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Posts tagged ‘full expression’

The “Crazy” Ones

Martha Graham

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” – Steve Jobs

On the verge of becoming one of the “crazy ones” is a very ripe place to be.  “Crazy” is being defined here as one who steps way out of any self or culturally imposed boxes and makes the decision to take action on behalf of the heart informed inner voice.  That voice of courage, passion and strength that has never know conformity.

Amelia Earhart

What makes us decide that we can no longer hide out in complacency or fear of being all that we are?  Confidence and determination are certainly a part of it.  Yet I believe that it is deeper than that.  There is a place inside of each of us that has known since the day we were born the purpose we came here to serve.

This may be a quiet purpose out of the public eye, or it could be a completely visible one where there is no hiding at all.  Whatever it is, knowing your purpose with clarity is the starting block on this journey of coming out.

As women this knowing can be delayed a bit.  Sometimes we wait in quiet expectation until

Indira Gandhi

our 50”s, 60’s or even 70’s before we take the time to listen to the heart and intuition driven inner voice that Steve Jobs speaks of above.  It is never too late to become what is your hearts desire!

Take me for example.  I turned 63 this year and I laughingly said to a friend of mine recently “I keep calling myself midlife.  Am I really deluded?  If I am at midlife now then I will be living vibrantly until age 126!!  Now that is possible I suspect, but a more likely explanation is that I find life so irresistible right now that every day is like an art piece to be explored.

Jean Houston

My friend wants to redefine midlife to include the years when we are vibrantly choosing to make a difference and passionately following that inner guidance with heart directed action.  I agree with her.  Midlife is whatever we define it no matter what age we are.

Are you playing it safe?  Or have you decided to be one of the ‘Crazy Ones”?

Those crazy ones – make a difference.  Narrated by Steve Jobs

…and then there is Alice Walker

“So in the end you can’t even really regret your misfortunes,” explains the beloved author Alice Walker, “because they led you somewhere.”

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:
www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com
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Authenticity, Courage, Creative Expression, Manifesting Your Dreams

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Women Who Make Things Happen

As our world undergoes immense shifts and changes we, as women, are being asked to “step up to the plate” so to speak.  Many of us know what it is that we are passionate about and are taking heart based action in that direction, and many more are simply entertaining which path (or paths) they desire to walk down.

What is it that calls to us from within?   That call we often ignore while being so busy putting out fires, “making a living”, or being Wonder Woman on all the levels that women actively engage in.  There is something called intuition which feels to me to be the soft whisper (and sometimes loud yell) of that essential nature or Divine self that guides, protects, and attempts to inform us of the next steps to take along our unique paths.

I came across an article the other day called Intuition by Danielle Boonstra in which she beautifully and vulnerably addresses the power of intuition by giving an example of when she was at a crossroads in her own life.  Within a few days of reading this I was given the opportunity to listen in to my own essential nature who has been attempting to get my full undivided attention for months now.

Attention has certainly been given in measured doses here and there, but it wasn’t until a dear friend Lea Bayles  did what is called a Discovery session with me that I realized what belief was sitting on top of the me that is so magnificent that I literally had to put sunglasses on to see her.  A blog post arose from this experience entitled “Resistance is Futile and A Doorway to Freedom”.

The point here is that sometimes there are underlying beliefs or patterns that keep us stuck in a “smaller ego self” than who we really are in our fullest expressions.  The discovery of these beliefs and patterns appears to be part of our waking up and the journey that we are here for.

The next question is, are we willing to take the next step by showing up in a way that is not only our natural “birth path”, but are we willing to reach out a hand to the woman next to us, or even across the world, to support her in doing the same thing.

Following is a video of women that have taken a step into there fullest selves and given the “smaller ego self” a vacation to a far away place.  Yes, it is a journey and one with challenges and pitfalls along the way.  However, are we willing to say YES! in any moment to that intuition that says “Go for it!” in the presence of risk and vulnerability?

I, for one, live within those types of moments every single day and it isn’t always easy to get out of your own “smaller self” way.  Are you willing to reach out a hand, step back into the circle of your life in the fullest way possible, and bring at least one other woman with you?

