Sunday, August 9, 2015

30 Day Creative Challenge

Doodle inspiration by Virginia Robert

After a long bout of inactivity,  I have finally broke through a low period in my life and can feel the creative child whirling, once again, with excitement of discovery and wonder at the art of making things.
Pine AZ 2015

 All it took was a walk in the tall pine trees in Pine, AZ and allowing the silence to surround me.  I closed my eyes, breathed in deep the smell of the earth and listened to the still, small voice of my soul tell me of my deep desires.  I am a gypsy soul, a wild child of nature who weaves the influences of nature in her art and lives to make things with twigs, shells and sea glass.  My inner voice has been whispering to me my entire life and I couldn't hear it over the obligations and duties I was taught by well meaning adults and society.  I am I child of wide-eyed wonder who gets excited by the way the light falls on a leaf or the way the clouds reflect the setting sun or by the sound of a drop of rain hitting a tile roof.  These are the things that set my soul on fire.

Dream collage by Virginia Robert

I have decided to give myself a 30 day creative challenge.  For the next thirty days, I am going to make art every day.  At first,  I thought I would complete a project a day but given my full-time job I decided to complete projects as I go but create art every day and document it on my blog and Instagram, Pinterest and Tumbler.


Day 1:  Today, I am creating an idea jar out of a mason jar which I am going to decorate and fill with strips of paper, each with one of my many hundreds of thousands of ideas that I have written in my journals over the years. This way, I can pull out one idea and work on that one instead of being overwhelmed by ideas.  I am doing baby steps to begin this journey, otherwise, I tend to get overwhelmed and give up.  I have done that way too much in my life.  Every night I hear the voice
of my soul tell me to begin your soul's journey now.  So now it is!

Anything creative goes with this challenge.  Poetry, drawing, journaling, doodles, crafts, etc.

If anyone wants to join me and post on your own blogs, come along with me.  It's going to be fun. Eventually, I may even start a private Facebook group to continue the creative challenge, but I am getting ahead of myself.  Baby steps!

I will post my updates on my projects each day on my blog.

I'm excited and look forward to this journey that is long overdue.

Sunday, July 19, 2015

Waiting for Rain


Waiting For Rain

I hear the silence of the desert,
dry winds blow me to dust

time and silence,
I strain to hear my own voice

I am desert landscape
seeking refuge 
from an unforgiving sun.

Anonymity among the cactus,
mirage of heat rising
at the edge of my vision.

Sweat, dried like salt crust,
hard cracked skin,
Still as stone.

I wait for rain
quench my eternal thirst.

I wrap myself 
in silence.

My whole life,
a whispered voice,
a message
grows so faint.

I wait for rain,
for life giving moisture,
fill my soul.







Thursday, June 11, 2015

Gathering Strength and Courage


Gathering Strength and Courage

Today I shall be focused
on writing 
what I will say 
at my father's
memorial service.

Tomorrow,
I shall be brave 
and stand in front of
friends,
family, loved ones 
and say 
goodbye
to a man
who
I have known
and loved my whole life.

Tomorrow,
I shall
try to remain
composed
as I explain that
even though my father
lived his life 
in the guise
of an
ordinary man,
he was really
a quiet hero; 
my hero
and my life
is richer for having 
him in it.

Tomorrow,
I will stand tall
and face
everyone and tell them
I am broken wide open by grief
but I am honoring
my father's life
by living mine
to the best
of my ability.

Tomorrow,
I will begin the healing process 
and wish
my father peace
on the next part in
his journey.
I will thank him for my life
and appreciate
every breath I have left
to make every moment count.

James T. Clauss








Thursday, May 21, 2015

The Greatest Gift

(Artwork by Virginia Robert)

As her hands traced her body,
gathering her soul through her skin,
she held the glowing sphere
up to the sky, drew in all her breath
and released the stagnant air held
within her lungs.
She emptied everything inside
until she was an empty shell.

Holding her soul in her outstretched palms,
she said "This is my greatest gift and all
I have to offer you, my Beloved."

God smiled brilliant rays of sunlight across her face.
"No, my child. This is the gift I have given you."

And the earth wept as rain upon the land,
life sprang from the soil and the sun shone upon her soul.
She knew she was perfect just as she was. 
An amazing creature of light. 
She knew she was loved eternally
and this brought her the greatest joy
beyond any imaginable thing.

Sunday, May 17, 2015

Sunday Morning


Sunday morning.  I'm sitting outside with my second cup of coffee and enjoying a rare morning.

It is a beautiful, cool, spring day and I have off from work.  This combination is quite rare, indeed!

Recent rains pushed through the state, leaving cooler air in it's wake.  It will warm back up quickly this week, so I put aside my grand "to-do" list for sitting on my porch and enjoying this splendid morning.

I observe a pair of Western Tanagers flitting about in the mesquite tree that shelters my porch and delights me every time I look outside.  The pair of birds don't seem bothered by my presence but continue to move about the branches feeding on small insects.  The Tanager is a beautiful, bright yellow bird with a patch of orange on top of it's head, black wings and tail.  It is migratory, living in the high country most of the year.

I always consider it a privilege to observe wildlife outside in nature.  It feels as if I'm being given a gift from the divine universe, a reminder that there is beauty and amazement all around us if we are willing to be still and open to truly "see".

The bees cover the branches of the mesquite, collecting pollen from it's fuzzy, pale yellow flowers.
I can see hummingbirds hovering high above the pine trees across the courtyard.  There is so much activity this time of year. Everything is blooming.  It is a time of growth and renewal.
The cool breeze mixes with the tones of my wind chimes as I sit here writing in my journal.

I spend so much of my life inside man-made structures that it is nice to be outside.  It is a reminder to myself that I must make time to hike in the woods, to look up at the night sky, to walk upon the earth and observe the palpable silence of nature undisturbed by man.  The silence of nature has a presence that demands, quietly, that we pay attention.

I am grateful for this morning's gifts. It is truly a beautiful day!

Friday, May 15, 2015

This one's for you, dad.

I wanted my first post on my new blog to be dedicated to my father, who passed away on May, 5, 2015, after a two year battle with cancer.

He was a great role model and my hero.

Excerpt from my journal 5/4/15:

Today, I shall be sad.  Stepping out of time, watching my father's labored breathing, the rattling sounds coming from his chest.  The signs are there of his inevitable passing from his physical body.
My father was present for my birth into this world, it is only right that I be here for this.  How do I say goodbye to someone I've known and loved my whole life?  I've only known my life with him in it.

Today, I shall be brave, for my mom, for my family.  Help them do what needs to be done.  I am wrapped in grief.  It drowns every cell in my body with it's keening.  I love my dad and will miss him more than words can express.

Godspeed, dad!