Kaji Aso Studio on Chronicle

A couple of months ago, I was honored to participate in a Japanese Tea Ceremony at the Kaji Aso Studio in Boston.

I was recently sent a link to a story that was done on the studio. It’s from the Chronicle news magazine show on a local Boston station.

All of my creative moments this week have been spent beading my December journal page. It’s finally finished so I’ll be posting photos of “The Birth of the Sun” this weekend. When I took a break from my beading the other evening and looked out my window, I had to grab my camera. Mother Nature was painting again.

Creative Everyday 2008

Jan9

In 2007, I discovered how important it was to me to commit to a daily creative habit. Living my life in an artfully expressive way is as important to me as breathing. So, with this commitment in mind, I was excited to join Leah Pilken’s challenge to be Creative Everyday. This is a low stress challenge to incorporate creativity into your life on a daily basis. If you haven’t visited her blog, I encourage you to go check it out. A special thanks to Sue for sharing and pointing me in that direction.

When I woke up yesterday morning, I was completely wowed by the sunrise and moved to get creative with my camera. I love to be creative with my camera because it helps me focus (pun intended) on a unique and special moment that has moved me enough to capture it in a photograph. As I listed in a previous post, one of my goals for this year is to experiment with transfer methods so I may incorporate my photography into my artwork in some way, whether it be in my jewelry or in my mixed media work. In my sunrise photograph, I see a 4-color combination that I would love to incorporate into a piece of jewelry, too.

How are you creative everyday?

Goals for the New Year

Jan6

I have been reading many blog posts lately about goals for the New Year. So, inspired by my online friends, I have set forth a few goals for myself for 2008.

-take a painting class/workshop to bring painting back into my life

-create a visual journal by sketching more

-recreate my website

-nurture my writing, including writing poetry

-plant a garden at my new home

-open an Etsy account with updated photos of all of my jewelry

-learn transfer techniques so I may incorporate my photos into my art and my jewelry

-spend more time in nature

As I scan through my list, I see my resolution word, “Beauty”, already guiding me. In the last week, my meditations on my resolution word have led me from thinking about creating beautiful things to experiencing “beauty in the moment” and finally to finding the beauty in myself. As I approach my 50th birthday, I celebrate my blessings, my growth and, yes, my beauty.

Saturday Morning Tea

Dec15

I’ve always loved the image of early spring flowers peeping up through the last remnants of winter snow. Just experiencing our first significant snowfall of the season, we seem very far away from that magical spring moment. To bring us all a little closer, especially with another storm on its way, I have chosen another hand-tied display tea called Golden Flowers in Full Bloom for my Saturday morning tea. What a glorious name.

The green leaves are carefully formed into a mushroom cap shape around a beautiful golden flower. I carefully poured 180 degree F water over the bud and then sat back to watch the birth of the flower inside.

I left the tea leaves and flower in my bowl and gently touched the rim to my lips to experience my first sip. It was mellow and smooth with light floral/nutty notes. Very soothing. With each sip, I felt words rising up from inside of me, just as the flower came forth in the water.

A golden flower

births itself in my tea bowl

I sip its beauty

More Reflections on Slow Time

Nov29

As I slowly read and journal my way through the book “Slow Time“, I am at week 4, the chapter on “Night and Day”. In times past, humans rose with the sun and then went to bed when it set. Our biological rhythm followed the day and night cycle. Today most of us stay up long after sunset and are exposed to artificial light from lamps, television and computer screens. In effect, we have created an artificial day and our bodies react at varying levels to this environment. I know that I feel like hibernating at this time of year when, because of the holiday season, it is actually one of the busiest times of year. I can feel this tension in my physical body at times as it works hard to get everything done. It’s important to allow time to just “be”.

The internal rhythm in our body that is directly affected by the day and night cycle is called the circadian rhythm. Most people become aware of this rhythm when it becomes imbalanced from traveling between time zones and experiencing “jet lag”. There is a cluster of cells located right behind our eyes that regulates this rhythm.

Studies have identified another biological rhythm, the ultradian rhythm, that cycles every 1 1/2-2 hours throughout our day. There are 4 parts to this rhythm: an arousal, a peak performance, a stress period followed by a rest period. Do you ever feel that you need to take a break from a project or task? You’re probably in the “stress” part of your rhythm. Taking a break for 15-20 minutes is refreshing and you can return to your task rejuvenated. It is when we work against these natural rhythms that imbalances can occur. Interestingly enough, around 3-4pm each day both of these rhythms, ultradian and circadian, are at their lowest points. Ever feel draggy at that time of day? It’s a perfect time for an afternoon tea break. Or better yet, a siesta.

If you ever have problems falling asleep, it could be because of all of the artificial light stimulation experienced at night. The best thing to do is to limit your artificial light exposure and do something relaxing and soothing for the couple hours before your bedtime. Turn off the television and computer. Light some candles, listen to soothing music, take a warm bath, drink a cup of hot de-caf or herbal tea, meditate, write in your journal, do an activity with a meditative rhythm like knitting, crocheting or beading. These activities gently prepare and open you up for a restful sleep. Sweet dreams!