when you lounge around doing nothing;

it's when you've had everything to do and you've done it.'

~ margaret thatcher

and a huge thank you to those who sent kind words and support to help me get over a hump... it is appreciated more than you will ever know...