(It starts with us)
"Go back and stand against that one red flower and walk straight ahead for that last hard mile. Go up and knock on the old weathered door. Climb up to the cave. Crawl through the window of a dream. Sift the desert and see what you find. It is the only work you have to do. Go gather bones."
Courage has many faces. Sometimes it is quiet and graceful; humble. Sometimes it is bold and daring..loud even...angry. Courage finds us in those moments of quiet desperation when we think it has deserted us altogether. It sits like a bird on our shoulder...guiding us to our true SELVES. Sometimes...courage goes into hiding for so so long that we forget about it completely. But always always always...courage is right here inour hearts...just waiting to show itself.
It takes courage to put pen to paper, brush to canvas, stitch to cloth, heart to work. It takes courage to expose our souls in loving each other, creating, reaching out and forming community. There is courage in the true sharing of our stories, in the descending into our dark places, in the telling of it. It takes deep courage to claim all of who we are, all of our stories and mistakes and ...yes! It even takes great big huge courage to claim our gifts and talents; to not play small. To not want others to play small either.
(Self Portrait at 42-yesterday)
It begins right here...In the honest disclosing of ourSELVES...It's not easy for most of us but it is necessary and vital to truly become who we are meant to be. To reach our higher selves.
In the broken pieces of us...lie seeds of courage that will bloom into our true potential,. Courage is cultivated in so many many ways. In our parts and pieces that are cracked and broken and bent...there lies courage. In our wholeness and light...it is there too. It is in the daring...to be frail, vulnerable... risking failure and foolishness...It is in the falling and the getting up.
(Courageous Heart, mixed media on canvas, archival prints available soon!)
What does your courage look like? Can you give it shape and wings and air? If there is a chasm in your heart that needs to be crossed...courage is that bridge.We all have courageous hearts just waiting to bloom.
6 comments:
What beautiful images Soraya and I love the one of your hands full of brushes against those vivid colours.
It gives me courage and inspiration to begin my next commission. Sometimes that can be very hard. Your words as always are encouraging. Thanks Soraya.
What a beautiful photo of YOU! Just wanted to pop in and see how you were doing. XXOO!
Dearest soraya, you are so beautiful and inspiring! I love this heart-warming post and i feel motivated by you and how you cultivate courage!! I think right now my courage looks and feel like a little birdie learning to fly...im trying to flip my wings and take the leap to fly! Have a lovely merry happy weekk and love to you!
Beautiful images and beautiful thoughts, Soraya. I am finding myself becoming more and more courageous. This Soul Restoration class is showing me how...making me confront my past fears and doubts and yucky stuff. I am growing and learning and love that!
Have a beautiful day:)
Leslie
love your blog always, soraya! :) always so inspiring-
courage! courage! courage! being scared doesn't mean we don't have it!!
Oh Soraya, there's magic in your words, I feel so empowered reading them. I especially love when you said courage is like a bird sitting on your shoulder. I love the image of that. And you've such wonderful pictures to go with them!
For me courage is like a lioness in my heart, encouraging and guiding me to roar, to give chase to my dreams! It's quite a ferocious image but it brings out something wild in me which makes me abandoned all fearsome thoughts!
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