I have always loved the in between seasons of Autumn and Spring. They are my breath of fresh air that prepare me for the going in of winter and the coming out of summer.

I have just returned from being at the beach and enjoyed basking in the not too hot sun, feeling the breeze brush past my face and wondering…just wondering…

I started to do some writing and art exercises with my non-dominant (right) hand allowing myself to play and I was amazing at what was revealed to me…

…aging, anti-inflammatory

india, in there, intuition, indecision

not knowing who I am

what happened?

getting worse, spreading

spreading viral

uncontrollable

damage to myself

I don’t want to walk yet but I’ve been told to run

how can they hurt me?

what are they doing to me?

Why not I keep saying why not?

questions and no answers

groused out by it all

wanting to be normal to be understood

to be listened to to be heard

always my intuition I listen to

all the time for people to trust me with that

Why is it still there?

and worse now more than ever?

Allow yourself to let go

to take a risk into the unknown

into the past

allow myself to hear and stop controlling

Break through to the other side

strong enough you know

you are

allow yourself to heal and be known

reach out and hold my hand

allow yourself to heal

I also did some drawing and as an artist I like to keep things within the lines and my lines have to be perfect so using my non-dominant hand was a totally different experience! My lines were free and it did not matter how they were placed upon the page and when I tried to stay within the lines I couldn’t! My hand was moving freely and at times uncontrollable.

The non-dominant hand can’t stay within the boundaries, it has to get out and be free.

I am 100% responsible for my happiness.

When did I start understanding this?

I have read many personal development books but it wasn’t until I had actually experienced what I had been reading about that I really understood the Art of Happiness.

Being happy requires 100% effort on my part. Everything I need to be happy is inside of me.

When I think about this, I wonder how do you teach this? How do you lead people down this pathway and help then understand this?

When people say, “you make me sad” or “you made me angry”, I remember that that used to be me! And yet, that couldn’t be further from the truth! No one makes you do anything. In any moment you choose, you decide.

So how did I end up on the path that I am on?

By choice – with a bit of magic, spiritual guidance and synchronicity. (I love that word!)

I could have easily ended up on another path, but fortunately for me I chose happiness. I chose to face my past and heal. I am still on this journey and it has been challenging but rewarding at the same time.

I know I am where I am supposed to be. My life is on purpose and all I know is that I created this, I chose, I decided!

So here I am

SO much has happened in my busy big part of the world over these last few days. But first things first, I have to post some new photos of my latest art pieces. Yes! My photographic images on hand-made flax paper canvases are natural, sustainable art works that are good for me and good for the environment!

I finally got to send these pieces off to two very cool people (well three people actually. Saul, Nikki & their son Toby Tahi) who really helped me to get my systems for my business going. It can be hard for any artist at the best of times to have any sense of structure (you know being creative and all – going with the flow, that kind of thing!) but I’ve realised after having a system in place, I could never be without it.

Workflow Group showed me how to increase my productivity just by having a few systems in place. I no longer sit there for hours with a piece of paper wondering where it is going to go. One rule is: handle each piece of paper only once!

I also learnt a valuable lesson which has probably been an excuse in the past for not being able to be creative at times and that is:

You can actually be creative at any time in any moment if you really want to! No more excuses about having artist’s block, or not ‘feeling’ creative.

Some people might not agree, but this has been my experience and as an artist who is in business, at some stage I need to say, “Ok, I will create because this is my ‘soul’ income. There can be no excuse and if I am really passionate about what I am doing, then how can there be blocks to this passion?

In saying this, I create because this is who I am, this is my passion and this will never change regardless of whether I get paid or not. The money just follows and I can attest to this!

So anyway, these photos of my new work! Check them out here and let me know what you think

And don’t forget to check out my magic garden blog where I talk about anything and everything to do with my magic garden. And finally, peace2009 – my hope for peace in the world in 2009.

Peace.

Easily said than done!

everything we need is in our own backyard

But the more I focus on achieving my goals in life to help others and fully experiencing the journey to get there, I am always presented with everything I need at any moment in time.

Having been self-employed for nearly four years I have learnt that the more you try to “make money” the harder it is to actually make money! But if you live life passionately and with purpose, the money will come.

