Creatively Speaking...

According to Paul Dorrell, author of "Living the Artist's Life", I need to focus if I am ever to attain mastery of my craft. My name isn't going to live forever I'm afraid, because I tend to jump from woodcarving to silk painting and then zing over to poetry which then morphs into a half written screenplay. What Paul suggests makes perfect sense to me but how does one go about calming an over active imagination? I'm sure every beginning artist has cringed when asked, "so, what kind of art do you do?"

Years ago, Julia Cameron came to Kansas City to lecture about her book, "The Artist's Way." Her take was slightly different. She said to do it all! Sing, paint, write, anything that moves your spirit. During intermission, she took out a large black bag with paper and since I stayed in my seat, she proceeded to sketch my face. Pencil flying, no erasing, eyes meeting mine, poof, she was finished. I didn't dare move and watched as she put the picture into her bag. She looked refreshed as though she had just gone on a run.

So which do you choose? None of my clay characters would have made it into this world if I had been rich at the time. The desperate need of buying a new hot water heater made me look at sugar in a different way, so I made sugar eggs and wedding cakes. When the ice storm left my family cold for eight days with no electricity, my hands became the most magnificent swan on a candlelit wall with a sad dog as it's friend. (book to follow)

Recently, Paul McCartney said he felt the internet has crushed creativity and that it should be shut down for five years. Five years! I think he's on the right track. Before cable tv, I was painting until sometimes 3 am but have lost my "oomph". The ability to buy whatever I need is another curve ball. We should all simplify, take a walk in nature and wait for all beautiful songs to come. Maybe a little materialistic purging would then kick start our creative juices. Good luck to all aspiring artists! May your focus be my inspiration.

Paul Dorrell, author "Living The Artist's Life" www.pauldorrell.com
Julia Cameron, author "The Artist's Way" www.theartist'sway.com

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Baby Madness

If you add just the right music in the background, everyone's life can look like a storybook. Same thing with glammed up pictures that have been airbrushed. Put on designer clothing, whiten your teeth and put a brand new baby on your lap. Beautiful, we want that. But what if the mother is only sixteen? Some people still want that without thinking of the unseen reality. Babies are hard work. Babies require all of you and more. I know, I had five of them starting at the age of twenty with my last born when I turned thirty. When I was in high school, I knew of two girls who were pregnant and quit school. Nowadays, there seems to be a trend in teenage pregnancies and with the high profile of Jamie Lynn Spears, another new teenage mother, I wonder how many more girls will become pregnant to keep up with Hollywood?
Sometimes, things work out well and these children are adjusted and well taken care of by their young mothers. But what about those who are often left neglected and abused? It's hard work, did I say that already, not to mention expensive. I remember being in the checkout line behind a young woman with her girlfriend and new baby. She didn't have enough money to pay, so she put back the baby's diapers. In her cart was mascara, girlie underwear, sexy nighty, shampoo and lipstick. I am not making this up! I wanted to be sick wondering what she was going to do when the baby pooped.
A baby's conscience is as strong as their first five years of life. So, if frustration sets in and the baby is the target, that poisons all of our water, meaning society. I have known many alcoholics who complain of their childhood. While at a class for releasing emotional traumas, the speaker said if we're having problems at work, we were to tap on certain points on the face. He also mentioned that every problem goes back to the very beginning, the root of us, our parents. We will all have issues with our parents and vice versa, whether we had children later in life but it is much easier when frontal lobes on the brain have at least had time to develop.
For any teenage girl who is considering having a baby now because of how cool Jamie Lynn Spears looks on the magazine, say goodbye to your life and hello to headaches, not fitting in well and probably never having any money. Take a few years and think about it because even with the man of your dreams, it's still hard work.

Doggy Adventure

"Someday grandma, I'll be making dog houses for all the homeless dogs and put them all over the forest," said three year old Dylan. "That's wonderful, maybe we can work together,"I said. "But why do you have to wait? You're already big, you can do it now!" exclaimed Dylan. I looked at his little hands with dirt in the fingernails from playing in the yard. His blue eyes hold more knowledge than the strength of his tiny body. He's an animal lover and I have no doubt about his future plan.

The coincidences of my life seem to take curvy roads. Summer gets so full at my house with everyone else's plans. Today was no exception. Too many errands to run and I didn't know if I'd make it to Wendy's house in time for the interview with Stacey Hsu.

