Joy!

This card is by Sue Ann Zderic. Here are her words:



"I am the one who is joyful in all that I behold, who says, Yes to life, who rejoices in all the love that flows to me."

Zero Circle

I made this card at Santa Sabina retreat center recently. I was attending my fourth meeting of the Embodied Life Mentorship Program with Russell Delman.

I haven't spoken from this card yet, so have no "I am the one..." statement. However, one of the participants at the gathering read this poem. The card and the poem seem like a perfect reminder of what to keep in my mind and heart.

Zero Circle -- by Rumi (version by Coleman Barks)

Be helpless, dumbfounded,
Unable to say yes or no.
Then a stretcher will come from grace
to gather us up.

We are too dull-eyed to see that beauty,
If we say we can, we're lying.
If we say No, we don't see it,
That No will behead us
And shut tight our window onto spirit.

So let us rather not be sure of anything,
Besides ourselves, and only that, so
Miraculous beings come running to help.
Crazed, lying in a zero circle, mute,
We shall be saying finally,
With tremendous eloquence, Lead us.
When we have totally surrendered to that beauty,
We shall be a mighty kindness.

Second Chakra - Dove

When I walked into Sheila Filan's house and saw this card I said, "Wow! Can I put that on my blog?" I knew other people would want to see it as well.

This card is from the SoulCollage Companion suit. It represents the second chakra, the place of creativity. Here are Sheila's words regarding this card:

I am the one in whom creativity and color are inextricably combined. I am the one who desires to express my creativity in expressions of peace. I am the one whose creativity is flowering and bearing
fruit.

What does this card want from me?
This card wants me to revel in the excitement of new discovery.

What does this card have to give me?
This card gives me the wonderfulness of trickling and oozing color. It give me a feeling of settled enthusiasm.

Sheila and I are offering a workshop to make Companion suit cards. Check out our website SoulCollage Adventure

Let's Celebrate!

I am the one who offers hope.

I am the one who cares about honest leadership.

I am the one who forges alliances to solve problems.


What does this card want from me?
This card wants me to help create a better nation, a better world.


What does the energy of this card have to give me?
Inspiration.

"This victory alone is not the change we seek. It is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It can't happen without you, without a new spirit of service, a new spirit of sacrifice. So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of responsibility, where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves but each other."
--President-elect Barack Obama

The Lookless Door Update

I made this card at a recent workshop without any sense of what it might be about, but after sitting with it for a couple of weeks, I realized it shows my personal development from a space of chaos depicted by a card I made two years ago.

My SoulCollage practice is showing my development as well as supporting it! How cool is that?

One of the biggest changes in my life since that post of two years ago has been my journey with Focusing. I am now in a training program to become a Certified Focusing Guide. I would love to have you check out my website to learn how Focusing can add richness and self-understanding to your life and SoulCollage practice.

Last Night As I Was Sleeping

This is the first time I've ever made a card that so clearly represented a beloved poem. This poem, Last Night As I Was Sleeping by Antonio Machado (translated by Robert Bly) reminds us of the beauty and mystery of our Inner Life.


Last night as I was sleeping,
I dreamt—marvelous error!—
that a spring was breaking
out in my heart.
I said: Along which secret aqueduct,
Oh water, are you coming to me,
water of a new life
that I have never drunk?

Last night as I was sleeping,
I dreamt—marvelous error!—
that I had a beehive
here inside my heart.
And the golden bees
were making white combs
and sweet honey
from my old failures.

Last night as I was sleeping,
I dreamt—marvelous error!—
that a fiery sun was giving
light inside my heart.
It was fiery because I felt
warmth as from a hearth,
and sun because it gave light
and brought tears to my eyes.

Last night as I slept,
I dreamt—marvelous error!—
that it was God I had
here inside my heart.

Many thanks to Anna Chambers for her beehive photo. You can see more of her work at http://www.peoplesgardens.co.uk/

Picnic with The Great Mother

It’s hot. So what! It’s Summer!
Picnics, swimming, biking, lying around reading. Yum Yum.

Sheila and I, Sharry, will be holding our annual Summer Splash SoulCollage pool party and card reading Aug 10 from 1-5 pm in Ashland, Oregon.
Call (541) 488-0956 (Sheila) for directions and RSVP (we so need a head count)

If you have never done SoulCollage, you will enjoy learning about a life transforming process. If you have made SoulCollage cards, bring them to share with others. Newcomers and experienced artists will be guided through the “reading process”.

Swimming and mingling from 1-3ish. Reading begins at 3:15.

The card featured at left is called Picnic with the Great Mother. That’s me at about 8 years old. I’ve always loved that Polaroid photo my dad took. Picnic complements of Mollie Katzen. And the Great Mother? She is out and about, within and without. Bow to her abundant offerings Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring.

Ageless Beauty

THE BLESSED CRONE

The wise woman of experience offers her perspective on life.
She savors the past and smiles at the future,
not knowing what it holds.
But she is sure it is something good.
Live for today, enjoy your wrinkles, make them beautiful and meaningful.

Diane Kern, SoulCollage artist and feng shui consultant, made this incredible card. To see more cards honoring the Wise Woman/Crone visit Walking Toward Wisdom, a virtual SoulCollage exhibit. There is also a teleclass on the Crone Archetype available at KaleidoSoul.

6th Chakra - Raccoon

This amazing card was made by Sheila Filan. And it was a long time coming. Over a year ago, using Seena Frost's mediation from SoulCollage, Sheila sensed that her 6th chakra (the third eye center) was companioned by a raccoon! Talk about resistence! Sheila has had her bedroom invaded by raccoons! This was not an animal she could easily accept into her Companion Suit. However, she kept her eyes open for images and her heart open for acceptance and understanding.

In our last workshop she found both. This card is a powerful example of letting the images find you, even it takes months. Trust yourself. You'll know when it's right.

Here are are her words for this card:
I am the one who can wear many masks and am learning to be real with each mask.
I am the one who finds creativity and possibility in all aspects of myself.
I am the one who wants to own all those aspects and not shrink from or disown parts of myself.
I am the one who is curious and open to new ideas.

This card wants me to be able to look at other people beyond appearances.

This card gives me a sense of changing my perception about something really deep.

Ageless

This card was made by Marti Vargas at a workshop last weekend. I feel deeply moved when I look at it. Although we had done the meditation to find our animal companions, this did not appear as one of her chakra companions. At this workshop we discussed the idea that it is not always easy to say in what suit a card belongs. I think this is a Council card. When my husband saw it, he particularly noted the gorilla at bottom left. "These are going extinct. We don't know how to make something like this."

Here are Marti's words:

I am the one who has lots of life experience.

I am the one who is looking for something new.

I am the one who is waiting for a teacher.

This card wants me to be patient, just wait with myself--don't rush things or be in a hurry.

The energy of this card gives me loving acceptance of where I am right now.