It is summer, by golly! What a difference twenty degrees makes in my day. I am wearing a t-shirt. I am not quite in shorts. It is still March in Chicago. Tomorrow it could be 30 with snow, by gumshin. I am enjoying myself. Finding reason to be outside:like interviewing people on the street passing out flyers.
People are smiling. People are smiling around me more. I like it. It makes me smile more freely.
It makes me want to go for a long walk by the water and contemplate diving under the waves. Only a thought, cause the water would freeze my butt.
Enjoy!!!
Monday, March 26, 2007
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Speaking up
This is the kind of day I don't want to do much. Stay under the covers, watch an old movie. I don't feel like talking much, my voice is hoarse.
Last night I joined ten thousand people on Michigan Avenue for Peace. We shout"What do we want ?" "Peace" "When do we want it, Now!" There were probably as many cops as marchers, but most were nice to us. They laughed, talked and even smiled. They were making double time for protecting us from ourselves. It was better this year, last year they were not smiling and were in riot gear. I walked from Ogden School to Daley Plaza with my mom.
She told me about taking us to our first peace demonstration when my sisters and I were kids. No Nukes!! I remember. I like being a part of a family that speaks up and says when we don't agree with something.
It is really time to speak up everybody!!!
Last night I joined ten thousand people on Michigan Avenue for Peace. We shout"What do we want ?" "Peace" "When do we want it, Now!" There were probably as many cops as marchers, but most were nice to us. They laughed, talked and even smiled. They were making double time for protecting us from ourselves. It was better this year, last year they were not smiling and were in riot gear. I walked from Ogden School to Daley Plaza with my mom.
She told me about taking us to our first peace demonstration when my sisters and I were kids. No Nukes!! I remember. I like being a part of a family that speaks up and says when we don't agree with something.
It is really time to speak up everybody!!!
Friday, March 16, 2007
Pause in Writing
There has been a pause in my writing. I feel it physically. I feel better when I am writing. I feel less stuck more liking I am moving somewhere, even when I am siting still at my computer. I can come up with excuses..bla blah..blah.. I just know writing is good for me... even when life is pulling me down or in another direction, writing helps me makes sense of it all.
Goodie-Trust the Process
I tell my students to Trust the process..I tell my friends to trust themselves... Both are good things to do....I think as I approach 40..This has been a little hard for me..I am better with the questions and unknowns.
I don't expect to be right all the time or know every answer. I like to say"I don't know."
I am on my path..that is what I know. I am trusting the process. Any moment now I could vear off and find myself on a tropical island with a hunky guy. That would be fine.
I don't expect to be right all the time or know every answer. I like to say"I don't know."
I am on my path..that is what I know. I am trusting the process. Any moment now I could vear off and find myself on a tropical island with a hunky guy. That would be fine.
Monday, March 5, 2007
The Invitation- Words of Wisdom
The Invitation
By Oriah, Mountain Dreamer, Native American Elder
"It doesn't interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for and if you dream of meeting your hearts longing.
It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to know if you risk looking like a fool for love, for your dreams, for the adventure of being alive.
It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon. I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain! I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own, without moving to hide it, or fix it. I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own;if you can dance with the wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, be realistic, or to remember the limitations of being human.
It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling is true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself; if you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul. I want to know if you can be faithful and therefore trustworthy. I want to know if you can see beauty even when it is not pretty everyday, and if you can source your life from God's presence. I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mind and still stand on the edge of the lake and shout to the silver moon,"Yes!"
It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how much money you have. I want to know if if you can get up after a night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone, and do what needs to be done for the children. It doesn't interest me who you know or how you came to be here. I want to know if you can stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back.
It doesn't interest me where or with whom you have studied. I want to know what sustains you from the insides when all else falls away. I want to know if you can be alone with yourself and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments."
By Oriah, Mountain Dreamer, Native American Elder
"It doesn't interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for and if you dream of meeting your hearts longing.
It doesn't interest me how old you are. I want to know if you risk looking like a fool for love, for your dreams, for the adventure of being alive.
It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon. I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain! I want to know if you can sit with pain, mine or your own, without moving to hide it, or fix it. I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own;if you can dance with the wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, be realistic, or to remember the limitations of being human.
It doesn't interest me if the story you are telling is true. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself; if you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul. I want to know if you can be faithful and therefore trustworthy. I want to know if you can see beauty even when it is not pretty everyday, and if you can source your life from God's presence. I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mind and still stand on the edge of the lake and shout to the silver moon,"Yes!"
It doesn't interest me to know where you live or how much money you have. I want to know if if you can get up after a night of grief and despair, weary and bruised to the bone, and do what needs to be done for the children. It doesn't interest me who you know or how you came to be here. I want to know if you can stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back.
It doesn't interest me where or with whom you have studied. I want to know what sustains you from the insides when all else falls away. I want to know if you can be alone with yourself and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments."
What is Expressive Arts Therapies?
What is Expressive Arts Therapies?
The expressive arts move people into the world of emotions. It gets people out of their heads and into their bodies. Experiences are stored in the body.
Many people are survivors of some kind of trauma, whether it is resulting from war or an abusive relationship.
Some people can't or choose not to speak about the violence they witnessed but find it easier to paint or dance or sing our their stories. Someone can find her voice again through the arts. She can learn that she has an inner power and an indestructible will that won't leave her.
The feelings of grief, anger, pain , fear and joy are the tunnel through which we must pass to get to the other side: to self-awareness, understanding and wholeness.
Other Principles of expressive arts therapies
All people have the ability to be creative.
Our feelings and emotions are an energy source.
Personal growth takes place in a safe and supportive environment.
"Here is the test to find whether your mission on Earth is finished: If you are still alive it isn't."
Richard Bach
The expressive arts move people into the world of emotions. It gets people out of their heads and into their bodies. Experiences are stored in the body.
Many people are survivors of some kind of trauma, whether it is resulting from war or an abusive relationship.
Some people can't or choose not to speak about the violence they witnessed but find it easier to paint or dance or sing our their stories. Someone can find her voice again through the arts. She can learn that she has an inner power and an indestructible will that won't leave her.
The feelings of grief, anger, pain , fear and joy are the tunnel through which we must pass to get to the other side: to self-awareness, understanding and wholeness.
Other Principles of expressive arts therapies
All people have the ability to be creative.
Our feelings and emotions are an energy source.
Personal growth takes place in a safe and supportive environment.
"Here is the test to find whether your mission on Earth is finished: If you are still alive it isn't."
Richard Bach
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