She's a young mother and artist who has created the cutest little sock dogs. (http://www.sockdogs.com/)

With only twenty minutes left to find a place to park and call into the show, my daughter suggested Animal Haven, and there it was to our left! It's a shelter for dogs and cats with a no-kill policy and we've been going there for sometime now petting the dogs.

Listening to Stacey and realizing that she's an animal activist who donates money to the shelters through her sock dogs, I was able to feel her words. What are the odds to be at the right place at the right time? Wendy mentioned that these organizations are not government run and depend on kind donations. There is another shelter where I live that told my friend they have 400 cats.

After the interview, Hannah and I sat under a huge tree with our dog friend, Carlin. They were both tired from their 40 minute walk. Three little girls came to us asking if they could pet him. The older sister looked to be five years old and the other two girls were twins around the age of three. One of the twins had a patch over her eye and it made me think about the time when Hannah scratched her cornea at the same age and had to wear a patch as well. Suddenly, the little twin ran over to Jack who was in the kennel. She bent down to pet him and asked her mom if they could have him. "Oh no, he's blind," she said. Another coincidence. She was drawn to him I think because she had the ability in her soul to understand his pain. Animals are so much more than four legged creatures. If I had had a van and a bigger house, I probably would have taken them all home.

Hannah & Carlin

Grouchy

Nobody is on my page. They aren't even in my book. I'm wondering if Mercury is retrograde again. I probably didn't spell that right. People aren't using their turn signal and everyone seems to be in a bad mood. Breathe, I tell myself, breathe. It's hot outside, machines are overworking and breaking down. Even the neighboring cats are feisty. I could have sworn the one I always leave water for said a few choice cuss words to me this morning. Something is in the air. It feels like a sticky thick mass of frustration that leaves a pit in your stomach. If you have ever seen a tornado's destruction like I have, you would know that Mother Nature has mood swings. I love the saying that goes, "ain't nobody happy when mama ain't happy." Is she sending off a vibe that she's angry and some of us can feel it or do I just need to lower my caffeine intake?
The people behind the book, The Secret, say we need to think of our happy place. Sorry, but when things are grouchy, that place doesn't exist. I called Mrs. G. and we both wondered how we could find that happy place. Music! That's it, music! But it has to be your own music. Cripes, I'm typing in bold by accident. It must be imp0rtant and now you know my computer skills. I'm going to shut down the outside, crank up my favorite songs and recharge.

The Call

The line at the police station to pay court fees and traffic tickets didn't really bother me. I wasn't the one who had broke the law, just the companion to the person who broke the law. Maybe it was due to nerves, but she complained about everything. The line was too slow, the people weren't smart and she was late for another appointment. As we got nearer to the pay window, I could hear more people complaining. Hum? I wondered if they were the ones who had done the crime because they sure thought of themselves as the victims. Driving home, she complained once again about how this had spoiled her day. What about my day? I had to remind her that this was a wake-up call to do better. Wake up calls are not supposed to be glamorous with pampering. (I think that is called a reward)
My early memories of wake up calls consist of a very loud woman who I called Mom clunking downstairs with a pot and spoon in her hand, shouting, "rise and shine!" uugg. I would then be reminded on a daily basis about the importance of me setting a good example since I was the oldest. Sometimes she would lament about how her soul wouldn't go to Heaven if I didn't turn out well. The load was huge and I carried it for years.
In the car, we noticed someone who had pulled out in front of us without warning with a bashed in door panel from another wreck where they had pulled out in front of someone else. He glared at me and I snickered that he was making the same mistakes and not learning the lesson but feeling very much the victim.
So what do you do when you get a wake up call? For some of us, it starts as a little whisper. They don't all begin with pain. More and more of my friends are talking about this feeling that they want to do better with their relationships and our planet. John Mayer is even singing about it with his new song, "Say". After lunch today with a friend, we went to Susan's house for her photo shoot. She's running for Kansas State senate and needed pictures for her brochures. I've only met her twice but she has a drive inside that tells me she's listening to her "call". Her inside voice is too loud to ignore. "The world needs our help, Sandy. When gas prices shot up 18 cents, that's when I knew I had to do something!" she said. Her vision is contagious. Her personality grabs you like a hug.
We should stop feeling like our dreams don't matter. I spent too many years asking, trying to get the approval of others first. Now I do what's right, I listen to that tiny whisper because I know just how loud it can get.

Susan Meyer www.kssenate7.com

Video to watch: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/stacey-lawson/amazing-grace-video_b_111155.html

Marked Man

"My what big eyes you have grandmother!"

"They're better to see you with my dear," said the big bad wolf.



