pellegrino now makes still water in a glass bottle. though i carry my kleen kanteen everywhere like a spare limb, i had to have this beautiful bottle-if only to take it's portrait and promise myself to fill it with tiny-stemmed flowers. why doesn't all water come in glass bottles? so done with plastic.
these overnight retreats are doing my heart so much good. i've loved taking a break here and getting away as much as possible to clear my head and be able to hear my dreams at night. this time i spent some sacred medicine time with two women (both leo suns to my mama leo moon..prrrrrrrr) who know my heart. i was able to work through a couple of issues and have some quiet time with them in the shade + enjoy some scrumptious bites while powering down one last time before a month of painting on a deadline.
i'm moving my studio out of the house here and down to santa monica for the month and trying los angeles on again is a big step for me. this has been a year of turning all of my perspectives upside down. working with what i've got is actually quite enjoyable at the moment. i'm surrendering so much, layers are falling off every day. what lovely medicine for a hot summer.
another idea making it's rotations around in my bean is that i must assert some better boundaries in relationships. it is time to evaluate once again how i am conserving my energy. i'm still volunteering myself too much and learning the recurring lesson of how to budget my natural resources. sometimes i feel a bit bullied or guilted into participating in online events or showing support for people i may not know intimately. i forget that my energy belongs to me and to my family and if i don't have the time to expand my circle or say yes to everyone's projects, that is OKAY. because i'm in a transition back into work with a baby who is ready to spend two afternoons a week with her nana-neighbor, i have a loaded plate and things have changed from when i had less to do. this is all good change, but it means i have to make new choices. i love change! but i often forget to adapt when i take on new projects; others must take a back seat, and it can't be my family. sometimes it has to be my social time, or time spent online or on the phone. i suppose i can't have it all.
as i slept on the ground in a tipi on sarah jane's property last night, i dreamed of a lizard that was regenerating it's tail. as children, my brother and i used to try to capture the wee lizards, and sometimes we'd be left holding a little wiggling tail, the reptile having darted back off under the woodpile, missing it's rudder. this speaks of detachment in order to survive. i also thought it could mean that perhaps i can trust that when i give away my energies to the right sources, i will be replenished and *grow back*. i also drew a celtic stag from a wonderful card deck, and it spoke of letting go of emotional attachments. seeing as how i'm...er...generously endowed in the department of *feelings*, i'm looking at how to best work this magic.
it is time to pack up my studio and move this operation onward and outward for a time. i hope that this means i will work less from home and have more time to focus on playing and writing. thank you, as always, for joining me on this journey of creativity and self-care.
*photo by the lovely and amazing kirsten crilly and her magical nikon