Voices of Shadow and Light

"all creation emerges from darkness"

micheal meade

i've been pulling myself out of one of those dark stupors the past day. one where a single disappointment has derailed, at least for awhile, my forward momentum. i let myself down, and i think for me that's much more devastating then if it were someone else. the old habit of letting the mental gremlins take over kicked in and before i knew it i was in that shadowy place, the one with the slippery slope. nowhere was there a sign post reminding me to "seek joy first", or "the greatest story of all is the one u are living", or "she lives by the light of her own stars.' nope. only that downward spiral..and the cutting thoughts,"you don't have what it takes".." you can't make this dream come true- you don't have the: discipline, the passion, the strength, the smarts, the will..." "it will take too long.."

i have such a hard time accepting my perfectly imperfect self. when this mode takes over, compassion evaporates. gentleness is forgotten and all i can see if what's lacking, what's not enough. why it will never work.

but this time, now that i've gotten some ground under me, now that i've crawled up out of the hole, i've decided that i will lean into my communtiy. i will put my brave on and reach out- to do the phoenix rising yoga with ken on a regular basis. i will risk being seen and heard as i am, i'll continue to learn what 's right for me and to adjust to what i think i must do for what i can do. to notice, maybe a little bit sooner, how destructive the comparing i do is. the very scary truth is that maybe the dream i have isn't going to come about the way i imagined, in the timing i intended, that my soul is leading me and that it might just be a really good idea to surrender into this darkness again for the millionth time. learning to trust. to accept. stay tumed, there may yet be happy ending!

where it is

these are off to abt yoga, topsfield, ma. www.abtyoga.com check in with ken to see them and take a class too, he's great, our "australian teddy bear"...i've heard him called!

here are the new muslin gift pouches for the baby canvas gift sets. i've handstamped these. so the set includes: the baby canvas, gift pouch with ribbon and a blank gift card! when u want to give just a little somethin' ;)

these are off to riverwalk beads and gallery in amesbury, ma. http://www.riverwalkbeads.com/

these are headed to : abt yoga, topsfield, ma. http://www.abtyoga.com/

these to circles of wisdom, andover, ma. http://www.circlesofwisdom.com/
i have some other goodies avail on their online store too..

oh and the baby to the far left says "witchy girl" not "itchy girl" lol!

these are destined for:

general goods
andover, ma
http://www.generalgoods.net/


happy full moon and sunday to you!

thinking of you...xx

a day in the sandbox!

in no particular order some of my play pretty's from yesterday..some done some barely started but aaaah a day to play in the sandbox, don't we love these days? some will join me at the castle on sunday....these are baby hearts teeny, tiny 2 X 2 and some a bit bigger, so sweet when u want to give just a little somethin'..

one of the new sentiments quotes i'm coming out with..

follow the path...

another new sentiment..

and another.....

greet the wind..

i love this for a house blessing gift....

a new life is a message alot of women especially "get".. and many are going after!

thinking of you...xx

art in progress..sneak peek for hammond

happy news- i have felt bubbling up inside little sentiments that i want to share and combine in with my artwork and one day a couple weeks ago i sat down under the old pear tree in our backyard with notebook in hand and asked my soul to bring them out into the open. so you'll be seeing one of them in the photos with the wings. this is art in progress, still playing with it ..it is one of the first tries at gritty jane's tech . and it features one of these quotes...it will be for sale at hammond this wkend. and i will have others at the other shoppes listed below too. or i'd love to make one to send u :)

.. 5 X 7canvas

"the wanderer" A disclaimer: a tech. that should only be performed by the passenger! not the driver as in this case..merging onto highway traffic and seeing a lic. plate i just "had to " capture at 60mph..hence the blurry cam shot! no this won't be in the art sale but it was one of those lol moments i know my creative kindred will get..

6 X 6 canvas

i have a big buddha crush and he influences my life and art quite a bit..here he is again with his words
( i found on a wgbh bookmark)

5 X 7 canvas

spots u can find afyh:

ABTYoga

Topsfield, Ma

http://www.abtyoga.com/

General Goods

Andover, Ma

http://www.generalgoods.net/

Circles of Wisdom

Andover, Ma

http://www.circlesofwisdom.com/

Riverwalk Beads and Gallery

Amesbury, Ma

http://www.riverwalkbeads.com/

Enjoy & Happy day to you, my friends xx

seek joy first

joy is taking funky pics of one of my fav. nature friends, thistle...

and....

a little morsel for the day..the card i chose today from the money and the law of attraction cards by esther and jerry hicks:

"....as u think thoughts that feel good to you, you will be in harmony with the who-u-really-are. and in doing so, you will utilize ur profound freedom. seek joy first, and all of the growth that u could ever imagine will come joyously and abundantly to u."

wishing u a day where you seek joy even if ur heart has been broken, ur step is weary, ur soul uninspired...may there be one thing, one small thing that u find, a flower, a stone, a person who says just the right word...if u take a deep breath and open to the possibility of joy, there's no telling what kind of magic will float on into that beautiful heart of urs....

