Energy Awareness

"We assumed that living in the Now meant living in a very calm and blissful state, and it does mean that – but until we get used to it it’s a bit like living without a watch after a lifetime of having one attached to your wrist. You don’t have your usual point of reference to anchor you. We are connecting to a new point of reference, an inner point. Until we get used to that, it can sometimes feel like we’re floating in a bubble not attached to anything in particular. This simultaneously feels really blissful and yet a little bit scary because we’re used to having anchors and attachments and something to hold our reality together. At first we may interpret it as ‘My brain has disappeared’, ‘I can’t focus or concentrate on anything’, ‘I can’t hold my thoughts together/string a sentence together’ and ‘Everything feels so vague and foggy’. This ‘no time’ business is like being an astronaut who has to get used to zero gravity – it’s cool but strange." This is a very powerful message that struck a cord with me very strongly, especially the bubble bit! There are many energies knocking about at the moment, and they're not all great. Keeping your own clear and understanding your own energy, can at least help you determine whether a change in energy is yours or an influx of energy from another source. To some this all might sound a little airy fairy, yet, deep down they do sense there is something 'off' and 'happening'...and can't argue that they do feel it. I have had a lot of conversations with people that wouldn't normally be open to alternative ways of seeing the world, and yet they're talking in terms of energy shifts! In light of all these changes it is good to keep yourself informed as much as possible. Sites that I have found very helpful over the years are www.mindfulhealing.org and the extract above can be found in it's full message on the site http://spiritlibrary.com/dana-mrkich/july-2012-monthly-visions-the-deconstruction-of-who-we-thought-ourselves-to-be by Dana Mrklich. Linda from the mindfulhealing site sends a wonderful newsletter to keep you informed on changes, which is what alerted me to Danas message, so it is well worth signing up for it. I just wanted to share this case anyone out there is feeling a tad off centre and wondering what is going on at the minute. The weather in Ireland is definitely an indicator of odd energy shifts, particularly in the strange temperature drops and heavy rain in July! Anyway, it's good to get a lot of perspectives on it all, then you can form your own opinion and get a sense of what is true for you in all this.

The Art of being Organised

Image courtesy of www.present&correct.com Over the last while I have slowly, and I mean very very slowly, been getting things organised again. It feels like it all just slid away over the last few months and despite some half attempts to put it right it just never felt sorted. So today, having found myself awake since 4am due to fits of coughing as a sticky cold and throat infection loses it's grip, I am finding an energy returning. It feels alien, and yet it feels oh so good. So one of the first things I tend to do in a bid to organise my space, is to change my space. This can have mixed results and takes effort. Luckily the heavy lifting and moving about occurred before the cold, so at least that moving chore is over and done with. What did get left aside was a massive pile of papers, tons of pencils and oversized folders with no home. As an artist, it is amazing how much paper you can accumulate and it really takes time to go through and edit it down properly. Some bits of paper are throw away scribbles and warm ups, but there are some gems that help you see your progress and development, and my version of tidy can sometimes mean chucking everything. In my early morning internet browse I came across this site called www.present&correct.com. It was like a rainbow shone straight into my room and onto the screen. It is a nerdtastic site for all things to do with being organised. One item in particular is what has sparked this new revolution to set my files in order. It is the tiered pencil case which holds 4 levels of compartments and keeps things in their place. It spoke to me and reminded me how much calmer and balanced I am when my space is in order. That goes for the files on my computer too, they're in need of a revamp and the hard drive wouldn't mind the clean up probably. So in light of my return to some energy, I am aiming to clean, organise and put files in order. Perhaps it might be good use of your time to look around and see what mess you're putting up with. What drain on your energy is occurring that could be fixed with some time and attention? What type of space are you working in right now? Is it clean, clear and uncluttered? Do you know what's on your PC? All I do know is that there is an art to being organised, and it is worth practising it.

Holistic Fair, Kettle Hotel, Swords

Just a heads up that Katie Burtons Flower Remedies will be featuring at the above event, and will be promoting a range of remedies as well as other products infused with various remedies. I highly recommend that you take some time to go visit this if you can, as it looks like it's going to be a really varied and interesting fair. You can check out her facebook page here - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Flower-Remedies/143670662390938 and her website is www.flowerremedies.ie (for some reason bloggers links are not working so please copy and paste links into your browser)

Being brave enough to walk your own path

(Image by Stephen Mooney - http://halfpastdanger.blogspot.com/2011/09/oh-heavens-no-it-has-to-be-terror-sweat.html)
Found this lovely link via a tweet today, and it really does resonate strongly with me. Even more so at this point in time, when I see so many unhappy people doing jobs they're not satisfied with. They have a yearning to do work that is true to their soul and that calls to them.
It isn't an easy call to answer, but those that do, despite the many, many challenges they face along the way (aside from the obvious financial challenge) find a sense of wholeness from it and find it deeply satisfying.
So to see a well established artist that I admire, being open and honest about the fears of freelancing after a great success rate in his career spanning over 10years so far, is heartening. It's heartening because feeling these fears is healthy, normal and felt by your peers. Healthy because anything that pushes you outside your comfort zone means you're growing and evolving. Normal because no matter what your journey or calling in this life, you are not alone in facing your gremlins.
This is after all, another great example of a personal gremlin...and they come in all shapes and sizes! It's good to know that despite it being there, overcoming resistance and conformity is possible.

Zen and what is it

Zen - by Tommie Kelly Visit: www.tommiekelly.com for more art
Tommie Kelly went all zen this week on the www.irishcomicnews.com website. It was in fact, an inspired moment of truth and clarity if I'm to be honest, and sums up the highs and lows of a journey in any creative field. It could be said that the last couple of years have sparked a 'knowing your own truth' journey for a lot of people on the planet. Connecting with your creative truth is a big part of that journey.
People often say that artistic skills are 'talent' and people are born with it. Well I firmly believe this isn't the case. It is something you can learn, and like other skills, sometimes there can be more of an affinity with a particular pursuit than another...but without applying time, energy and focus on it then it would simply cease to be a well honed skill.
It can be easy to become disheartened during the down times of the cycles that occur with creativity and any other part of your life for that matter. There is however, one truth that remains - this too shall pass. Not going to go all holy here, but this just about sums up any bad patch or low energy or uninspired spell you find yourself going through.
Everything has cycles, stick it out long enough and you might start to see patterns forming! When that happens it can be reassuring and also invaluable as a way to find the door out. :)