this

all of this.


Alan Watts & David Lindberg - Why Your Life Is Not A Journey from David Lindberg on Vimeo.

"letting go"

"Letting Go" 19"x 23" oil on wood. 2007

Esau Andrews

i can't even say it, you.  at this point, even our own words feel wrong to say.

i loved you...& a past me loves you continuously.

but...

saosin (careful, in Chinese) "a reference to the fact that nothing is eternal, and that it is a mistake to become overly attached to any one or thing..."

"you will live to tell..."

<3

just a boy

& his friend...

research

*The first passengers to fly in a balloon were a rooster, a sheep, and a duck.

*Albuquerque's Sandia Mountains

sim but different

mama's

always right.

pure feeling

2:00 to 2:12 is what i'm alive for.  seriously.  honestly.
it's why i'm still here to write words into the darkness of the internet.
that absolute raw emotion that knows no words, no images,
it is just feeling.
it is raw and real and it can be painful or joyful or more often
it can be beyond emotional categorization.
that
is
being
alive.

that is being human.
that is what we're here to experience.
that
right
there.

oh ellen & lewis (hah!)

m-i-l...

*laughing hysterically*

intentional gratitude

this morning, after drinking the first cup of coffee and feeding the pup pup and helping my husband get ready & out the door for his day, i start in on the task of writing 20ish personal thank you's to each of my students.

next week is our last week of art class, and although we only spent 6 weeks together (for a very short hour and 15 minutes each class)...i'm attached and sad to see them go.  they taught me so much, and although i am exhausted at the thought of what i have poured into them (energy, time, thought, care, art lessons, adorable projects...) they always give it right back ten-fold...

sometimes it's a tight hug given freely and without prompting the moment they see me (and probably when they see the look of tired on my face)...

sometimes it's an ah-HA moment when a little concept of some kind suddenly clicks in their brain and they rejoice at the knowledge that it happened...

sometimes it's them repeating my teaching right back to me when I forget it myself.  "oh, Miss Renai, you're not happy with such and such YET!"  oh yeah, sure enough.  good job sweet baby loves.

and in an intentional effort to be more thankful and aware of all the many blessings in my life, I have been working hard to say and write and deliver more "thank you's" to the people in my life that make it the wonderful thing that it is.  and it's not just the big things...it's also the ladies at the WFM clinic that always answer the phone and are so professional and kind and helpful every time I call.  Yep, they get a thank you card, too.

so as i begin the long task of coming up with a unique sentence or two to describe and thank each of these students for sharing space and time and their bright lights with me...i wonder what you are thankful for today?  it's like cleaning out your closet.  when you open your eyes to everything that's good and wonderful in your life and take the time to develop gratitude for it all, you discover all these other amazing things that you hardly even noticed before.

thank you.

love!

please read & share her article if you love it...i think it's pretty fantastic 

http://www.glassheel.com/single-post/2016/08/31/Buried-Treasure---The-Admiration-Of-Inspiration

I met Janna working as a summer intern...to me then, at 16ish years old, she was this fantastic, creative, professional, caring, giving lady who I thought man, if I could be like her, maybe even have a gig like hers, and get some of those sweet colored markers she has up in her office,
I think life might be pretty good.  she laughed a lot, mentored me in the sweetest way, and now she's off doing something new and amazing :)





<3

dammit Kara!

just when I think everything is good and fine and you're done teaching me, I teach something and find myself remembering you with such love and then (inevitably) missing you.  thanks for making this video so I can hear your voice when I'm missing you...

similar but different

as m would say <3







dude, I must admit...dance parties have saved my butt on more than one occasion in the classroom.

when absolutely nothing is going as planned or well, I am always tempted to tell my little friends to drop everything, push chairs in, make sure there is space around their body, and then I turn on some loud song and we dance out the frustration / anger / tired / annoyed / too much energy / not enough energy / sadness until we can make art again.  sometimes it's just for them, sometimes it's just for me...but I must say not once have I hosted a mid-art class dance party that didn't benefit everyone :)

i will only sing

do it. find the time to watch this,

you won't be sorry you did.

many many many mistakes!!

#growth mindset, y'all

oxygen in cups

For the most part, being generous with my time and being kind-hearted towards my challenges comes naturally (thank goodness).  But occasionally, I find myself struggling to be generous and my first reaction is often frustration.  Why can't I just be loving?  Why can't I just feel good about giving my time / attention / money / etc. to this?  Why does it feel like a struggle here?

If we are being honest with ourselves, we admit that we cannot give that which we do not have.  If our own cup isn't full, we can't pour into everyone around us.  If our own needs are not being met, we are not going to feel very good spending our time and attention and funds meeting someone else's needs.  The whole "put your own oxygen mask on before assisting others" on a plane scenario (I know, I hate hearing that one, too).  But it's true.  

What I'm getting to here is that you are allowed to fill your own cup.  We are obligated to find our own oxygen before we can help anyone else find theirs.  We need to take a step back and assess our own needs before we can meet everyone else's.  And let me be the first to say, this is really hard.  I know everyone depends on you.  I know your to-do list is a mile and a half long.  I know you don't feel like you have time for this stuff.  I know, because I'm right here with you and I feel the same way. 

Please, take half an hour today and do the things that fill your cup.  If not for your own wellness then do it for the wellness of all those hearts who depend on you.  Whatever brings you joy, do more of that.  And know that we are right here with you, and we're learning right here with you, to put on our own oxygen masks before we assist everyone else.  

Our goal is to always have our cups so full that they consistently spill out into your life when you're here in the studio.  We really do find joy in helping you create, in helping you feel warm and fuzzy and loved and wonderful.  Stop by and create with us and you'll see what I mean.  We just stinkin' love what we do, and we want to share it with you.  And we strive to be a place that brings you joy, that helps you relax and reset and fill your own cup.  So you can keep on being awesome and pouring into your kids, your family, your coworkers, your community.

Happy Sunday, y'all.

really.

let yourself

"let yourself be silently drawn
by the strange pull of what you really love.
it will not lead you astray."
-rumi

a meanness

This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they are a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.

The dark thought, the shame, the malice.
meet them at the door laughing and invite them in.

Be grateful for whatever comes.
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.

-Rumi