Sometimes we don’t realise that our own pot of gold is in our own backyards – we just need to look and see what is there.

The following excerpt was taken from “Acres of Diamonds” which was originally presented as a lecture by Russell H. Conwell (Feb 15th 1843 – Dec 6th 1925) an American Baptist minister, lawyer, writer and outstanding orator. By the end of his life in 1925, Dr. Conwell had presented this lecture over 6,000 times in towns all over the world.

The idea of this work reminds me of my own endeavours to find out who I am and what my purpose in life is and in order for me to do that I have had to look at what is right in front of me, inside me and around me.

One need not look elsewhere for opportunity, achievement or fortune – everything that is needed is right there in front of you. This lecture of Robert Conwell remains one of the classic inspirational stories of all time.

“”The love of money is the root of all evil.” It is the worship of the means instead of the end. Though you cannot reach the end without the means.

When a man makes an idol of the money instead of the purposes for which it may be used, when he squeezes the dollar until the eagle squeals, then it is made the root of all evil.”

Also, check out my related blog at http://sustainableart.brighterplanet.org

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

I watched Coach Carter last night on DVD (for the 3rd or 4th time!) and was reminded of a quote which was originally given by Marianne Williamson in her book A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of “A Course in Miracles

Nowadays most people credit this quote to Nelson Mandela but Marianne Williamson’s book is where the quote originates. At the end of the day, what matters most is that people hear this quote and are inspired by its message.

Which is why this blog post is totally unrelated to the last and is about what I had for breakfast this morning! Kina on toast!! Yum!

Now if you have ever eaten kina before you will know that it is an acquired taste but it is nothing like you would have ever tasted before. The way the kina just slides down your throat…yummy…

But what I also wanted to say about the kina is that  sometimes you will find the shells on a beach – dry, spikeless and gutless but transformed into these amazing shapes with the most intricate patterns on them. Many an artist has used these for inspiration. I certainly have!

And if you are an artist – check out here how you can make money from your art online.

And don’t forget to check out my other blogs here and here.

Peace,

Jo

But they weren’t the focus, and I’m really grateful that in my childhood and over the years I have learnt to value people.

I understand the importance of xmas for some people but I choose not to indulge in the extravagant spending that goes on at xmas. I see so many whanau feel obligated to buy gifts at xmas and then they suffer in the new year when they have to find the money again that they didn’t have to buy presents in the first place! Its like that!

If xmas is about giving gifts, then why not give the gift of aroha, the gift of love, the gift of manaakitanga – looking after and feeding another person. These are gifts that don’t cost a thing, that can be given and received freely and I guarantee that if given to a child all the years of their life, at every xmas, they will know about the importance of valuing and loving people and more importantly, they will grow up confident and will know who they are.

Today, more than ever, the world needs your vision.

If you do nothing else, simply learn how to move your art career
to the next level, so you can make an honest living doing what you
love, and inspire the rest of us.

And, yes, I do know how much gets in your way.

Because it’s the same day-to-day, survival stuff that gets in mine.

But you are the artist. You carry the banner of creativity high for
the rest of us. When you are successful, your art becomes our mirror.
It reflects the creative longing we all feel and desire.

Your art raises the important questions. It heals. The very diversity of its beauty calms our fears.

When you put your work in the world, shining, we all have another chance to see the deeper truth about who we are, and our collective, creative spirit.

Ariane Goodwin – creator of smARTist

Tags: the artist within, art, creativity, passion, inspire, career, living, life, heals, beauty, calm your fears, creative spirit, deeper truth, who we are,

“The most important kind of freedom is to be what you really
are. You trade in your reality for a role. You trade in your
sense for an act. You give up your ability to feel, and in
exchange, put on a mask. There can’t be any large-scale
revolution until there’s a personal revolution, on an
individual level. It’s got to happen inside first. You can
take away a man’s political freedom and you won’t hurt him-
unless you take away his freedom to feel. That can destroy
him. That kind of freedom can’t be granted. Nobody can win
it for you.” – Jim Morrison quotes (American Poet and
Singer, The Doors (band) 1943-1971)

You can go here for more inspirational words www.creatavision.com

Enjoy the rest of your day!
Jo

Tags: vision, inspiration, freedom, feel, mask, political freedom, inspire