We are innately interconnected.  Let’s use that very web of life to support each other in lighting up the world within our own lives….. and change our personal and global futures.

3-minute film:  Wisdom From Women….Who Make Things Happen

OTHER BLOGS AND WEBSITES OF GAYE ABBOTT:

www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

WEBSITE:  www.IgniteWealthNow.com

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Be The Change, Courage, Manifesting Your Dreams

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You Can’t Fail At An Experiment

The title of this post is something that Claire Dakin said in her talk at the Women On Fire Conference this year introducing Three Sisters – Women Seeding Change.  This concept – “you can’t fail at an experiment” is a way to look at each twist and turn of your life as an opportunity to take action, and to let go of the fear of failure.

I used to ask myself the question, if we as women took the time to step up on behalf of the planet and stopped competing with each other I wonder what would happen?  What I see occurring all over the globe right now is just that – women stepping up on behalf of the planet, our communities and families, and on behalf of each other .

As a committed global group we hold great power to create the change that we desire.

What the video below will give you are two things.  First is an opportunity to join other women towards quickening a successful outcome towards major global reforestation.

Secondly, is to inspire you to experience first hand what it feels like to open completely to the feminine inside of you, and to celebrate yourself in union with women and girls all over the world.

An experiment can never fail – for it is an experiment.  I wonder what great experiments you can create and take action on from the deepest part of your heart?  Be like Claire Dakin and invest in the courage to find out!

Women supporting women – and all of us supporting the Earth.


OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:

www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

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Be The Change, Courage, Empowerment, Feminine Presence

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Becoming The Art

Martha Graham

When we are in the midst of making something,
in the actual creative act,
we know we are who and what we are

because we forget our public reception for a minute.

We become the art itself instead of
the artist who makes it.

-Julia Cameron

This past week I took 3 days of being “unplugged” to work on a draft of a book that I had set aside for almost a year.  There was a relief in not connecting to internet, making or receiving phone calls, or in my case blogging or doing social networking.  There was no need to unplug from T.V. as I haven’t watched or owned  one for over 15 years.

While I was in this time period the phrase kept coming up – do you really want to spend precious life moments living virtually?  Instead how about dropping down into the spaciousness of creating from a place that cannot be found on the internet, but inside of a moment to moment sense oriented life experience.

Now mind you, there is an amazingly powerful use for the internet and other electronic media.  However the creative muse would not have been so spontaneously present I suspect if I would have been hooked in to anything other than allowing the writing to come through me, taking breaks out in nature, and making certain that I was nourished by healthy food and movement/exercise breaks.

This sustained and planned creative process is new to me.  I am used to hit and run creative ideas coming in during unsuspecting moments driving me to run for a pad of paper, or the back of a grocery store receipt, to write it down.  Invariably it is as I am driving that something blazes into my consciousness, and then just try to scribble something down while watching that light about to change….and even more trying to decipher what you wrote or sketched for that latest painting idea later on. Hand held recorders are looking better and better these days!

I suspect that room for spontaneous creativity is always there for each and every one of us, but often it is buried amongst what seems like millions of bits of stimulus input that hit us everyday.  As Julia Cameron says in the quote that was given at the beginning of this post, we become the art itself as we immerse ourselves in the creative process and await direction.  Sometimes it is immediate and at other times we are asked to take a break and change our surroundings – which then will inspire us of course to capture the next creative spark.

12,000 words later in the 3 days I set aside I am now happy to say that I have reintroduced myself to the creative muse that has so wanted to come out and play with the me that feels incredibly alive when she is in the act of creation!  We are having a great time together, and yes this book is well on its’ way to birthing itself.

It is no accident that I came across the perfect video to share with you this week.  This couple who have been married for 62 years are a beautiful example of becoming the art spontaneously.   Enjoy and take into consideration what Katharine Hepburn once said,  “I never lose sight of the fact that just being is fun”!!

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:

www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

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Authenticity, Creative Expression

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Breathe Soul Into Your Life

“The breath is a love song from your Soul to you”.  Jennifer Grace King

…and I would add, the breath is a vehicle for celebrating your life!  When is it that we feel most alive?  Most probably when we are embodied in an activity where every single fiber of our being is present and accounted for.  From this state of aliveness it is clear that we are here to play, create, connect and  love in all of its myriad forms.

