art-occupies-the-blog

When the Light Spilled In

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 00:48:58 +0100

WHEN THE LIGHT SPILLED IN

Today when the light spilled in,
I thought of Dr King .
I know his soul
is still yet
alive here in me,
otherwise I would not be able to see
beyond the edge of darkness.
The dream was shared with all who cared to hear it.
His life affirming words arced like lightning,
then fell
gentle as rain
spilled into the consciousness
of us all.

I stood quietly today and gave thanks for the courage, clarity and grace of Dr Martin Luther King Jr.
Love to All, Judy

"Light Spilled In" , 4:05 PM on this day of Dr ML King's birth, 2012. Photo by Judy A McNutt. Thank you. I love you.

Thud

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 06:01:45 +0100

December 31, 2011 Last Call

Sun, 01 Jan 2012 06:58:50 +0100

'appy New Year!!!!!!

My Journey, Our Journey

Sat, 31 Dec 2011 08:31:41 +0100

My Journey, Our Journey-

I must succumb,

All this faffing about with words

Has made me numb

Once fear caused me to believe

This journey ends in death.

If that were true

What we think, feel, or do would have no meaning;

We would disintegrate

Like the ghost of a moth in a

Sticky web.

I allow the eyelids to flutter

Rhythmic breath, follows me

Into the golden internal light.

Like that vibration,

You, too are

Unending.

Now we travel onward into the journey of the journey of the journey of light

We look back in agreement with

Thought

Feeling

Action

Tendrils of implicate order

Tease the reveal of human thought,

Word, or deed

as each neural path advances toward coherence.

Feel the beat of your heart

as all

hearts beat.

If you have looked on pain and suffering with indifference,

You have felt out of alignment

With All that Is.

Do not worry, or resist

Universal assistance was held in stasis.

Until once again, your journey begins to unfold.

Let us see each thought, feeling, and action

As flowers in a field

Nodding and waving in agreement with the winds of time.

No longer indifferent to others,

We are all flowers in a field, vibrant colors in vital agreement

That this is our Time

This is our Now

We unfold into the life we choose.

As we transcend pain and suffering,

Others

Find what they need

To be who they are.

Focus not on ancient violence

Instead,

Feel gentle in the bodymind

Recognize the signs of the sacred within

And all around us.

Give thanks, internally, for every joy.

Do not let great sadness pass without calling into your interior for the joy that is held there.

Do not imagine that you are alone in your home, in your village, in your city, on the Earth, or among the infinite worlds.

Know you are not enchained to this time and this space.

In time of transition,

The loneliness is not eternal,

But the flicker of a flame.

Today, ask yourself, “Who am I?” and listen for the answer.

Today, ask yourself, “Where am I going?” and listen for the answer.

written by Judy A McNutt
I'm sorry, please forgive me. Thank you. I love you.

Colleen Patterson's stunning photo of fall leaves inspires, transforms!

Sat, 12 Nov 2011 22:20:49 +0100

Find just ten minutes to write about the sights, sounds and smells of fall today!

In the Moment

Sun, 06 Nov 2011 15:19:54 +0100

Nothing for it but...

Letter to Resistance

Sun, 30 Oct 2011 18:51:23 +0100

Dear Resistance,
Frustration, ennui, meaningless pursuit of perfection, self-indulgent tangents, and evil whispers not withstanding, I'll not surrender despite the determination with which you pursue me. By now you and I have come to know each other well; be content with the occasional bones I cast in your direction. Here is a list of defenses, offenses and senses which I will use to block you at every turn:

Take and old writing journal out to a cafe, sit down and read it as if it was written by person unknown. "Steal" the best bits to use as starters or pluck out a whole piece and pronounce it a Poem!
Begin writing with "I don't feel like writing today because..."
Select an object in the room. Write about in great detail. Begin to notice what it says about you; write about that, too.
Paint, pound or squish clay, cut and paste a collage, create sand tray art, make a hat...THEN sit down and write about it.
People Watching as Art. Pocket-sized people book to describe all the people you see, do and do not know, etc.
Describe a memorable meal.
Take an awareness walk. Memorize three powerfully evocative words to use in a five-minute write when you get back.Begin with the most powerful word.
I carry...
I do not carry...
What is really important is...
Pulling, drawing or tugging me just now is...
I am willing to witness...(stay in there with, carry...)
I am most fearful of...
My darkness is...
I write for...
What's really alive for me is...
Faced with the choice of ONE for the remainder of your life....sex or laughter?
Country Mouse or City Mouse?
How would I live in my present abode of you were suddenly 6 inches tall?
Would I be willing to be made blind, deaf and mute for the rest of my life in exchange for 5 million dollars?
Write in the persona of someone of the opposite sex.
Write in the persona of someone twenty years older.
Write in the persona of someone ten years younger.
Write in the persona of someone who is less well educated.
Write in the persona of someone who is more educated.
Write in the persona of someone who is blind or deaf or mute.
Write in the persona of someone who holds different religious or political or social opinions.

