There are always things to be grateful for.

It has been a week and the guys are coming to fix the problem tomorrow…..YEAH!!!!!

Small comforts that we take for granted race forward and scream in your face.  I would be a fairly rich woman if I had a dollar for each time I turned on the faucet expecting water to flow like normal.  Normal….what a strange word.  It can mean so much to the comfort of the body, mind and spirit.   Normal means  it is always there so we forget its importance.

It is the things we take for granted that haunt us when they no longer exist.

What things do you think you take for granted that if disappeared tomorrow would send your world into a spin?

Think about it….

Many years ago a fellow artist friend who was twenty years older said that  one day I would walk into a room with my daughter, who happens to be gorgeous, and no one would see me.  Well…..the day came when I was in my fifties.  I felt invisible!  Where had I gone?  It happened just like she said….darn!  I looked at my daughter and smiled but knew I had entered a new phase of my life.

We are a youth oriented generation. Being young has all the perks….or so they say.   When women are young they are filled with light, beauty, tight skin and a tight butt.  They may be young but guess what hasn’t fallen….yet!

When I was young I never gave this idea of being invisible a millisecond of a thought.

My son reminded me being invisible was a story /feeling I have taken on as mine…….he may be correct yet the story and feeling is real for many women.

Have you ever felt invisible?

Leave a comment  as I think it would be educational for us all.

Here is the class picture from the workshop in Taos last week.  Fabulous people who joined creative thoughts and produced many wonderful paintings.  It always amazes me when a class comes together as this one did.  They were supportive of each other, painted with all their heart, each suffering silently in frustration with the newness of some of the painting ideas yet growing in leaps and bounds.  I have other pictures but am having trouble getting them accepted so will share them later when the problem has been solved.

Taos was unusually hot so we took off early one day and went  to Arroyo Seco to see this lovely town and indulge some Taos Cow ice cream.  Sitting outside on the porch of the Taos Cow  eatery we laughed and shared stories that normally would have been been left untold.

While in Arroya Seco the gals shopped and enjoyed the diverse opportunities that awaited them.  A trip like this awakens the visual spirit.

Workshops are gifts we give ourselves

First, during a regular walk with my dog Emma I tripped over a small tree trunk.  Tripping while going down hill isn’t recommended.  Not able to recover my balance I slid down hill on my face and body…..also not recommended.  When the slide ended I knew I was not a pretty site…blood, skin hanging and eye glasses destroyed.  Left ankle swollen, right knee too big to be within the normal range.  Emma, was attentive and worried.  Arriving home was a huge relief since it was a two mile walk.  I kept wondering ….where was my Berqa (face veil) when I needed one?  Not being one to horde pain pills I reached for the bottle of wine while cleaning the destruction.

Second, the final move into the new studio space is now over, packing for the trip to Taos took time and effort plus the healing process for the huge knee (required being drained three times) took its toll.  It actually sounds worse than it is but the good news is …… I HAVE GREAT BONES !!!!  No breaks …wow!

I am now in Taos where time moves slower and life is more centered.  This is exactly what I need.  Slow, focused, clarity, peace …all  mine to soak into my soul.

What did I learn from my experience….slow down !  Be aware. Be present.

Another thing  the fall did was remove  confidence in myself.  I never gave walking a thought….I just walked.  I now feel I need to think and  be aware of what is around me when I walk.   We walk automatically but sometimes our radar is off and we fall.  When we fall we lose confidence.

In relation to being an artist how many times have we lost our confidence when we have been rejected from a show, when a friend, neighbor or colleague makes a statement about your art that makes you feel less than you are.

Loss of confidence takes us down a peg but if we are able to look at the situation we can learn a valuable lesson about our self.

Being an artist is a gift we give ourselves.  We are all creative but few people actually say…”I am an artist”.  Being an artist requires a lot of things…..courage to try, courage to put your creations before the public, courage to listen to the comments about your art, courage to believe in yourself.   Maintaining this courage requires we stay focused and centered within ourselves.  This is why a lot of people just won’t take the effort to be their best as it take tremendous effort.

I am now back on track.  The sun is shining,  birds are singing, my dogs are happy, my children and their children are safe and healthy……life is good.  I  look forward to hearing from each of you and sharing our journey of self discovery plus finding that place deep within us that screams “YES”.

With my mindset in tow I figured out how long it should take and prepared my psyche.  Oh, how wrong I was!  I forgot about inspections,  electricians, drywall, wet concrete, painters,  the sealing of the concrete floor that has to sit for 3-4 days before I can stain the floor, rain, drying time, etc.  Having the best crew in the world didn’t help with my impatience.

I guess what I am saying here is….. I need a little help.

How do you handle your impatience? Does it effect your your ability to write, paint, create?

I need some “feel good” advice.

(PS….I would have added photos of the studio in progress but the files were too big ….another thing to learn)