Tag Archives: heart

Finding clarity with hummingbird

Finding clarity is not always easy. I have wanted to be more clear about what I offer people to help them advance with their creativity.

One of the most valuable tools in seeking the next step on the journey is imagination. My mom said I always had a wild imagination, and I’m grateful for the gift! 🙂

How do you use your imagination to gain clarity?

I like to meditate and sometimes I go on a journey with my imagination.  Night dreams are possible guide posts to what is going on in your life, and through the gateway of imagination, you can re-enter the dream and get some answers.

On a journey into the unknown (or known however you see it) it is always great to bring a protector in the form of an animal. You would think bear or tiger or wolf would be the ones showing up, but I got a hummingbird leading the way.

For some reason I had complete confidence that this little bird could protect me if necessary. I don’t know if you’ve seen hummingbirds in action, but they are tough little warriors.

I read somewhere that hummingbirds evolved from a raptor in the time of the dinosaurs, but I’m not sure I believe that. Anyway…

Traveling with hummingbird, I went back into my night dream. I had missed an appointment with a man in a brown hat. I was in a room with my Mom and there was a sink that leaked. A full bucket of water sat under the sink and I wondered why no one had emptied it.

There was more to the dream, and the feeling was that I had screwed up somehow. The man in the hat had awakened me from a deep sleep.

I realized through my dream that I need to wake up and honor my “appointments.” Don’t miss important meetings due to sleep (unconscious behavior.) The water bucket was full and stagnant, and it was up to me to empty it.

Why wasn’t the leak fixed? No one cared enough to fix it.

Those were the major insights from the dream.

I have been at a crossroads for a while and it’s time to “empty the bucket.” Something new has to open up or I’ll be stuck (asleep) forever.

Dreams can tell you a lot of things, and so can art.

Intuitive art is often far from pretty, but it often holds many insights, just like dreams. In a way, they are both the same.

finding clarity with hummingbird
Honoring the hummingbird

Art = dream = imagination = creation.

To honor the hummingbird I painted this page, and a brown cow showed up as the gatekeeper to the unknown.

We have the power to create something new, something that is closer to the soul’s path.

I would have to say that spiritual experience is the closest to my heart, IS my heart. Art is something I DO, but it can have a deeper meaning, drawing me ever closer to Source.

There are so many variations of spiritual art, women’s empowerment, shamanistic art, religious art, but I don’t feel spirituality has to be labeled, and we don’t have to seek it through some path. We are already THERE.

The key is to recognize that fact and create that which makes us feel connected and feel GOOD in the moment.

Sometimes there are too many paths to follow. The mind says “do that, that artist is successful” or “try that style; it might be saleable.” “Follow the path of that shaman, they seem successful.”

The hardest part is to follow your own path. So much doubt and so many choices. They are all tricks by the mind.

Your heart is always true. Finding clarity in the heart is the purest form of clarity. However, when experiencing the heart there is no NEED to DO or make anything.

However, since we live in a 3D existence we have to move our bodies, so there might be a prompt, a glimpse of something intriguing to do that feels ignited with joy.  There is also a chance that everything will feel blah, but I call that a time of transition.

finding clarity with hummingbird
sheep standing on my head

I made another art journal spread where a sheep (or goat) showed up standing on my neck and obscuring my head.

Sheep are stubborn. Reading the message of this intuitive page, I saw that my image of clarity was obscuring real clarity. I had built the dang sheep as an excuse to not move forward.

But look at the heart that showed up under the belly of the sheep! It was moving into a lighter sense. I had the words Follow Your Heart cut out from a template I had made for another project. I never threw out the words, and they fit perfectly.

I say that all the time “follow your heart.” Well, it takes a lot of courage to follow your heart. Sheep and other stubborn folk may show up to stir up confusion.

They are only images of fear of change. You can’t blame the messenger…

I am more committed to exploring my inner landscape and making art from that. That might be the end of “pretty” art but the goal is to be more open to the mystery and see what happens.

How does that sound to you? Are you ready to delve more deeply into the mystery of you?

I’m going to blog more about it and you can subscribe to my blog or my newsletter (see upper right hand corner of this page to access both.) I wrote a recent blog post about Intuitive art versus Structured art.  

Maybe it will inspire you.

Lots of love, have a great weekend!

Maria

Smoke and mirrors kind of life

smoke and mirrors
smoke and mirrors

Smoke and mirrors belong to Halloween (and politics), but all of us live in an illusion that we claim to be “normal.”