It is times such as this that we let go of inhibitions and enter the realm of the art of being….being present to the moment in which we are in. Just preceding this moment there may have been fear, anxiety, sadness, expectation,  or any other of the array of human emotions and physical sensations that we feel.

“The breath carries you out
of the games and drama of your mind and brings you deep
down into stillness. “                                      From:  Breathe Soul Into Your Life

Most probably it was not your mind that took you into this moment.  It was a leap of trust and a deep letting go that paved the way for an extraordinary-ordinary moment to be felt fully and embraced.  And, before that moment you most probably took a very deep breath….

RESOURCES:  There are two resources that come with this post.  One is a link to the new book Breathe Soul Into Your Life by Jennifer Grace King who lives in Australia.   Jennifer and I resonate deeply on our feelings about the importance of the breath and connected via one of my other blogs – BreathingSpaces.  This little book is just out and would be a great gift for the holidays (oh yes, they are sneaking up on us!)

LINK:
 http://www.mailermailer.com/x?function=view&c=00000f-e6d0b9bf%2a846305c-cd9c7dbe

The other resource is a video done by Sonia Choquette which I wanted to share with you.  I have unofficially titled this video Breathe Into Your Voice – Be Alive!  There is a great segment of a woman putting her heart and soul into Mary Sings A Little Lamb after the song is completed.   This happens to have been filmed in  Sidney, Australia.   Celebrating our connection with the “down under” folks today!  Enjoy!

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:

www.BreathingSpaces.net      Recent post:  Breathing Compassion In The Pitch Dark
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com   Recent post:  Handing Over to the Divine Design

REMINDER!  Today is the last day to register for Bring 3 Friends and Attend for FREE! for the Women’s Empowerment Workshop  September 15-18 in Vail Colorado.  This is a nature adventure retreat that empowers women to nourish mind, body and spirit by connecting to the natural world in a profoundly enriching, compelling, and transformational way.   Go to:  http://www.womensempowerment.us/

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Creative Expression, Vital Health & Well Being

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Embodying Your Power Within Nature

The impetus for this post came about from an e-mail I wrote to Susie Kincade, co-creator of  Women’s Empowerment Workshop slated for 9/15-9/18/2011 in Vail, Colorado.  Coming on the heals of the last post on being powerful and in your feminine presence, I somehow received the link for this upcoming workshop.

My excitement about this amazing workshop lead to a request by e-mail to be involved somehow (and hopefuly attending!) , which then lead to a conversation that Susie and I had today in which I realized that nature has been an incredible ally for me throughout my life.

How many workshops, self help books, courses, retreats etc has each of us gone to (or read) in which there is an incredible experience, but that very experience stayed just that?  It did not integrate within our being….or as I like to say, it was not embodied to be tapped into purposefully over time.

This took me back to a pivotal point in my life when I was really ready to shift from being somewhat of a victim in my life to co-creating a life that would tap into my powerful and unique creative expression.  I had no idea how to do that, but my intention was strong to somehow find the pieces that went into that.

When intention is strong the vehicle for change appears.  My vehicle came in the form of a professional photographer and wilderness survival expert that invited me to go with him to Kauai, Hawaii to backpack along the Na Pali coast – the very old original Hawaiian trial which leads to an isolated beach at the end of this particular trail.

I said yes and then proceeded to prepare by reading every single thing I could get my hands on to learn more about the trail and what I might experience…..but there was no book that could prepare me for what I was to be confronted with.

Now you must understand that I wasn’t in the best of shape to go on this adventure (even though I was 30 years younger than I am today!), and I had never been backpacking before this.  But there was something larger than my mind that was guiding me to commit to this trek…and I thankfully listened.

Many things happened on this 11-mile several day journey to and from Kalalau to test me….. and to absolutely entrance me and take my breath away with the beauty, the wildness, and the wisdom of the natural world.

There were moments going in when I thought I couldn’t go any further, and staying in back of the 3 other people that I had gone with I almost stopped many times, especially after falling in the first couple of miles and injuring my hand!  Yet there was always a nature ally that presented to soothe the pain or calm the fear allowing me to move forward. In this case it was a very cold stream rushing down the mountain that took my hand in an embrace and soothed the swelling and pain until it was completely gone.