Some people try to hide their true identity but we leave our imprints wherever we go. The way we cross our t's and dot our i's tell many things about our personality. Much can be said about the way a person signs their name even if they are telling the truth about what they are writing. Large top loops on letters d, b and f show an ability to sing or the champion of the under water hold your breath competition. I've always been fascinated by these small marks on paper that tell on us. The same is true with the lines on our palms. The left hand will reveal what you came into this life to accomplish and the right hand shows what actually happened. It's funny how many people will flock to me when they notice my magnifying glass on someone's hand. A dark red dot on the life line warns of possible heart problems and a star under the ring finger predicts fame of some kind.

Another way we tell the world who we are is with our face. There is a nose for funny and there is a nose for money. Larger nostrils show a talkative person, thin lips indicate a reserved character and protruding chins say, "I'm stubborn!" I love this stuff. Will lies soon be a thing of the past? Why are we attracted to certain people and not others by the sight of their face? If you would like to know more about face reading, you can listen to the podcast with Julie Cox on Conscious Living at http://talkshoe.com or visit her at www.aboutfacereading.com

"Let me in!" said the big bad wolf.
"Not by the hair of your chinny chin chin!" screamed the three little pigs.

It's all imprinted, for those who have eyes to see.

Sibling

My big A double s rant
would feel so good to me
but since I love you much, I can't.
The words I'd like to say
should straighten up your
self-destructed way,
instead you hide inside
your drunken head
ignoring all who love you
while we pray not to
find you dead.

Sgt. Nye

The man at the check out line looked me square in the eye and told me to talk about everyday stuff. "Tell him about your relatives and who's getting married. Talk about the Royals and just be as regular as you can be." He was still wearing his Army uniform and when he walked away, I wondered how he knew that I had a soldier to pray for. A soldier I had known since he was in first grade and was in my boy scout den. The same soldier who had climbed my apple tree in the backyard, taken down the key, let himself in and got his yellow coat that he forgot at the meeting and then left my house in perfect shape. I remember being impressed with his pinache. When he graduated high school, he joined the Army. My son tried joining but was devastated because the army wouldn't take him due to scoliosis. While at Fort Riley, I made a promise to pray for him every day at 11:00 a.m. and light a tea light candle until it burned out. We made so many jokes with each other that he was the safest soldier in the Army. He said several times he was scheduled to be transferred somewhere only to have it be cancelled at the last minute. I remember him calling me and saying, "Mrs. Jorgensen! Stop praying!" I didn't. The habit stuck. I have been doing this for ten years. Now he calls me from Iraq and asks me to pray.

Today my family gathered at my parents' house. There was too much food, loud talking and some of us had a few arguments. We decided to watch the fireworks from the front yard instead of going to the crowded parking lot. On the drive home I felt frustrated that nobody talked about the soldiers and their sacrifices. So many of these men and women are dying and have lost their faces to fires. I am so proud of my friend Sgt. Nye. He'll be calling me soon. I'll listen to him yell at the privates because he's on the phone. I google phone numbers for him so that he can call his girlfriends. We'll probably talk about the Royals, who Hannah is dating and how much I ate. Then our conversation will end and I'll cry because in my heart, he's still in first grade.

Happy Fourth of July.

Do You LOL?

I raised a bunch of wise guys. Taught them everything I knew. A good joke was in the delivery and perfect timing. They called me corny but developed a strong sense of humor. We fight with funny. Last week I was bone tired from work and someone called me grouchy so I hid downstairs to write. This lovely picture appeared as the screen saver! How can anyone stay mad for long? I laughed and was very impressed with the timing.
I remember once planning a brilliant April Fool's joke. We were going to make my husband's alarm go off every night for one week at 3:15 a.m. That's the time of ghosts and aliens. We had a ladder set and ready outside against the upstairs bathroom because we knew he'd have to use it after being woke up. Then, someone was going to wear an alien rubber mask and knock on the window. Something kept delaying our evil plan until one night, my oldest son came home from firefighting classes, dressed in full gear. He ran up the stairs, two at a time and bolted into his dad's bedroom, to wake him up and share his joy. (With fire fighting head gear, you sound like Darth Vadar.) I don't know if it was the sound of his screams or the way he ran downstairs like a headless chicken that made us laugh until we could die.

What makes you laugh? Do you laugh? People have healed cancer with laughter and it has been noted that a laugh contains every musical tone. It lowers blood pressure and improves depression. Some people have even lost weight with laughter.

A good belly laugh will connect you with others stronger than anger. Your day depends on the way the corners of your mouth turn.