The Here and There of Mandala Mondays

I had posted over there that Mandala Mondays would resume here on Monday, October 5.

That is partially true.

See, I spoke before I tested. Can't upload the PDF here. Shucks.

So it WILL resume on Monday, October 5, but posted for download there as before.

Which means that this blog may eventually move here.

But first things first.

Thanks to all of you who have missed coloring as much as I have!

Master Class

Day 16,068. Although I haven’t talked about it much since then, I attended Shinpiden (Reiki Master Teacher class) exactly six months ago. Anyone who has been through anything like this knows that the learning goes well beyond the time in the physical classroom. The teaching (and testing) can go on for weeks, months, a lifetime. Our homework is to treat ourselves ... heal what needs healing within us. No small feat. But we can be of no assistance to anyone else if our heads, hearts, and hands are full of our own baggage.

Working at the Master level has deepened my compassion for our human-beingness, but at the same time I can see more clearly than ever before just how powerful, magnificent and, well, WELL that we really are at our core. Our well-being truly abounds, although our circumstances can sometimes make it difficult to see it that way. Like the sun behind the clouds, the light is always there. The truth of our inherent well-being has taken root within me as a knowing over these months of practice and contemplation. Which isn’t to say that I don’t forget sometimes in my day-to-day life. As a recovering dramaholic, I do. But it is getting easier to bounce back and remember in a (gentle) thump-on-the-head, could-have-had-a-V8 kind of way.

To the frustration of some around me, there are some things that I can’t do anymore, now that I know what I know. “I won’t go there with you.” I said these words recently and I could tell that they wounded the one who received them. The only thing that I am sorry about is that my point was misunderstood. This is my truth. I won't go there. I won’t to go to those dark places with those who have forgotten ... the ones who tell themselves scary stories that I know aren’t or don’t have to be true. I won’t pretend that they are or could be real, even for the sake of comfort. I don't do pity. Ever. The two of us in that abyss can be of no help to each other at all.

I would much rather have you believe that I have abandoned you in your time of need than to be anything less than grounded in my powerful vision of you as healthy, strong and blessed. My role as a healing “facilitator” is to hold that space for and picture of you so that maybe, hopefully, you can (at the very least) muster the hope to see yourself and/or your situation that way. From that hope can be borne willingness and from that willingness is borne belief. Once you reach belief, you will (re)discover the truth that I knew about you all along.

Now I know full well that my positive attitude in the face of your anguish is going to seem cruel and piss you off. That’s fine. I can take it. Please be angry with me rather than repeat that story again ... the scary one that makes you sad ... the sad one that makes you scared. I know that someday, when you discover that you are back to living happily ever after, you will realize that quiet in the background, I was not only on your team all along but also your biggest supporter of all.

Mysterious Apple Bush

Day 16,066. They say that magic is all around us. Caught up in the day to dayness of it all, it is so easy to overlook ... er, um, underlook, as the case may be.

We have lived in this house for 7 1/2 years. Every spring, I watch the shrub by our beer garden burst into furious hot pink blooms which don't last nearly as long as I wish they would. This year, this autumn, it has gone above and beyond the call of duty and surprised us with fruit. Dan and I have been standing around scratching our heads in fruitful befuddlement. Are we being horticulturally punked?

These little gems look like green apple golf balls. I've cut them in half and they even smell like green apples (of the Granny Smith persuasion). It's all I can do not to munch, but my mama taught me not to put things from trees and shrubberies in my mouth without first clearing it with her. She hasn't gotten back to me yet.

So unless you can tell me what it is I'm dealing with here, I will henceforth refer to it as our beloved apple-bush-from-which-we-shall-not-eat. But I sure would appreciate it if someone could solve this mystery. Anyone?

UPDATE:
Thanks to Susie, the bush has been identified as a Flowering Quince. Hooray!

iSimplify

This word has been on repeat for me lately. With my birthday on the horizon, I suspect that it is the theme for my next trip around the sun. Marching orders, so to speak. Simplify.

With that said, I am moving toward releasing the official Jakk's Magic Beans Workshop website. Honestly, there has not been much going on over there for a long time. I've been corresponding with this dear heart and her wise words have helped me to realize that I can safely pare things down and still be in the business of being me, creatively. Maybe even better than before. Sometimes we have to do a hard pruning to promote new growth.

Mandala Mondays will resume on Monday, October 5. From now on, the mandalas will be posted for download from this site. Don't know about you, but I can use some crayon therapy!

Testing, Testing, 1-2-3

Just testing out the feasibility of posting by smartphone. (I love you, Nokia E71.) I really want to get back to posting on a regular basis, but need all of the tools and tricks that I can gather to pull it off. In the not too distant future, I will be leading a double-life with home days and office days. For the latter, it's nice to know I can tap out a little post (or log notes for such) while I'm swigging my green smoothie at lunch time. Fingers crossed.

16,048: What I Did on My Summer Vacation

It's a crisp and bright Sunday morning as I write this post ... my first in over three months! Summer transmutes into autumn right before my eyes. A brand new solar year for me and another joyful journey around the wheel.

Ah, summer. I really enjoyed the week in New Smyrna Beach back in early June. And then there was the long weekend in Chicago in August. *sigh* But before, after, and in between has been a whole lot of ... work.

I don't often mention it here, but I have a full-time job that is completely unrelated to Jakk's Magic Beans Workshop (JMBW). It is administrative in nature. The short and sweet of it is that I manage, which makes me laugh because, well, that can be interpretted a couple of different ways. Definitely, yes, I manage.

The demands of it aren't going to decrease anytime soon. But, at the same time, I sorely miss getting my arts on. Unless I want to keep things on hold indefinitely, I'm going to have to get creative about getting creative. I don't know how that will go or what that will look like, but I hope that you'll tag along.

New Mandala for You

Ready to download here.

There will be no mandala next week as I'll be at the beach. Ahhhhhhhh. Can't wait!