The pivotal point for me started on that very first day as we prepared our camp to rest overnight before going the rest of the way the next day.  I had read in my handy travel book that this next section of trail was a difficult one.  In fact, it scared the living daylights out of me!  After starting out on the next day we would very shortly reach a place where there was an incredibly narrow trail, with no handholds, 100’s of feet drop off to our right down onto the jagged rocks and ocean below, and a 90 degree turn with wind blowing.  (and we had heavy backpacks on!)

By the morning of the second day I had worked myself up so much that tears were flowing down my face.  I had told everyone the night before that I wasn’t certain that I would be going any further with them.  Now why was I here??

In a very pivotal moment I was guided to start ahead of everyone else sensing somehow in between the bursts of fear that I was to do this by myself -and before everyone else.  My heart must have been audible to all the wildlife as I came closer to this drop off point, yet in an instant guidance came through that very clearly said to me – take one step at a time, breathe, and be in the moment (and don’t look down).

I followed the wise guidance and when everyone else came around the end they found me huddled to a safe rock on the other side crying my eyes out…not just with relief that I made it, but with gratitude and joy that I had the courage to face a very large fear and get to the other side of it!  My steps along the trail after that experience were quite different than the day prior.

My reward once we got to the beach at the end of the trail?  Prawns in the stream, a beautiful beach with a waterfall for a shower, sunsets that were painted by an artist that definitely knew how to experiment with color, every inch of sky holding a star at night, and about 8 other people who ran the gamut from chiropractor to readjust our spines from the trek, Hawaiian mythology story tellers, and astronomy experts to point out the constellations at night….. all going through life transition.

My biggest reward?  The gift of courage to keep taking one step at a time and be reminded of my deeply interconnected vital life force – a metaphor for my entire life….provided free of charge mind you from natural elements that co-conspired to hold me captive until I got it!  I also felt so deeply aligned within my body once completing that 22 mile journey that I was never quite the same again.  I had come home!

This experience still is embodied within me even though it was over 30 years ago now.  I fully believe that it has assisted me immensely in my current leap from Oregon to Austin, Texas and into a life that holds the gift of deep trust and acting from my fullest creative expression.  This cannot be “learned” through a book or course!

I tell you this story because I would like to see every woman go to a Women’s Empowerment Workshop (or something similar) at least once in her life to embody the “way home” to the next steps she is being asked to take.

Below you will find links and information.  I will see you there!

*********************

Vail, CO – Rock climbing, rafting, hiking, photography and working with horses may sound like summer camp activities, but Women’s Empowerment Workshop in Vail, September 15-18, uses these activities to guide women to new depths of self-awareness and personal power. It’s all part of a unique four-day retreat that includes life coaching, yoga and meditation, six webinars, five women authors and two internationally-known women activists.

“There really is nothing else quite like this. Consider it a spa for the soul, and an adventure camp combined,” offered co-founder Susie Kincade. “The key is the experiential aspect. We’ll take women outward into nature to guide them deeply inward. The natural world connects us to everything and to our own wisdom, creativity and power. We’ll teach skills to access that wisdom and power, and anchor them solidly in the body experience; then women can use them anytime, anywhere, from the family room to the boardroom.”

Women’s Empowerment Workshop delivers this empowering experience with a cadre of world-class outdoor guides from Colorado, along with wilderness therapists, authors and teachers of women’s inner wisdom, including life coach Dr. Joan King and nationally-known equine Gestalt specialist Melisa Pearce. And to top it all off, the workshop presents two inspiring, global visionary speakers.

Keynote speaker, Lynne Twist, author of Soul of Money, founder of Pachamama Alliance and Four Years Go, will help women ignite their inner fire and bring their highest self to the world. Shannon Galpin, founder of Mountain2Mountain, will inspire women with her story as a single mother who overcame her own challenges to create opportunities for girls and women in war-torn parts of the world.