A few years back I went to a huge Halloween event. It had a horror house that was so creepy I wowed never to enter one again (unless it’s a kids’ version.)

The horror house was filled with goblins and creepy crawlies, and one room was stacked with floor to ceiling mirrors and a white fog. I kept bumping into mirrors and could not find my way out.

I found myself almost panicking as I turned around and came face to face with a 7 foot monster, probably some highschool kid making a few extra bucks.

It did a number to my head though, and I could not see my way out until a friend grabbed my hand and pulled me through the fog to another room.

I think it’s a good example of how our mind can play tricks on us.

The whole world is made of “tricks” that we judge as normal.

Do you really know anyone? Truly.  Do you know their fears and deep-seated beliefs or do you only know their persona(s)?  We don’t, and then we get baffled when someone acts out of character.

Somehow we have all bought into the illusion that we are meant to work 9-5 at some crappy job or whatever your illusion.

We feel sorry for the homeless, but what if some decided not to buy into the illusion of 9-5 and stepped into the persona of a hobo.

Who are we really?

That can be a lifelong exploration.

You can only live as much authenticity as you are authentic to yourself.

We inflict the smoke and mirrors on ourselves as we stubbornly hold onto our beliefs and misconceptions.

“I’m right and the other person is wrong.” What a narrow way to live.

The point of this post is that authenticity is something that happens incrementally as we get more clear on our connection to the Greater energy of our being.

I feel a great love in my heart. It’s not for people or animals or trees. It is the essence of me, the power that keeps me alive.

When I feel that the strongest all my games and ideas and ploys fall away and I am only energy, a GREAT energy.

When I’m aligned to that, I can sense what my next step is as far as moving forward in my 3D life.

That can change daily. In other words, there is no way to “lock down” that power, only a way to follow its lead.

At some point you stop identifying with the personas, the smoke lifts, the mirrors break, and you can see clearly through the illusion of everything. Until you fall into it again and start acting out of fear.

That’s why I say that authenticity is incremental in 3D life. There is a constant, pure, authenticity within, but until that is the only thing that leads us, we fall into the fog and stumble against mirrors.

Though, there is one consolation. The authenticity of the heart is always there.  I plug into it every morning and aim to see what my next step is, and how to deepen my connection with my heart.

I express it in my art practice, which is always in flux. It’s too great to control, and that should be a consolation and a big sigh of relief, but I always try to impose my will on it.

That can be the most frustrating and confrontational thing ever.

Your heart and soul will always stretch you through what calls you, and if you’re up for it, it can be a wild ride. Not for the faint-hearted, but wouldn’t you rather live a life based on as much authenticity you can surrender to NOW, or live a meaningless life based on other people’s expectations?

Your choice. Your energy (or lack of it.)

Go within, find your true North Star and trust it.

smoke and mirrors
illusion

Here is another blog post where I talk about fear of living the life you want.

P.S. I have some new cool art journals for sale in my etsy shop. They are primed for the enthusiastic art journalers to embellish. 🙂 EARTHANDFAERY

 

What happened to January?

What happened to January? It went by in the blink of an eye.  So much upheaval came with the Presidential inauguration and so much unrest. So much polarity among people. So much ugliness. Is that who we are, ugly people?

I have to say, though, that art unites. Some might scoff at that, but art reminds us that there is something deeper, something more profound than our human petty concerns. There is beauty.

Art holds things together and I have seen so many artists in the groups coming together more tightly than ever, thinking of ways to make this a brighter world.

Art is a reminder of beauty, that we come from beauty, and can focus on becoming more beautiful inside as our heritage inspires. I talking about a deeper heritage than our ancestors.

To see any real change in the world, each person has to change inside, find the peace and love that truly lives in the heart. Access the heart wisdom! It is a choice. The heart brings UNITY within a person, and that mirrors into the world around us.

Art at its best brings out the best in us! We are all touched differently by what we see, but ultimately, we experience the same. Art can awaken the soul, awaken a person to look for the deeper meaning, the bigger picture than we see on TV.

To solve the issues in the world, we have to go within.  The solution is a spiritual one, and each person has the responsibility to connect to their higher wisdom. Be one less problem in the world. It definitely is a choice.  Are you in? I’m in.

meditation
Meditation

Doing what you love is not a brand to follow

Do what you love is a concept that is tossed around all the time on social media these days.

