Category Archives: transformation

female principle, inspirational, motivational, passion, transformation

Everyone wants to be perfect.

Everyone wants to be perfect this day and age. Toned to perfection, hard abs, fancy clothes, fancy shoes, a hot car.
I have no desire to hustle for perfection. Everywhere we look these days there are unrealistic role models that spout success on every level but the reality is we’re as different from each other as the pebbles on the beach. What works for some people won’t work for others, and what if you reach “perfection” as touted by the media??

perfection is stagnation
Perfection is invented

So when we reach perfection (a la the norm of the fashion magazines and such) what is next?

Push, push, push yourself to stay in great shape, buy new fancy clothes, etcetera. Be superwoman, go, go, go.

I’m not against pushing oneself to reach goals, but this mindless following of what others tell us we should look like and do  is a big fat brainwashing scenario.

I’m all for keeping fit, eat healthy,  do something I love so that I can feel fulfilled, but social media today is filled with aggressive success touting coaches that are not based on reality but some Olympic sized goal that most people can’t attain.

The point is, listen to yourself. How do you want to pace yourself?  What makes you feel good?  How do you do more of what makes you feel good and healthy?  One baby step of improvement every day.  You may never attain the perfect body; I know I haven’t but it’s possible to take care of oneself and get to a fitness level that makes your body feel strong and healthy.

As far as passion goes.  Do more of what makes your soul sing. It can be hard sometimes to work through the resistance, but again, talk to the resistance and take baby steps forward.  That’s what I do every day. I don’t care about having millions of dollars, but I care about the quality of my life.  I have to work at it; there is no getting around that, but the work is FUN (for the most part.)

Add more health, vitality, fun, passion to life by starting TODAY. What can you do to improve your life today? Just begin.

I have an art challenge going in my Facebook group at the moment. It’s a 14 day challenge about honoring the female principle.  I post a prompt every day, and we’re on Day 2. Why not join this free challenge?  Join my art group Art Exploration with Maria Greene.

We are all about nurturing and supporting the deep female qualities, and that is so needed in today’s race to be the most perfect, the prettiest, the hottest, the most successful woman around.  All it does is spawn competition.

Are you in?  You are perfect as you are!! 🙂

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Celebrating the female principle.

xo

Maria

art journaling, declutter, life, motivational, nature, transformation

Life is fleeting.

I had a reminder yesterday that life is fleeting. We tend to forget and think we are eternal. I believe we are, but this particular 3D existence can end at ANY time.

I lost a friend to sudden death yesterday and my own ignorance slapped me in the face.  She was in her prime, happy and healthy, and bam! Gone.

It is shocking. Sometimes it takes a shock to shake me out of everyday complacency.  It got me thinking and re-evaluating what is important.

  • Appreciate life every day, or every moment if possible.
  • Don’t hold on to grudges or petty grievances.
  • Forgive those who have wronged you. Not speaking to people or having to be right only prolongs suffering (usually for the one holding the grudge.) FORGIVE and move on! It doesn’t mean you have to be friends with those who hurt you.
  • Pray every day even if you don’t believe in a higher power.
  • Do what you love or life is wasted.
  • Don’t stay at a job you hate.
  • Find beauty around you and appreciate it.
  • Love yourself and be at peace with the whole of who you are, warts and all.
  • Finish things once started.
  • Allow yourself to be the best you can be.
  • You CAN’T take your junk with you. De-clutter and donate. Don’t leave a mess for others.
  • Honor nature and as you do, you honor yourself since every molecule of you is part of nature. Spend some time in nature every day and breathe.
  • Laugh and pet animals as often as possible. Dance with children.
  • Don’t put off until tomorrow. Do that thing now.
  • Listen to others, truly listen.
  • Make art.
  • Grow things.
  • Go with the flow. Change is good, and change is the only constant. Don’t fight it.
  • Excuses begone!
  • Take charge of your happiness and don’t play the BLAME GAME with others. You will always lose when you do that.
  • Be responsible for your shit and be truthful to yourself about your shortcomings. When you are, they seem to disappear.
  • Last but not least: Listen to your intuition. If you don’t know how, find out how to do it.

A friendly reminder to myself… if it fits, apply some of these. Forgiveness is maybe the biggest one.

I made an art journal page about transition.  It was a sad day yesterday and I had weird dreams. Today, the sun is shining again (as if nothing ever happened.) In a sense, that is eternity.