No offense, but I have renamed Resistance as "A Rest Dance."

Love what you've done with the place,
Judy

Depleted ?

Sun, 30 Oct 2011 20:07:15 +0100

Hitting a wall is bad enough on its own, but when you’re supposed to be the successful one, the cheeriest chick in the village, the rock of the family, “True North”- you just take all that energy with you on a spectacular crash into that plane of resistance. The concussive effect is so bloody devastating because you never saw it coming. You’re the “on-top-of-it-all-person”, the professional, the voice of experience one moment- the next you’re the proverbial bug on the windscreen. Accept your new flattened condition or scrape yourself off and start again is your only choice. But where do the depleted go to “fill the well”?

For a few weeks I suffered in disappointment as my first book rolled out and fell flat. After years of hard work, painting all the illustration and cover art, book design, proofing and proofing the proof (I learned the hard way that things can happen to mess up the part you already proofed and approved, and so you have to proof the whole piece at every stage.) …the initial marketing was done, and a flurry of friends expressed excitement, then nobody bought my book. This was my first evidence of the extent to which people lie. I mean I’ve been lied to by men and school children over the years, but thought that was just isolated personal experience. Wholesale out-and-out lying, on a massive scale is another matter. No less than 85 people, friends mind you, indicated they would buy my book as soon as it was available on Amazon.com or Barnes and Noble’s webstore. How many folks actually did make a purchase in the first 30 days? One. One excited person bought three books. The rest of those 84 people pretended they would and “did” order their copy. Perhaps they thought I would sell so many books that their single, personal purchase wouldn’t be missed. This mirrors my experience with lies. You think it’s one, but it’s all. Perhaps they didn’t want to disappoint me but the effect on my predictive information flow was severe. This screwed up my plan to “take a story” to the bookstores where lots of other people indicated they would prefer to shop for and purchase a book in person. I don’t know, perhaps they did me a favor. Perhaps the Bookstore Buyers are figments of their own imaginations as well. OK. People lie and Poetry doesn’t sell, even when you take pains to make it accessible and design the book as a writing journal.

Seeking sources of relief, onward I blundered into a new novel. I thought, “Writers write and I’m still a writer,” but I felt depleted, not a good place to start. Casting about for a source to stave off depression (been there, done that, threw out the pills) I sought a place to fill my well, a class, a book, a spiritual center….something outside my ragged-ass-self. Seeking relief, I built an entire website dedicated to others in a similar position. Still, I thought, there HAVE to be more.IDEAS to help prevent surrender. There ARE!!!!!

EVERYDAY WRITERS IDEA BANK

BATTLE RESISTANCE:
Psych out Resistance by collecting material every day and you will always have:

IDEAS for the days ahead...

"When I was your age . . ." Paste holiday or encouragement cards from parents/ friends/ chidren in a treasured notebook, or use memorabilia from when you were 6, 8, or 16 years of age to fill pages of an empty journal, or sweet little box- decorated by you!

We won’t remember it if we don’t write it down: What funny phrase did a friend or relative utter today? What funny or touching, never-to-be-repeated observation have you jotted down today, this week? One thing is for sure: You won’t remember it if you don’t write it down.

Twenty-five wonderful words. As a family group, compile an ongoing list of 25 words that family members like—any words. Encourage all friends and family members to contribute. Keep these words posted in a place where the family gathers fairly regularly (near the kitchen table or in the family room). Scrapbooking current and family events. Keep a family scrapbook and take turns describing events and illustrating them with sketches, photos, or cut-outs and clip art. This scrapbook can be in the form of a simple three-ring, loose-leaf notebook, or a commercially prepared scrapbook with big, wide pages that invite the addition of information.

Family word collages. Each family member can create a self-describing word collage with cut-out words from magazines, junk mail, and other disposable print. For an anniversary (the family’s “birthday,” or the “birthday” of some important direction your family has taken), create a family celebration word collage.

The E-mail editor. Create a folder in which you save funny, interesting, bizarre, poignant or personally valuable e-mails. These can become a part of your Personal Narrative. Tell your story!

