finding my way back to center

 

"Are my boots old? Is my coat torn?
Am I no longer young, and still half-perfect? Let me
keep my mind on what matters,
which is my work,
which is mostly standing still and learning to be
astonished." -Mary Oliver, The Messenger  
*one of my fave poems!

Little by little... I am finding my way back to center...that place that is still, that is calm, that simply is. Sometimes...I stray away from what I know to be true and I get burnt out and overwhelmed. So these days I am falling into what I know works for me...surrounding mySELF with love, acceptance, gratitude, nature, books, reading poetry aloud, writing in my journal, eating healthy, walks, joy, laughter, sleep. Simply sitting and immersing myself into the grandeur around me. Filling mySELF up. 

 

Seeing the beauty that is within all of us...the grace that we can find living and breathing inside of each moment...if we pay attention to it. Maybe it's the laughter of a child...with eyes sparkling...or the rays of sun pouring through a window...or a warm and heartful hug. More + more...I am learning it's the ordinary stuff of life that fuels me.

I have been experimenting with mixed media pieces...little wall hangings I stitched up. This one here reads "Faith in her Path" and I used little pieces of fabric along with one of my prints. I love the way it turned out and am going to keep on trying out different combinations of found fabrics.

Practicing self kindness in my portraits. So important, don't you think? I absolutely want to take this class...I love the content and think it will open up a whole new direction with my photography.

Quiet time with a coffee + my journal

I have been rewriting my stories. You know...the ones that were not mine to begin with. The ones that keep me locked up. The ones I don't need anymore; I can write my own now, thank you very much.

 

And spending time with my family. Tara had a spa night at our library this weekend and she had such a blast!!! We are super involved with our library and this event was to promote early literacy...so they had tons of fun stuff for kids to do!!! Of course, as you can see,  Tara was in full princess mode...with crown, shoes and everything pink + sparkly.

I have been sketching with watercolors, graphites and pens. Experimenting with colors, shadows and skin tones. Love the freedom of my sketchbook and this little Moleskin goes with me everywhere!!!

 

 A simple walk...breathing in the trees + sky ...makes everything right with the world.

 

 

"Your sacred space is where you can find yourself again and again."

                                                                    -Joseph Campbell   

And this is a self portrait I took just a few minutes ago in my studio. I'm a little tired...and I need to pluck my eyebrows! Oh well...I am finding my way back to center.  Hello world...I am enough...and so are you:)