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Life is fleeting.

xo

Maria

P.S. If you haven’t signed up for my free newsletter you can do so at the top right hand corner of this page.  Lots of good stuff!

art, creativity, life, nature, transformation

Appreciate peace

I was sitting down by the lake appreciating peace this morning at about 6:30am. I live with my back yard facing a big city park that borders on a pretty big lake full of gators.  Day 4 of the blog challenge.

I was sitting in a grove of trees feeling the peace coming out of the trees and the ground. It was indescribable.  More often than not I don’t notice it as I hustle by on my power walk.  But lately I have taken the time to sit down on a park bench and let myself be washed through by this sense of belonging.  I feel the park is holding the positive energy in this busy area where I live.  So I thought I’d join with nature and send out some peace and love to the area and beyond.  It’s even possible to send it around the whole earth just through the imagination.

I pondered what the art would look like if I attempted to paint the feeling I got.  I’m going to drive over to that grove with my art supplies soon and see if I can capture the feeling on paper. So elusive but still tangible.

I think we portray in art all the strands of energy that come across our path daily.  That why a basically “ugly” painting can have such a draw. The energy draws you in. So, I think it’s important for artists to  be connected to the larger picture (no pun intended) to get more depth in the art.

When we give ourselves time to slow down and ground, we open up the door for more authenticity and a deeper connection to the source of all art and life.

Slow down to hustle.

I know, it sounds ass backwards, but what do we gain by running so fast through life?  Nothing  positive.  Disconnection and stress. Have you ever taken the time to really look at a person and HEAR them, not just listening to the words?

Same with nature. Do you hustle by it mindlessly or do you stop to feel your place in the fabric of creation?

I’m learning to live more in tune and show up to really see and hear what is going on around me. That is the best support you can give to anyone, just as nature supports us daily with comfort and oxygen.

Take a breather today!

And create some lovely art?

xo

Maria

P.S.  I have some cool paintings for sale in my etsy shop HERE.

You can also check out my self-study art e-courses HERE.

art, inspirational, life, motivational, self help, transformation

Patience is a virtue.

Patience is a virtue is an old-fashioned saying, but one that is truly vital to a good life experience. It is as relevant now as it was in ye olden times.  I looked for the saying in Bartlett’s but could not find any reference to it. There were however lots of references to the word “virtue,” as in females who lost their virtue basically lost everything. That is a whole other post.

This is day 3 of my 30 day blogging challenge.

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Patience

Patience, when practiced, gives us pause to be present and allow things to unfold.  We live in a “take charge” world so it’s not easy to release that insistent pattern and allow patience in.  One place to practice patience is while driving in heavy traffic.  Another is when someone bugs the crap out of you and you just want to leave the room or slug them.

To allow oneself to be patient is to open up to new possibilities and to be vulnerable.  I don’t have to be right. I can allow others to step ahead or be right. That can be tough since the tendency is to always want to be right.  We proclaim that loudly and ferociously.

Patience and art are kind of the same thing, if gentler.  It can be uncomfortable to sit with the art that is going nowhere and see what unfolds (if anything.) If it doesn’t what holds you back?

I ask that question of myself all the time because more often than not I meet that old specter “Resistance” when I venture into my studio.

Patience allows the moment of NOW to unfold and show where the art wants to go.  But I want to hang out of my “virtual car window” and yell at the art to get a move on.  So, if I had infinite patience, I would:

  • be able to see the spirit of my art and where it wants to go.
  • allow more.
  • be patient with people in every situation.
  • be patient with situations that need solutions and see what genius idea might come up instead of barging in and fixing things or people.
  • know that my turn will come at the right moment. Trusting.
  • be able to relax and stay in relaxation.

On a larger world scale:

  • there would be no wars since all people would slow down and see what is really going on.
  • people would take the time to go within and experience their inner life since there is no need for stress and hurry.
  • people would slow down enough to see the value in everyone else and want a harmonious relationship with their neighbor–and nature.
  • people would not chase after money like crazy since patience might unfold better ways of dealing in the world and make money that is based on respect for self and others. That is a personal experience, but what if everyone was doing it?
  • Patience would show everyone the true value of life since there would be no rat race.

Let’s all wake up and start looking through the eyes of patience.

