Practicing being Open to the unfolding of the mystery of this new year; being Present to the moment right here and less distracted by the noise out there; and living in alignment with my true self noticing what feeds my soul and what makes me come alive.

The truth is that we are part of nature and we were not made for a frantic level of activity during this Solstice season. You may be feeling a disconnect between our innate need to rest and restore at this time, and the siren call to do all the things. It’s only natural!

Creativity is a puzzle. How will you combine all your pieces? Will you do the same ole, same ole? Or will you be curious about how to make your next step in your creative process sizzle with excitement and novelty? Exploring curiosity, risking taking, and play in creativity and in life.

You are not behind.
There is only the sacred now.

Holy Wisdom delights in you right now, just as you are, and has since the beginning of time. That’s worth something!

If you’re feeling behind, maybe you are measuring the wrong things.

It is true that there are terrifying things happening in our country and in the world. But that is not the only thing that is true. Become a devotee of awe and wonder. You get to choose where you place your attention and what you will focus on. You get to rewrite the narrative of your life.

In this season of Samhain, the myth of Inanna’s descent can help us to see what we need to relinquish, release, and let go of, to be more fully and truly who we are created to be.

Have you ever felt the presence of an otherworldly being? The Celtic Otherworld recognizes the supportive presence of our enlightened ancestors, called the Sionn, and the Sidhe, messengers of the Divine who are always nearby.

What feeds your soul? Do more of that. What drains you? Do less of that. We need to get comfortable using our sacred no in order to create enough space in our lives for our sacred yes to flourish. Saying yes to what aligns with your soul contributes to your overall well-being.

Using your sacred no to create space for your sacred yes to emerge. It’s time to turn away from those voices that want to distract us from what we are here on this earth to do. It’s time to turn towards the self, to listen to the wisdom of the self, to be fully and completely self as we were meant to be, and to bring our gift of self to the world. This is new ground for me and may be for many women in the third age.

To figure out what light’s you up, you need to listen to your inner wisdom. And that voice is very shy having been ignored for so long!

Here’s what I brought back for you from a week in Taos, NM:

1. You are not alone.

2. My Artist Soul is hungry. Yours?

3. Focus on your “one thing.”

4. Keep saying “yes!” to life!

What does it mean to step into your Crone Energy?

• Stop apologizing!

• Stop playing small!

• Take up space!

• Stop hiding behind the ‘good girl’ mask!

Art is powerful when it is true and captures the human lived experience, not because it is perfectly executed.

It doesn’t have to be pretty. I has to be true. And with that, I have taken back the brush and I’m choosing to create bold portraits of myself without apology, without comment. Feel the liberation in that! You can do it too!!

You have the power, indeed the responsibility, to create your own container to help you communicate and understand your relationship with your Creative Source. Here’s a peek into how I use art supplies to build a container for my soul.

Do you keep track of how frequently you are actually doing the thing you say you want to do? I use tracking to keep me honest.

Tracking provides a clear picture of how often I am showing up for the activities that are important to me.The creative stage can be an emotional roller coaster - from “ugh, this is awful” to “wow, this is awesome” and back to “ugh” again. Scary as this stage is, all of the time spent here clearly “counts” as part of my creative practice.

Funny thing about listening for your inner wisdom - once it speaks, any plans you already made need to be put aside.

Here’s what this deep listening looks like for me:

Begin with a stance of inquiry and openness to what wants to emerge.

Hold the plans for desired outcomes loosely or better yet, release them entirely.

Allow the image to guide the way, changing course or completely reversing direction in the unfolding.

Pause and ask the image what next steps are needed in terms of colors, textures, shapes, lines.

You have the power to choose, so choose joy. Reclaim your agency! Agency grants you empowerment over your life, your choices, your dreams, your story. But first, you need to assert your agency. If you don’t choose, someone else will choose for you.

Our creative energies are always inviting us to create something out of nothing; to create something that’s never been seen before. Imagine the possibilities!

Personally, I find the idea of celebrating fertility a bit off-putting at my age when I’ve stopped bearing children. But here’s a twist: We can all celebrate being creatively fertile!

On choosing you and your creative practice because subordinating your desires to meet everyone else’s needs is a recipe for resentment and bitterness.

If you feel resistance to prioritizing your desires, listen to Steven Pressfield as he writes that resistance is a compass, pointing to the thing that you must do!

A meditation for stormy times, inviting you to ground yourself in Mother Earth like the strong roots of a tree.