The workshop is designed for women of all ages and physical abilities. It is for women who are in transition, or maybe questioning how to meet their full potential in life. And women who are nurturers and want to be rejuvenated; or who are in a position of authority and want to learn how to wield that power for best results. Women who seek to raise their own self-awareness, cultivate creativity and communicate emotional authenticity. Women who want to engage in nature and learn from it. In short, Women’s Empowerment Workshop is a retreat for any woman who wants to be her absolute best — for herself, her family, community and world.

The outdoor explorations will meet each woman where she is in her life, and then nudge her to look deeper and push her edges. For instance, women will learn river skills and how to apply them to life, such as when and how to “eddy out,” and how to scout rapids and navigate turbulent waters. Rock climbing will teach skills for overcoming obstacles in life, how to problem solve, teamwork and communication. Healing through horses helps participants discover how to trust their authentic emotions, and nature photography will teach perspective, patience and how to listen to oneself.

“These activities have plenty to teach, both metaphorically and practically, but a person can’t really get the full benefit of it without getting out there and embodying the experience,” Kincade said.

The workshop also includes Women’s Inner Wisdom seminars that offer valuable self-nurturing and emotional discernment techniques. Daily meditation and yoga, healthy, organic meals, and networking with other amazing women in the spectacular autumn setting of the Vail Racquet Club will round out the retreat.

To register or learn more, visit www.womenempower.us, or call toll-free, 877-595-8622.

SPECIAL OFFER!:  Bring 3 And Attend FREE!  4 friends can share a 2 bdr/2 bath condo for 47.50/night/person! Nice rates.  This also means that you have 3 other women to share with and to support each other once you return home.  It keeps the process moving that was embodied in the workshop!

FREE Webinar! :  Journeying to the Soul of Nature:
How are we deeply connected to nature and what does this reveal to us as we explore the outdoors?  August 11th, 7-8:30p.m.

Susie Kincade, co-founder of Women’s Empowerment Workshop, Holly Bryson, Wilderness Therapist with Healing Quest, and Melisa Pearce of Touched by a Horse talk about nature as both medium and metaphor for exploring our life’s journey. Listening to nature as opposed to “conquering” it offers some surprising insights into our most

"Between every two pines is a doorway to a new world." ~John Muir

authentic self. Learn tools that help you integrate the peace and freedom of the outdoors into your daily life to feel rejuvenated and grounded. Understand the actual physical processes that occur within the body when nature does its healing and revealing work within you. Discover horses as healing agents who reflect our emotions in a most authentic way.

Sign up  for the webinar today at:  http://www.instantpresenter.com/AccountManager/RegEv.aspx?PIID=E957DB82864B

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:

www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

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Courage, Empowerment, Vital Health & Well Being

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Powerful With Feminine Presence

Just this last week I finished a very powerful and important book for women.   Rachael Jayne Groover, Founder of The Yin Project has just launched Powerful and Feminine: How to Increase Your Magnetic Presence & Attract the Attention You Want.  In my second reading of it I decided that it should be a handbook for all women at this particular time on our planet.

On the back of this book there is a sentence that struck me as something that “independent” women should consider.  Yes, it has taken us a long time to prove to the world that we can “do it all”, but – do we really want to??  Do it all in a masculine energy sort of way that is.

The sentence reads, “A forced sense of masculine power is nothing compared to the ecstasy, empowerment, and effortless magnetism that are released when a woman activates her feminine essence“.

What is feminine essence?  It essentially is a state of being that we already have inside of us.  Rachael Jayne states that “The feminine essence is the power of unity, connection and relationship, which weaves all of creation together rather than just focusing on the individual.”  We as women essentially wish to connect with others in a deep and soulful way.

In the past, I have learned along the way to protect myself – those sensual, fluid, feminine, gentle and expansive parts – from the world, especially with men.  Wearing my masculine set of energies clothed in “I can do it and don’t need your help” I unconsciously pushed men and women away.  Yielding was something that I did not trust. I had no idea how to be powerful in a feminine essence sort of way with two exceptions – on the dance floor, and in teaching  fluid, breath filled, exploratory yoga classes.

