this is my offering...

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

The In-Between

In the in-between,
I hold on to symbols
that carry me
as they resound

Gifts to consciousness
from unconscious mind,
the present presence of
hours between waking
and dreaming

Here and there

moments sway

with sudden depth

and I am overcome

Awareness fills in
the holes
created by collisions
of time and space

And because of these
brushes with eternity,

I am made whole.

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

This is a Re-Post, because I find it so interesting that this is by far my most popular post. Once in a while, I'll click on "Stats" and while other pages have a handful of views, 4 or 7, one actually has 18; Be Yourself has 72 just for this week. All time = 344. The most viewed page after that has 84 views. So, by far, Be Yourself blows it out of the water. MANY people are looking for messages about being themselves, and I hope that this post has done something to point others in the right direction. We're all in this together; may you find your voice and be strong in who you are every day.

These posts are also about being yourself, in some weight shape or form. They hold messages of me being me and encourage you to be you; hope you'll take a peek! And please, leave a comment and let me know you were here, and tell me about your journey to become yourself more strongly.

Redemption Song

"...none but ourselves can free our mind..."

How Long

Will you choose
to give me the freedom

to be more than

what you want to

label me as

by your first impression?

Freedom Messages

"Free to be whoever you want to be!"

It's True

change the light by which you see

What I Need

and what do you need, do you know?

Ephemeral

blessed with melancholy

Emerging

I am finding ME

Here is the original post:

Be Yourself

On the door of a bathroom stall at a favorite cafe,

there is this message, pictured above.

I had been trying on lots of labels for a while,

thinking that I needed to be this way or that way

in order to live rightly.

The Spirit intervened and has been redeeming:

redeeming me, and who I've always been,

redeeming who I need to be,

the real me

hidden beneath all the layers,

coming back to life again.

Again, I read the message, clearly

plain and simply stated,

on the wall of another bathroom

at a new favorite place

where my kids and I rollerskated

and they bounced on inflatables

and we all had fun, such fun.

And the vision is of me

and these layers being peeled off

of the masks I tried on for a while,

and underneath is me,

head tilted back

waterfall rushing over,

and I am at peace.

There is more writing on the wall

at this favorite cafe

a Dr. Seuss reminder:

"Today is your day!

Your mountain is waiting.

So... get on your way!"

And I am utterly convinced

that I need to be myself,

and that you need to be yourself...

that every single person needs to be Who They Are,

and that we need each other to be unique

because there are things that only we can see

and experiences that only we can live,

and we need each other desperately

to bring forth into the world

what individual gifts

have been crafted into us only.

Be yourself -

you're the only you there is,

and I am the only me.

Monday, July 30, 2012

Authentic Online Community

I just finished reading The Artist's Way, by Julia Cameron.
It's taken me a while to let it go, to actually finish it. This book's been instrumental in my reawakening as an artist, as a writer. I've been savoring it like a good bar of dark chocolate that I'd hide in the corner of a cabinet shelf, or an expensive bottle of red wine aged in an oak barrel. To be done means "what next?" - and although I have another book waiting to be read, the challenge is to go do something; and although I have been, the truth is, I need to be more consistent with my art and writing.

It's for my own good, really.

I enjoy watching doors open and possibilities happen as connections are made. I have always wanted to be part of a group that believes in one another, encourages one another, accepts one another, and cheers each other on with our creative, artistic pursuits and deep soul, deep thought yearnings. When I first started my blog, which wasn't all that long ago, I wrote a post about Why I'm Here, trying to figure it all out myself.

I'm learning and growing through the community I've found online, and although things are not yet crystal clear, they aren't as blurry. It can be hard because I have this desire to be in deep community, like Julia Cameron describes in the Appendix of The Artist's Way - a "Sacred Circle" of artists who "belong to an ancient and holy tribe," and can "midwive dreams for one another." A group who can be there to support each other when our dreams seem either too lofty or heavy for us to hold, when we're talking to darkness again, letting it unfold us and do it's work, reminding each other that there are some seeds that can only grow and flower when they receive the right amount of complete darkness, providing the right amount of encouragement and poetry when we don't believe in ourselves and want to give up.

"Moonlight illuminate my night and my days sunray make the people say
And a vision something's missing so they're screaming out loud
Keep my feet on the ground and my head in the clouds."
Matisyahu - Time of Your Song

I get bored (and tired and frustrated) of spending time reading and commenting in places that receive no feedback, or little feedback, or lack actual communication and discussion. I miss the interactions provided by some college classes when I was still in school, and what I imagine a Creative Cluster of artists would provide in a group going through a book like The Artist's Way together would be like. In real time, it's not been an opportunity provided; considering the stage of life I am in, online community has been a more realistic pursuit.

So I've been jumping through hoops, looking for colorful, alive places where I can be myself, ask questions, get answers, and be part of something authentic. What I mean by authenticity in online community is something trustworthy, genuine, real - that back and forth, that being seen, that not making it all about oneself but including others. Taking time to respond, before jumping to the next thing, noticing readers and their comments, not skipping over anybody, and connecting others to each other, in community.

It can be tricky online, I know this,

but I found some things that are worth my time to be part of.

I found some places that are authentic, full of communication, and Secret Messages.

I have found what I am looking for:

Authentic Online Community.