I agree with the concept but it becomes a thought form for the busy mind, not something that actually sinks in.  I make these inspirational wall plaques that say “follow your heart.” I do mean it, but what does it actually mean?

follow your heart

I was at an event at a bookstore recently where I have some art hanging on display. I watched the people wandering around the walls, looking. There were those who threw a cursory glance at my art, and there were those who stopped at every painting and took in every detail. I’d say they liked my art, or they tried to figure out the technique.

I have followed my urge to paint for a long time, and what appears on the canvas today is something I have developed over the years, and maybe there is more “heart” in my art than there was. I don’t know. All I know is that I’m on a journey that never stops as long as I can paint.

My art will never stop developing, so if one of those people at the event would have approached me with questions, like “what inspires you”? I would have answered “many things.” There is no one thing in particular.

What they actually see is my DOING over the years, with no particular goal in mind.

I think the painter Paul Cezanne might be the father of abstract art when he discovered he could paint the loose rendition (or energy) of the landscape he was looking at.  Discovering that took many years of DOING.

Paul Cezanne

The issue was not to create a strong brand of Paul Cezanne, but the journey that led to his discovery of abstract ideas. Like most painters he probably took classes and experimented endlessly with color and form. His art became his brand, but I’m sure he would have resisted the word.

Why lock oneself into a box of “this-is-who-I-am” and I will be this for the rest of my life.  Life is an evolving journey of many “follow my hearts.”

The problem is: most people like to dream but not DO. It’s in the doing that all is revealed!!

You can’t put heart in a box or on a wall plaque and hope it will transform someone, but my intention is to inspire. Still, the journey is mine.

Every day is a day of DOING or not… your choice. By trusting, by taking action and not sitting on the sidelines you will in fact be led by the heart.

xo

Maria

P.S. I have lots of art for sale in my etsy shop Greene Earth Originals: HERE.

Stop if your heart is not on fire.

hellyeah

Stop if your heart is not on fire for something. I have been kind of in a slump lately and I’m pretty much re-evaluating everything. My friend and writer, Laura Probert, wrote an excellent post for Huffington Post, (link at the end.) She was inspired by Marie Forleo who said if it’s not a “hell yeah,” then don’t do it. It got me thinking about my own life and it’s been a while since I truly felt a “hell yeah” about anything.  Life is more like “meh.”

When I do things I don’t like to do to earn money (and that is the only reason,) I feel like a vague shearing sensation in my chest. It occurred to me that’s what people do; they spend a lifetime doing stuff they don’t like and then end up with heart disease. What is the greatest killer today: heart disease. I don’t know the statistics on how many people hate their jobs, but I suspect it’s a hefty percentage.

We created this mess. The kids are funneled like cows to slaughter through a school systems that does not work, to learn stuff they will never use. But stay in the fold for when you grow up, kiddo, you will or must have a job or you will be an outsider, and you will be poor.

I suppose a boring job is not the only cause for heart disease, and doctor’s will tell you it’s the food you eat, but I believe it’s a lot more than  that. It is based on deep misaligned emotion.

When we force ourselves into a shoe that doesn’t fit, we feel uncomfortable.  We know it’s wrong for us, but we force ourselves out of fear or out of lack of ideas for something better. School never encouraged you to think for yourself.

The forced and unhappy behavior will create disease in the body. You’ve heard it before.

People sometimes say that whatever disaster they went through was the best thing that ever happened to them, because it changed the course of their life. People who have had an awakening can’t go back to the old  mindset. It’s like society in general hypnotizes us into a humdrum existence and it takes something drastic to shake us up enough to see that we act like sheep.  We work like sheep and play like sheep. It gets very old.

My point here: What gives you fire in the belly? There is no time to waste. Screw humdrum, screw fear. It’s time to wake up and do it!

I have done a lot of passion inspired things in my life but right now I feel kind of “meh.”  I’m hoping life is taking a new turn soon, because the sense of “been there done that” is overwhelming. I can’t wait to get excited again. I don’t like that shearing feeling in my chest when I force myself to do things I don’t like. Hello anxiety.

What to do? Take stock of your emotions and pains in your body.  When you think of your job do you feel excited or full of dread? If you have no clue what makes you fired up with excitement, do some excavating of dreams and desires, the ones you shoved under the carpet, maybe?  It will take action to get out of the status quo, but everyone can do it with some effort. I know it’s possible.

For more ideas, read Laura’s article HERE.

xo

Maria

P.S. for some free art how to videos, check out my YouTube channel HERE.