thinking of u...xxx

couldn't resist

words to live by don't u think??

travel light my friends body, mind, heart and spirit!

this from cranes beach today..

thinking of u xx

goodies

our annual tradition -picking the first of the harvest. niko gets the honor of gathering whatever is up and today its green beans and cukes. we're growing beans for the first time -super crunchy with their sandpaper skins...cukes long and slender, crisp...yum!

ate the cukes as part of our beach picnic on crane's today

i come from a long line of southern (virginia and tennessee) farmers and serious gardeners on both sides of my family, so its no surprise that we can't wait to put our garden out each memorial day weekend. i have such vivid memories of the garden we had in the early years when i grew up on cape cod; potatoes, beans, tomatoes, corn on the cob, cukes, onion, scallion, greens and more...sitting on the patio munching down a bowl of raw green beans like they were penny candy..warm, juicy tomatoes ripe off the vine, the size of both my fists, i ate them like an apple -just topped with a sprinkle of salt and bit into them ..dad made a concoction that to this day is, well, unique..he'd pour a huge glass of buttermilk, crumble in fresh baked cornbread, top with scallions..then devour! not for this yankee!

dad is still a die hard gardener and so are most of my aunts and uncles..they grew up literally living off of what ever they grew, caught, hunted or raised- so over the years, they have mastered the art of making the most of what's under their care to cultivate.

we have the classic suburban garden: 4 raised beds and i also have a meditation garden with flowers and a few herbs . i'll never forget when once a few years ago dad started into a conv. with a gardener's speak i'd never heard before.."deborah, remember the best time to plant the tomatoes is in either the breast or the privates..or else the loins." huh? " uh, dad..what are u talking about????!" come to find out they have adopted the age old system of planting by "the signs"..there are signs for above ground crops like the breast, loins and privates and for underground- no idea we don't do underground yet! this year when he came up we did indeed plant by the signs, the loins, i think-..and darn if the stuff isn't looking yummalicious!

i dream of lots more gardens, more herbs, enough to cultivate without buying to supplement like i do now;for my own oils and salves in the winter, herbed ice teas in summer and medicianal ones in the cold season..of formal french medieval layouts... hidden fairy grotos in the woods surrounding our home...think about the art one can make with that kind of living inspiration to pull from..

what are you growing this year? there is nothing that can replace the excitement of picking veggies from ur own back yard...it's so wonderful to share ur spoils w/ family and friends..to eat them raw, cooked w/other seasonal goodies, fresh pesto, bean salad, composed caprese appetizers... enjoy them over and over right through october...even a 5 gallon bucket will net u lots of tomaotes, it can be that simple! i hope u'll share some of ur harvest stories..and recipes soon! xx

getting trashed

the instigator cardio trash collecting

all filled up

for awhile now i've been meaning to bring a bag along with me when i walk in the am..we live in total suburbia not on a main street at all, and still you'd be amazed at the garbage left along the side of the road. yesterday someone dumped a water bottle on the shoulder of our yard and so it was just the motivation to grab the bag- actually forgot it and ran back in, took the camera and then struck out.

before i was halfway through my walk, the bag was brimming..eight water / soda bottles, several beer cans, cigarette boxes, newspapers inserts, an empty tray of plant starters, and lots of misc. junk. So here i am walking with a camera and loaded bag of garbage! one gal i cruised by said she used to do the same thing when she walked with the baby and carriage, but now it's her and her 3-legged dog (he is so sweet) i guess the bag was too much to drag along. it wasn't heavy but it did make for an interesting trek. i got to thinking about who litters anyway? i really can't imagine just tossing something out the window or dropping an empty bottle after i'd finished with it....i hope when i'm remembered 100 yrs from now they'll say" yeah, she was the one who you saw walking around the block picking up somebody else's litter"..and wouldn't it be neat if then they said.."but now nobody litters anymore..."

hopefully this will happen bcuz they care not becuz they're afraid of the trash police!

what will we do with our time..with our resources... what will we make a difference doing, being?

yes it was honestly kinda grungy and gross..but i've given birth to a child and now that's one messy propostion so this was nothing in comparison..who knew childbirth would prepare me for my new trash collecting hobby!

i did recycle what i could and maybe next time i'll opt for the brown paper insead of plastic bag...maybe this stuff will end up in an art exhibit somewhere, someday!

thinking about you and the leagcy you'll leave....xxx

just for fun

what is the least we deserve?

tabitha got dibs on my h2o

the cosmos in my earl grey

amazing things come in goddess packages, thank u KTG!

my rockstar hair stylist, meg ortenzi.....love u girl xx

shamanic training with alberto villoldo, kripalu, ma

rock star hair after a visit to meg

neat grave stone

alaskian heart stone from lynn and "robin eggs" i painted, nest we found along our travels

staples

anthropologie..means trouble!

more trouble

aaah, just for fun...what have u been up to, just for fun??? xxx