In essence what I really wanted was to surrender into all of me and bring that out into the world and in relationship.  It is my belief that we as women can assist and support each other to do this inner work, birthing into being a much more balanced and empowered woman – and subsequently releasing our men to embody their deep masculine in healthy and loving relationship with us.

Recently I was introduced to the art of another one of the artists that I had lunch with a week ago here in Austin.  I bring Debra’s art work, for I believe that it represents what this post is discussing.   Below is a brief statement from her (a revealing in depth bio is available on her website) and a few of her art expressions, which to me embody the Powerful and Feminine path that Rachael speaks of.

“My life has been a pursuit to learn, develop and explore as though on a quest to discover my authentic self.  The major life changes I have been willing to make to be true to what I feel has been a calling within my soul. I graduated in 2008, at age 50, with a BFA in studio art and painting from TCU.  Being relatively new to my creative endeavors I daily questioned – what is it I am trying to say with my work and what is my style?

How did this form of expression unfold?  I journal, collage, write and have been blessed with a number of wonderful teachers that have been instrumental in my growth.  Today, I finally feel I am right where I am supposed to be in my journey.

Today my canvases are filled with past experiences and interests, resulting in an exploration and exclamation much like my personal journey, all infused with a strong sense of whimsy. Explore my work and see the result of undying tenacity and perseverance, all culminating…to quench the thirst in and of my soul!”

Debra Benditz
beemuse1@gmail.com
www.debrabenditz.com

Mariposa
Butterflies have been used throughout time and cultures to represent transition, resurrection, celebration, grace and airy lightness.  The Japanese make the butterfly an emblem of womanhood.  Just as a pupae evolves into the butterfly, a woman experiences endless shifts, turns and conditions as she evolves.  This continuous process of maturity allows us to reach full bloom.  Do you see the small eye that is looking back at you wondering where you are in your journey?

Beemuse
All names have meaning and Debra is bee.  In the ancient world bees were seen as harbingers of order and the muses, goddesses of creativity, referred to them as birds.  Roses are ancient symbols of love and beauty.  The ancient Greeks and Romans identified the rose with their goddesses of love, Aphrodite and Venus.  The ultimate symbol of romantic love and enduring passion, the red rose also conveys respect and the romantic notion of love.  The title is a play on words of my name and the muses from whom I seek inspiration.

A woman’s lips are also a visible expression of her fertility.  Collage is used in developing many of the images I paint.  Here a set of lips from a make-up ad were turned vertically and a garden statue was placed in the parting of the lips.  This was then placed within the folds of the rose petals to resemble the center of creativity and pleasure shared by women.  In many cultures of the world, a woman’s mouth and lips are veiled because of their association with the vulva, and because of their role as a woman’s secondary sexual organ.

AEola
I believe it is the women in the family that pass on traditions.
Named after my paternal grandmother, the name A’Eola is the feminine form of the ancient Greek god of the winds.  Fluid graceful lines are used to show the forms of the two women embraced.  The older on the left looks down simultaneously while the younger on the right with the red head scarf looks up, her life ahead of her.  As women we share a similar journey. This notion is captured in the painting as a symbolic configuration of elements so unified as a whole that its properties can not be derived from a simple summation of its parts.

Throughout time the peacock has been used for healing.  In ancient  Greece, the peacock was the patron bird of the goddess Hera.  According to myth, she placed “eyes” on its feathers, symbolizing all-seeing knowledge and the wisdom of the heavens.    It is shown on the elders skirt to represent not only the nurturing nature of women but also the wisdom gained through life experiences.

Deep gratitude to both Rachael Jayne and Debra for being wonderful examples of bringing powerful feminine presence out into the world….  may we be inspired to do the same!

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:

www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

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Creative Expression, Empowerment, Feminine Presence

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Live Your Life Wide Open!

How many of us as women are bold enough to trust our expression and put out to the world  with passion our “body of work” as artistic (whatever form that takes for you), creative beings with immense potential?

I don’t just mean those of you among us who call themselves “artists” and make it their livelihood, or are seriously committed to artistic expression.  I mean all of us!

A week ago now I was blessed to have lunch with 5 “livelihood artists” who are each uniquely expressing out into the world what it is that comes through them.  They have consciously chosen to share themselves embodied in the artistic expression of how they see and experience the world.

