Something new from my sketchbook:
I have this stack of postcards I’ve collected from various Museums of artwork I’ve had the pleasure of briefly sharing company with. I’ve started using them in my sketchbook and even in my workshops. There’s something that feels kind of wrong about Continue reading
I want to introduce you to a special friend of mine. Her name is Verdandi and she is a beautiful ash tree that lives in Red Rock Canyon. I visit her all the time. I lay my crystals around her and clear away any trash I find. I gently touch her weathered bark flesh and give her healing energy. Then I pour whatever water I’ve brought with me at her roots. In return she gives me inspiration and feeds my creative life force. It’s a symbiotic relationship, the kind I would like to offer from my heart to yours.
The walrus has used its powerful tusks to hoist its enormous weight up onto frozen earth from cool waters and into my life.
What do you do when an animal spirit presents itself to you?
What magic are you creating right now? Your creative life is an energetic force that influences everything around you. Your body is a filter for this energy. It can transmute negative frequencies into harmonic ones. How does this happen? Continue reading
As creative beings we were created to create. We are masters of our own transformations. These transformations can sometimes be long and arduous processes or they can occur suddenly and spontaneously like some sort of supernova of enlightenment. How do you define transformation? Does it have to be painful and time consuming? Does it have to mean that you face all that you cannot begin to fathom all at once? What if, transformation was as easy and flipping a light switch on the wall? What if you could achieve Continue reading
Red hot? Lava-like? Thorny, like a ball covered in spikes?
I’ve been asking this question a lot lately, trying to get to the root of it. Anger is like a star. It sits in your tummy and when everything is going okay, you don’t even notice it. But as soon as you perceive a threat, the star begins to change. The shifts may begin in a subtle way. A strange poking here and there caused by the points of the star. If it is not addressed, it will begin to dig harder, like a thorn in the skin. Everything you do, every interaction you have, it’s there, just under the surface, waiting to Continue reading
I’m not going to lie to you. I have a natural repulsion to Adult Coloring Books. This is precisely why I chose to create one. I wanted to truly come to terms with why I didn’t like them by creating one that I could love.
This is what I see when I watch people coloring: They are focused on staying in the lines. They suffer over the decisions of which space should be colored which color. They are obsessed with Continue reading
Consequence: A result or effect of an action or condition.
This morning I went for a run. I like to run. I don’t run far or fast, but I enjoy getting sweaty and the feel of my feet pounding the ground. I even enjoy the aches in my knees that tend to let up after a minute or so. But the best part of running, is what happens to my brain. It’s what neuroscientists call “transient hypofrontality.” Really, if you want to know the truth, it’s what I live for. It is what happens when we are experiencing our creative potential. It’s also what happens when people who don’t usually allow themselves to paint or draw give it a try.
I’m no neuroscientist, but basically here’s how it works: So when I run, my body starts doing stuff that it doesn’t do all the time. It has to work at it, because I’m really no star athlete. My age and condition require that my normally busy brain devote some effort to this activity so that I don’t fall off the sidewalk and into oncoming traffic. Yeah, that would be bad. Because my brain is just like yours and the most awesome organ, it automatically knows how to Continue reading
Meet my new best friend, Two-balls In-a-sock. This is what is enabling me to get back at the computer to write. I place it under my head and rest flat on my back. Then I slowly roll it down my spine one inch at a time, resting in each delicious pressure point along the way. Ahhh, the sweet relief!
As someone who is creating constantly, this activity can take a toll on my physical body. There is significant tension that builds in the neck, shoulders, and back. Long days of writing can cause my feet to swell. The old carpal tunnel slowly begins to resurface. I have to remind myself to take breaks and to take breaks often. My dear friend, Mr. T’BIAS can make a good break extraordinary.
Taking breaks from your creating is not only a good idea for your physical body, but your mental conditioning and general well being as well. It’s good to Continue reading
Bonnie Kelso 