I know something holds me back from fully allowing and letting go.  It is my fearful mind, the one that says “be cautious” don’t give it all away.  Hold back…showing vulnerability is me coming from a point of weakness. If I let it “all hang out” I might get punished.

That is bullshit that old experiences created.  Fear to be oneself and live out loud.

What to do about it?

Sit with whatever it is and wait for some inspiration, or take some action that is contrary to the status quo.  Patience is doing the right thing at the right time.

Patience always leads to inspired action but it will always challenge the go-go-go tendency we have.

Splash some mad color over the art and then wait and see where that leads.  Experiment while practicing patience and there will be an opening, a step forward (probably not some action you expected.)

That is how art moves in a new direction and you follow the lead. Trust your gut and let it all hang out!!  Yeah.

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Fearless

Create something today! Don’t waste this day of possibility. Cruising Facebook is not worth it. 🙂

xo

Maria

P.S. I offer 1-on-1 coaching using my psychic abilities and help you set up a plan of action for more creativity in your life.  It’s not all about art, it’s about a better life experience.  CLICK HERE.

creativity, inspirational, life, motivational, process, transformation

Psychic declutter.

infooverload
Psychic clutter

You might ask what psychic declutter means.  And how does it affect art making?

We all declutter our houses from time to time. When I purge old ratty clothes from my closet, or sweep up the dust bunnies living under my bed, I feet GREAT. Though, I admit I’ve got some pretty big dust bunnies in my house, and my cat contributes enough hair to knit a bunch of sweaters for the winter.  He moves around shedding without a care in the world.

It’s good to have a clean and orderly house that smells awesome, but what about your body? That is easy to take care of too, of course. Some nice soap and hot water go a long way.

Psychic debris might drag you down, especially in this fast-paced electronic world. We catch all sorts of energy we don’t really want. People wear us out, televisions and other media constantly pump out information, AND unwanted waves.

I know I suffer from info overload a lot, and I hate it when people dump their problems on me, or chit-chat me to death.

However, my saving grace, my windshield wipers come in the form of meditation. It gives me a big space of silence between me and the world, like a soft buffer. It also gives me perspective on the issues going on in my life. I try to sit down and really concentrate within every day. When I don’t, I miss it a lot.

For energy debris, I use sage smoke to clear my aura or an old-fashioned Epsom salt bath. You feel REALLY clean after that, lol.  Energy overload isn’t necessarily evil, but it can make you feel drained and tired.

A good night’s sleep is a great healer.

Before I go out into the world, I put on an energetic cloak of light that has a mirrored surface facing out. It helps to deflect some of the energy coming at me.

The most important thing is to stay in balance, in equilibrium, because once out of it, you lose your power.  Worst case scenario, you become a victim of the energies going on around you. That can be very uncomfortable depending on what is going on.  Scattered energy affects my art making in a major way.  When I’m balanced, inspiration and motivation seem to flow a lot easier,

Just choose to spend time with people who give you a lift. That makes a huge difference.  Energy vampires abound, but you can choose to remove yourself from their influence.

It can feel lonely at times, but as those kinds of energies leave your life, new and better energies have a chance to appear.

infomeditation

On a practical note, you could always get rid of the TV…  I did. I have never regretted the choice.

So, to recap:

Meditate

Choose who you spend time with

Choose your social media or TV addiction wisely (in other words, much less of it.)

Stop reading the  papers.  So much emphasis on negative news.

Clean your environment, declutter your mind and body.

Wear protective light energy in public and stay positive.

Not too hard, huh?  It’s just a choice.

All these practices help me to stay focused and my creativity flows without effort.  Implement a couple of these practices and see the difference for yourself.

xo

Maria

P.S. Check out my latest painting, a buddha picture. It represents what I was talking about in the post. HERE.

 

art, art journaling, creativity, ecourse, transformation, tutorial

It’s not too late to join.

Hello lovely reader,

It’s not too late to join my current mixed media / art journaling ecourse titled Art Journaling Journey. We are coming up on week three, but the course will be perennial so you can work at your own pace. I would love to see you there!

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Art journaling is a true of journey of exploration outside and inside. It never gets old, but it can get weird sometimes, but life is weird sometimes too. Here are a couple of recent art journal spreads.

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Here’s to having a fabulous creative week! Click on the link to check out the ecourse, ART JOURNALING JOURNEY.

I wish you a fabulous creative week!

xoxo

Maria