Spread The Love - Making Connections

   I was going to start out this blog with the sentence, "How many ways can you make someone happy?" But then I realized that you can't make anyone happy - only they can make themselves happy. So, let's rephrase this; "How many ways can you make yourself happy?" In other words, how do you spread the love? In the book, Peace In Every Step, written by Thich Nhat Hanh, the author states it can as simple as a smile or a friendly greeting in passing. Another personal way I try to spread the love is by writing my husband a short love letter (which he does with me as well). On a daily basis, I try to be aware and notice others as well as my surroundings. My husband is amazing when it comes to noticing details and almost always he finds something memorable and/or humorous about what we saw. I also attempt to make an effort to spend time chatting with someone, even if it's just for a few minutes. In that time, I try to find the balance of what's going on with them as well as myself. And I always tell them, "... it's good to see you."

   Everything is connected to everything else. A change in one part changes everything else. Live life consciously, in harmony with life, showing reverence for it to sustain life. Creativity, celebration, and being in touch with nature as well as with your Higher Power (whom I call God). This is a life with soul; the soul can then be awaken.

   To begin, we need to clear space in order to get rid of the chaos and clutter, sometimes physical and definitely mental / spiritual. We need a new vision; to see clearly. What usually gets in the way of living fully is all the "stuff" we think we have to plan for, actually do, and keep score of how well we've done. It also entails the physical accumulated inanimate objects - all the junk we end up buying. One thing I learned from our camping excursion several years ago, was that my most pleasurable experience was when I was outside - in nature, with people I loved, and actually doing things.

   My husband Dave and I ditched the cable TV decades ago and haven't owned a television for approximately seven years when we also gave away our DVD player. We're both early risers, (Dave more than I am), and we meditate as well as connect with our Higher Power before we tackle our day-to-day activities. I also take a few hours for myself in the afternoon to engage in something I enjoy. I don't wish to, nor cannot get caught up in other people's drama and negative frenzy. Living deliberately is thinking through my actions to see how they affect the well being of others and the Earth. Living consciously means assessing my choice; Do I really enjoy my job? Did I marry for love or for money and status? Is my house solely a status symbol?

   In other words, I have to know who I am as a person and discover how I want to live. We learn from life experiences. When I went on our camping excursion down to the Southeastern US, that was a real life changing time for us. I've probed what we've learned from that experience - it wasn't because either of us failed, it was a soul journey. In our society-measured "poverty", we rediscovered just how rich we really are! People came to love us quickly and helped us along the way, because we were being genuine; we were being ourselves. We became fully alive then and we are continuing that discovery today as we plot out ways to continue to live fully alive. We're learning to live by our inner light.

   You may be wondering why I've included a painting I did a number of years ago of two cows. I've always liked this work, although I rarely painted animals or wildlife. They remind me that they are doing what they were born to do and they do it with no drama. A very good life lesson...

   Next week, I'll continue on this subject.
   Until next time, stay focused!
   Jill

Spread The Love - Changing Focus

   So - what happened to the "Painting Spectrum"? We've all heard before that life is all about changes. Over the past two months, for one reason or another, my painting just wasn't doing it for me at this juncture. Maybe it was the eye surgery and lengthy recovery. Perhaps the fact that I'm starting to run out of storage space in my studio. On the other hand, maybe it's because I've thrown myself into the book I'm writing. My works were backing up and sales were very slow. Painting only for paintings sake leaves me feeling empty. It is a time of changing my focus.

   * Good Homes Wanted - Orphan paintings desperate to hang around. Email me for details! *

   One of the most noticeable changes we have in Maine are the seasons: Spring, Summer, Road Construction, Autumn, Winter, and Mud season. Now that the wet Spring is finally giving way to Summer, signs from various businesses seem to getting a little punchy; "Don't just stand there - plant today!" or "We're so excited Summer is here, we wet our plants!" See what I mean?

    I've taking walks much more frequently, and several times this week I've taken notice at what is blooming. I got the gardening bug and was itching to dig in the dirt. I started slowly, and one day I divided a large Variegated Hosta and planted the two new plants beside my patio near a birdbath. I felt alive; as if I were waking from a long winter slumber. I hadn't felt this rejuvenated in quite a while. As much as I love art and love to paint, I guess deep-down I needed a break from it.

    The picture I've included in today's post was painted by my youngest daughter Catherine. Currently, I am "painting sitting" until her move from one residence to another is complete. My daughter painted this work in the Summer of 2013. She wanted to see if she liked to oil paint and asked if I could teach her. Of course, I obliged.

   Little did I realize how much we differ in painting styles! Where I'm quick with my brush, Catherine is meticulous, dainty, and goes at a much slower pace. Where I express my emotions, she elected to go with almost a photo-like realism to her work. The canvas was quite large and the barn she was painting a lots of detail. The summer was coming to a close and she was still in the process of putting very small details in the painting. "I'd put in every shingle if I had more time!"

   In addition to different painting styles, we also differ in our patience levels. It took every ounce of patience I had not to try and "fix" her painting. Allowing her to be herself has been a learning experience for me as well. I accept her for who she is, and as you can see - the end results are beautiful!

   I also have to accept myself as well as my process. I'm still growing and changing. My focus and creative process is currently being channeled into the book I'm co-writing with my husband. The book is a memoir of our trip from Maine down to southern Georgia during the winter of 2013-14. While we blogged about our experiences and journey, the book will tell the true story behind the story. It will contain facts and details that never could've been written about in our blog. In hindsight, however, our trip south was a diving board to our new life. At that time, we were down-sizing from a large 2-bedroom apartment to a 25 foot RV. My husband was forcibly downsized from a 40-hour work week to zero. I'll let you know when the book gets published.

   Our new life is one of simplicity. Since returning from the southeast, we rent a small one bedroom residence where I have a small studio. My husband Dave is working a different 40+ hour a week job that he enjoys mostly, as well as freelance writing and photographing in his free time. Our next goal is to build our own 800-900 square foot home in the neighboring ocean-side town of Owls Head.

   Dave and I are changing focus. Bigger is not always better. Many times it's not a question of what you want, but what you need. And the fact that you do indeed have enough. At the moment, I'm reading a book entitled, The Circle Of Simplicity - Return To The Good Life by Cecile Andrews. Contained in this book are all sorts of ideas we will be incorporating into our daily rounds. I will be sharing some of these ideas in future blogs.

   "The art of life is to live in the present moment, and to make that moment as perfect as we can by the realization that we are the expression of God himself. The best way to prepare for tomorrow is to make today all that it should be." - Emmett Fox.

   Do you want to live a better life? For starters, let's make this an interactive blog - talk to me. Did you like this blog? What parts did you like? What didn't you like about it? What you like to see written here (within reason)?

   Until next time,
   The Focused Writer,
   Jill