It was a blessing for me to be around them for many reasons.   As I gazed around the table at the expressions on their faces, the clothes and jewelry that they wore, and heard the lively conversations I realized once again that the opportunity for expression of “art” is interwoven in every moment of our lives.

In Bali, Indonesia there is no word for art because it simply  is innately a part of living for the Balinese.  They grow up singing, dancing, painting, carving, writing stories, drawing, weaving, and so many other forms of expressing.  After being with the Balinese for a couple of weeks a few years ago it struck me that expressing ourselves in unique and artistic ways is truly a necessary part of embodying ourselves as a whole and evolving human being.

On that note please take some moments to view this video that was sent to me by one of those beautiful artists.  Thank you to Patricia Lyle in my new home of Austin, Texas for you inspiration and your new friendship! http://www.PatriciaLyle.com  (she is the woman  sitting next to me on the right)

Take time to produce a body of work that says, “this is how I saw the world”.  Live with your life wide open!!

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:

www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

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Authenticity, Creative Expression

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Looking Past Limits

I turn 63 years old in just a matter of a couple of weeks.  Two days before this day of my birth celebration I am taking flight by heading off down the road to visit family, friends, and new places all on the way to my new home in Austin, Texas.

Unhooking from a “conventional job” with all the trimmings, leaving my little cottage in the Oregon countryside, saying farewell to friends, and generally being aware of letting go of perceived limitations there is an excitement that is building inside.

There is no “job” to greet me on the other side, home to put my belongings in,  man to greet me with open arms, family to be closer to, or known territory to feel “safe” in….yet there is possibility, mystery, and new territory to open to and explore.  Is this what looking past limits is made of?

Mary Oliver said it in her poem, A Summer Day, with the line – “Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”  I love this line!  Do you know?  Well, it is never too late to breathe wildness into that precious life and find out!  We may not know how, but believing in the innate gifts we hold inside is essential.

“Whether a woman knows it or not, she is a vessel of great magnitude born capable of reshaping humanities destiny if she only knew the true depths of her innate gifts. Be prepared now to see the fierce face of the feminine rock as her inner geographies of volcanic strength erupt from a love she has held in her belly for life all of her days. This is not a gasp of her last breath. It is her birthing cry into her wise leadership on our planet.” ~ Alisa Starkweather

Each of us as women need to hear of others that are doing this same thing as we leap off into the passionate expression of our deepest longings.  Below is a very powerful TED video with Caroline Casey which is well worth the time spent to listen to it in its entirety.

How will you spend the next days/months/years of this one wild and precious life?

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:

www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

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Authenticity, Awareness, Courage, Creative Expression, Empowerment, Manifesting Your Dreams

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ROAR!!! Shaking The Trees

Some of you might recognize this Tarot card which was given to me as a symbol for this last year of my life.  Everyone will see something different within the image and the symbols.  In fact, everyone will see and feel exactly what they need to at this juncture of their life within the depths of the images.

This card has been on my altar as a guiding light for finding trusting, and surrendering to my  authentic “voice” – amongst the many competing ones all around –  in an emboldened, passionate, sensual and expansive way.

In that vein, I would like to share with you a piece called ROAR!!! by Cinda Stevens Lonsway.  As I read this story energy raced through my body.  It was exactly the words that I needed to read right in this moment to inspire me to courageously continue bringing my voice and connecting with the likes of YOU – the Wildly Free Woman!

To read the story please go to:

https://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=107393986006468%22

You can find Cinda on Facebook at : ROAR!-Empowering Women to Give Voice to Their Truth     https://www.facebook.com/roarwithcinda

….and now for the Shaking The Trees part!  Eight years ago now there was a song that was created by Peter Gabriel called “Shaking The Trees”.  I had forgotten about it until today when I came across it once again on a Facebook post.

I gift you this video to go along with ROARING for I do believe that the two combined will have you not only up and dancing, but making sounds that only you can make.  Don’t be shy now!!

OTHER BLOGS BY GAYE ABBOTT:

www.BreathingSpaces.net
www.NaturalWealthJournal.com

Category:

Authenticity, Courage, Creative Expression, Empowerment, Power and Leadership

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