Whys and why nots. Have you ever drawn a line down the middle of a sheet of paper, and written the pros and cons of a problem to solve or a decision to be made? Writing fosters vision, although too many people only believe the reverse of that sentence. If you write when you are baffled, angry, or depressed, something is sure to rise to the surface. Save in a folder!

Lists, lists, and more lists. Days after the writer’s friend passed away, too early and unexpectedly, her teenage daughters found interesting lists in the drawer of her nightstand. One list included 10 dates, which the girls determined to be the 10 most important dates in their mother’s life . . . days like meeting their dad, marrying him, each of the girls’ birthdates, and the date of the one Mother’s Day where the girls really did shower their mother with love, favors, breakfast in bed, and entertainment. Think of what lists can reveal about you: lists of favorite words, lists of people you’ve always disliked and why (with notes about your feelings that may have changed over time), lists of five decisions you’ve been putting off, a list of five or six people to whom you should write, thanking them for their influence, lists of lifelong frustrations, and lists of items and events that bring you joy. I keep an on-going list of people who demonstrate qualities I admire. I keep a list of qualities I want and visualize myself having, and I keep a list of forgiveness.

Closet graffiti. Use the inside of a closet door that only the family will see. Attach a large sheet of poster paper or freezer paper to the inside door, and place some colored markers close to the paper. Allow doodlings and wonderings to be placed on the paper. Family members can contribute when something is on their minds, or when they have a question to which they don’t need a serious response. The only requirement to join in the fun is to be able to convey meaning with a comment, question, or drawing. The more your additions resemble graffiti, the more interesting your closet becomes. Ours is a whiteboard on the kitchen cupboard.

Journals and journaling. The simplest and, perhaps purest, form of writing may be the observable act of making an entry in a journal. It is a private act, accomplished for and by yourself, but typically an unselfish conscious act. It amounts to a congenial transaction between you and an empty page in an empty or half-filled book. There are no rules, no expectations, and no compelling reason to keep writing in a journal, except for insights you may recognize at a later time when you really need it, or personal revelations to an adult child or grandchild about yourself after you are gone. The physical book in which you keep your journal can be almost as motivating as the thoughts and events you wish to describe in it. Each morning I begin by making a list of how I intend to feel to day. I awaken my conscious connection with The Inner Divine. Then I simply observe the waking world around me, the weather and other sights and sounds. Finally, I journal my joy and appreciation. My journaling gets my day off to a great start!

Love note mania. Write and share with each other tributes, odes, love songs, or love notes to unusual items; such as your nose, lightning, December, a test, your kid's soccer ball, dirty socks, or dust on the furniture.

People watching. Keep a people watching notebook in the car, and take it along on vacations, dinner outings, or leisurely Sunday afternoon drives. Rotate turns through family members to record observations of one or more persons you can watch for at least a few minutes, or have each family member write a description of a different person in the setting you are in. Try it once, or create a traveling tradition. You will be surprised at how your stories will become part of your family lore, and make their way into yours or your child’s writer’s notebook, poems, or stories.

Letters. It can be fascinating to read collections of letters from others through the ages, whether they are from Civil War soldiers, Beethoven, Charles Lindbergh to Anne Marrow, or from Anne to Charles. So, write some letters, and whether or not you send them, keep copies of them for some other day and time. Write a letter from yourself at 80 years old. What advice would you offer? (from The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron)

Postcards from yourself to yourself. As you travel, write on postcards and send them home to yourself. Adding to your own collection of memories and pictures from your travels can motivate you to experiment with descriptive writing and mimicking travel brochures and tour guides, or just experience yourself “in the moment”. I sometimes send myself a postcard right here in town. Sometimes I program one of those e-cards to be sent to myself at some time in the future.

AND FINALLY...

Kismet brought me to Expressive Arts at 32^nd and Thorn and something called Art Happy Hour. “Well I like art and could really stand to feel happy for an hour,” I thought hopefully. I decided to document my experience, now my journey toward the recovery of my SELF. “What do I do?” I asked as I barely got inside the door, “Whatever you want,” said Tish and Sherry. As I stood before the explosion of color and freely flowing technique of scraping and twisting paint I felt something ancient, nearly forgotten break open inside me. The dam burst and creativity gushed forth. Rivulets of relief trickled down my cheeks to my chin.

RESISTANCE RELIEF! Artmaking begets more art so if you're a stuck writer, try painting, or markers or collage, or other visual art because Resistance hates creative energy.