MESSY MESSY MESSY

Greetings my dear sisters and friends,
It is a beautiful-rainy-cloudy-overcast day. I can see the flowers beginning to bud and the grass turning greener. Yes, there is still a winter nip in the air but I can feel spring-smell spring in the wind. I love this time of year -- even the rainy days.

Recently, I have been very attracted to doing MESSY ART. I found several great videos on YOUTUBE to get my creative juices flowing. One artist in particular, Tam, resonated deeply with my creative/spiritual energy. Tam has many videos on YOUTUBE but one of my favorites is "MESSY MESSY MESSY." In it, Tam discusses the FREEDOM of being messy and how liberating messy art can be. For me this is certainly true.

Here are three MESSY pages that I have created.



TFL!

Sending you peace and joy,
Wendi

Good Wednesday Morning!!!

I have made myself a "to do" list and feel energized about getting it all done. Today I need to get an oil change, mail off birthday thank you letters, finish reading two books before class, meet with graduate students, return printer, wash a load of clothes (the boys are out of jeans), and and .....well, that is it. I know it may be a busy day but today I will also try to be STILL and SILENT at least once. The STILL part is not that hard for me but the SILENT part is. I know it is not just about being vocally SILENT but having silence in my mind. It is challenging to take a least a moment and not think about my "to do" list, not think about the fascinating information that I learned in the books I am reading, and not think about the boys at school. Finding SILENCE in my mind is not easy but I am going to give it a try. I think I am most likely to achieve STILLNESS and SILENCE if I can take a short walk this afternoon. So that is my goal. What are your goals for today? Whatever they are I wish you success and I wish you peace and joy.

W-

Here are a few pics of my boys hiking with me on Monday.

A "not so" Manic Monday

Happy Monday to you....
I am trying to slow down and get organized. Lately, I have been flying by the seat of my pants and I think that has made my hectic schedule even more insane. No more. Chaos ends today-and sanity begins. With this in mind, I knew I needed to be in nature - to absorb nature. Fortunately, the weather was simply - perfectly-beautiful today. I knew that I wanted to take my boys on a hike when I picked them up from school. I adore hikes. When hiking I feel so at peace and so alive and energized. The three of us meandered through the woods this afternoon and it was delightful. We admired the green moss growing on a fallen log, picked up leaves, and listened to the wind. It was a fabulous afternoon with the boys.

I am also starting Oprah's 10-week online class for Eckhart Tolle's "A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose." I am very excited about the book, the class and my new personal goals. I have committed to making 2008 a year of real (and deep) personal growth. For me this year is about discovering my life's purpose. I was just telling my sister today that I have spent my life being very focused ( I thought) and orderly. My life plan was as follows: get married by 25, have first child by 28, earn my Ph.D. by 30, have second child by 30, and become a professor. Interestingly, I achieved all of my goals, give or take a year. The problem is that I never imagined life after 30. Yet, here I am. At 35, I am a wife to a wonderful man, a mother to two incredible boys, and a professor. But there is so much more to me than those three identities. Most days I feel as if I am on the cusp of amazing self-discovery. The feeling is so intense I can taste my new awareness, new sense of self, and purpose. I think scrapbooking has been a very important part of my self discovery process. I have always been a creative being and scrapbooking allowed me to reconnect with that part of myself. A part that had been lost for awhile. Scrapbooking has really given me a vehicle for reconnecting to a very important part of myself - a very spiritual part of myself.

No matter where you are, who you are, I am sending you a HUG FULL OF LOVE. Take a peak at some of my pages and I hope they inspire you to create meaningful pages of your own.

Peace,
W-