I am from

In the red thread Circle Guide program, Shiloh Sophia invites participants to connect with our origins, and write a I am from poem. Where are you from?'

I am from sage brush, juniper and mint in roadside ditches
   Yarrow in the pasture, that I grind between stones
        Then set in the sun to dry, knowing/not knowing
              There's something more to do

I am from songs around the campfire
    Pumping water and carrying it back to camp
       Sleeping bags and clear night skies
          Waiting for the blue flash, when the lantern goes out

I am from hikes in the woods
   Little mountain mosquito bites that
      Won't itch, if I dont scratch them ....
          I scratch them!

I am from befriending chipmunks, while my mother watches for birds
    From my father's fishing pole and tying flies
         Pan fried trout, fresh from the stream
              Calling the deer, as hunters have, time behind time

I am from lonely child only child
    Day dreams and stories read before bed, 
         myths and legends
             Fuel my dreams

I am from summer adventures with favorite cousins
    Learning constellations dancing in ink black summer sky
        Milky way, a stream across the heavens
             Orion, Cassiopeia, the weeping Pleiades
          Great and little dippers, Pegasus, Leo

I am from church on Sunday, and Grange on Fridays
    From a line of preachers, teachers and farmers
          Midwives and healers stretching back across the plains
                To the southern forests, to the Celtic lands
I am from piano lessons and singing in the choir

    From drawing the neighbor's ponies, 
        Hanging clothes on the line and polishing silver
           4-H and crafts with my mama
            Oregon vacations, Reading after dark

I am from Magpie and Red wing Blackbird
     From echoing Meadowlark's trill and singing to my mountains
        While waiting for the schoolbus
             In the brisk morning air

I am from teacher's college, 
   Honors English and Music theory
      Natural history, with ancient forests and volcanoes
          Life drawing and Opera workshop

I am from a third floor dorm room and my first roommate
        She, one of ten kids, and me, one of one!
            Music Major and minor
                 Learning to bump along

I am from romance and disappointment
      From young motherhood and marriage
           Nursing and making yogurt
                Messy houses and enough books to fill a library  

I am from art and science
     Mountains and stars
          Healers and dancers
              Wise woman and mystics

I am from astrology and tarot readings
    Color and Theory
        Living in community 
             And taking up the harp

I am from a dancing dragon tattoo
    Living by the sea for awhile
        Teaching Reiki and gathering stones
             Basking in starlight

I am from here and there,
   From the songs of my ancestors, and of my grandchildren
      From asking "is there another story you'd like to tell?
         Sharing the songs of the stars
             
.... Posting to Paint Party Friday - where are you from?
            
    

Tea With the Musé

I'm excited to host a series of Musé Day offerings in conjunction with other Intentional Creativity Foundation Guild members around the globe, beginning this Sunday afternoon, Feb 19, with our Musé Day Tea Party! Other gatherings are happening in S Africa, Australia, Denmark, France, Sweden, El Salvador, and around the USA. Shiloh will offer several Musé Day classes and livestreams from Muséa Sophia, in Sonoma California. Musé Day events coincide with the recent release of Shiloh's book of poetry and inquiry, Tea With The Midnight Musé.

Did you know that paint brushes are Magïc Wands, and with them Musés light fuses? 

Magic wand paintbrush

Musé nspired creativity gets energy moving. Poetry and tea help it keep flowing. The Red Thread remind us we're community, and Chocolate soothes the tattered heart! 

Setting Intention is key to the process, and gives Access to your creative fire. What if we could acknowledge, then learn to override the voice of the critic; the inner vice that replays old criticisms: "not good enough," "not talented," "too (old, out of shape, boring...)? 
Shall we activate the voice of our Inner Wisdom, which adores us and is constantly encouraging, giving cour, heart, to all that we are, all that we do? That's the voice of the Musé (here are some of my early Musings on the Musé)

Star Song

In a recent Power Creatives TV episode, Shiloh Sophia and her guest SARK explored our how we access or block inspiration, tagging our Inner Wisdom, and how activating creativity in turn leads to living juicy.

SARK offered these inquiries:

• Who or what inspires you?
• What/who blocks inspiration?
• What/who supports your inspiration?
• In what ways am I inspiring to myself?

I invite you to spending some time journaling on each of these, and heartstorming on increasing opportunities for inspiration. (Inspire: take a breath!) SARK suggested one way to deepen our relationship with our own Inner Wisdom comes by writing daily love notes from Her.  

Over the years, I've received many of these "love notes," and uplifting guidance in the form of a dialogue. When I embarked on my Color of Woman Quest, I received, "dear one! You are blessed beyond measure! It is up to you too SHARE those blessings - the time you spend in circle Jones/prepares you and those with whom you journey for the Next Steps.... open your eyes, ears, and heart, dance through the doorway, you are invited!"

I extend the invitation to you! If you're in the Willamette Valley, join us this Sunday! 

Other ways to connect with the community: 

• Check the Musé Days page for info on MD events around the globe and/or access to the livestream. 
• Red Thread Cafe Classroom on FB where thousands of women from around the globe post Intentional artwork (I find my artist groups very inspiring)
• Visit the Power Creatives TV page, where you can register for access to the 13 episodes in season one, FIERCE. (Shiloh's interview with SARK is the most recent).
• SARK (Susan Ariel Rainbow Kennedy) and on FB 
• Join our PNW MeetUp group for updates on circles and playshops. 
• I also post events on my FB artist page and on my website.

I honor all your creative goodness! 

Linking to Paint Party Friday

First and Latest

Recently, Maestra Shiloh Sophia issued a challenge to post pictures of the first painting we did using Intentional Creativity methods, and the latest! I had just taken a workshop with one of the current Color of Woman teachers-in-training Tina Gain, and painted a sweet lady during her two day offering, "Caregiver, Heal Thyself!"

This seems a perfect time to reflect on that first class in February 2014, when I painted my "Musé of Creativity" Gabriela in a similar maiden voyage IC class, offered by my friend Elisabeth Freise-Mick. 

Gabriella, end of workshop

       At the end of class, (just one day!) Gabriela was still rather raw, and I later spent time developing her, filling her hair in, evening out her compassion, adding ribbons and details on her harp. 
       Elisabeth tried to get me to leave Gabriella "as is," as reference point for later work, but as an Artist, she felt unfinished! Several students have asked to see my early work, and now I see the value of keeping some ladies in a less finished state. 

Gabriella, Muse of Creativity

Star Song emerged out of the cosmos, during Tina's 10 hour workshop  weekend  (And yes, I'm still working on her!) I loved learning a new way of doing stars, and the appearance of her Dragon companion. I love the focus and depth of Intentional Creativity!

It is fun to view these ladies side by side, and see how my style and techniques have developed. Each carries a message of shining our light.

Star Song - 2016