Creativity, Crafts, Books, Movies, Greyhounds & Favorite Things

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I working my way through the book, SHED Your Stuff, Change Your Life by Julie Morgenstern.

The idea behind the book is that “SHED is a transformative process for letting go of things that represent the past so you can grow and move forward. The four steps of SHED (Separate the Treasures, Heave the Trash, Embrace Your Identity, Drive Yourself Forward) provide a framework for proactively managing change, transition, and the feeling of being stuck and unsure. By releasing the defunct, extraneous, and burdensome objects and obligations that are weighing you down, you create the space to discover what’s next and gather the energy and courage to move forward.”

Last week, I came up with my theme. The theme is a “broad goal or feeling; an overarching simple expression of the adventure you’d like to be on.” My theme is Caring, Artistic & Free.

This week, my “assignment” was to examine three areas of my life and decide where to start the SHED process. The first area was my physical space; the second area was my time; the third area was bad habits.

You can begin in any area, but Julie recommends starting with your physical space because it is tangible and by clearing physical clutter, you give yourself a good foundation for navigating the trickier areas of time and bad habits. I’m going to take that advice.

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Every Saturday, I share my weekly Artist Date.

I mentioned last Saturday that I was on a road trip with my mom and one of my sisters. We had a wonderful time, so I’m going to take the next few Saturdays to tell you about some of the places we visited. I decided to write about these stops as Artist Dates because they were very inspiring.

Our first stop was Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill, Kentucky, located less than 30 miles from Lexington, Kentucky.

The United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing, also known as the Shakers because of their ecstatic worship style, formed in 18th-century England.

In 1774, Ann Lee, a leader in the Shaker movement, and eight other members emigrated to America. The Shakers saw themselves as preparing the way for the new era when God’s will was done on earth. As such, the Shakers believed in no boundaries of gender, social class, or education, Christ-like deportment, simplicity, utility, perfection, communal property and celibacy

The Shakers built 19 settlements in America from Maine to Kentucky and attracted just under 17,000 members. Shakers acquired new members through conversion and the adoption of orphans. Pleasant Hill was the third largest community with 500 members.

The Pleasant Hill settlement began in 1805. Over a 105 year span, the Shakers of Pleasant Hill constructed more than 260 structures and their land holding reached approximately 4500 acres. By 1910, the Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill closed its doors as an active religious society. The last Shaker of Pleasant Hill, Sister Mary Settles, died in 1923. Pleasant Hill became a small country town called Shakertown until historic restoration began in 1961. 34 of the original 260 buildings remain.

We started by touring the Centre Family Dwelling. Guides and craftsmen and craftswomen are available all over the village to tell you about the Shakers, the village and Shaker life.

We saw demonstrations of weaving, woodworking and broommaking.

We had lunch at the Trustees’ Office Dining Room. It was elegant, beautiful and delicious.

Our visit was a short one, so we just got a taste of Shaker Village. I would love to go back and spend a few days there.

Today, only one community exists with Shakers in residence. It is near Lewiston, Maine, at Sabbathday Lake and has four remaining residents.

If you’d like to read more about the Shakers, the Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill website has some great reading.

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Every Friday, I share a poem. Friday is also the day I post a prompt of something you can do to make the world a kinder place. I call this the Kind is Kool challenge.

I offer both the poem and the kindness challenge without any obligation, so “Comments” are turned off every Friday. Enjoy.

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Sleep

Come to me soft-eyed sleep,
With your ermine sandalled feet;
Press the pain from my troubled brow
With your kisses cool and sweet;
Lull me with slumbrous song,
Song of your clime, the blest,
While on my heavy eyelids
Your dewy fingers rest.

Come with your native flowers,
Heartsease and lotus bloom,
Enwrap my weary senses
With the cloud of their perfume;
For the whispers of thought tire me,
Their constant, dull repeat,
Like low waves throbbing, sobbing,
With endless, endless beat.

Marietta Holley

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Kind is Kool Challenge

Week 25 Challenge – Donate to an organization or cause you’ve never donated to before.

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Every Monday, I post a painting “inspiration.” Every Thursday, I post how I interpreted the inspiration. I decided to do this to keep myself painting, to strengthen how I go from an idea to a painting, and to give myself permission to play and try new things. For the next several weeks, I’m taking my inspiration from the great ideas you sent me.

This week’s inspiration comes from The Typist (Georgia’s momma) of Little Dogs On Long Leashes…SCHOOL DAYS.

Some changes I have in mind…lighter hair color, some embellishment(s) on the dress (pockets, buttons, etc.) and highlights on the branches and balls.

How to be HAPPY!

Every Thursday, Jay of The Depp Effect, posts something that makes her happy, and I’m playing along. She encourages us to look around and notice the things that make us happy. I enjoy this challenge because it makes me consider the things that make me happy, but are easily overlooked. It’s a wonderful exercise in attention and gratitude. Please grab the badge and join in.

Here’s something that makes me happy…MYSTERY STORIES.

My first introduction to mystery stories was Nancy Drew. I pretty much love them all…cozies, police procedurals, hard boiled, soft boiled, gothic…all of them. Do you have a favorite mystery book or author? If so, I’d love to hear about them. I’m always looking for something new to love.

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Here’s what I read the last three months:

The House at Riverton by Kate Morton

This is the first Kate Morton book I’ve read, and it was her debut novel. The main story is set in England between the wars, but the story is told in flashbacks by a woman who witnessed the action and kept a secret all her life. I enjoyed this story immensely and will read more of Kate Morton’s books. If you are intrigued by this era, are a fan of Downton Abbey or enjoy the upstairs/downstairs way of life, you would most likely enjoy this book. I know I did.

Tinkers by Paul Harding

Tinkers won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2010. It’s a short book at 191 pages, and if you liked the books you read in English Literature classes, you will probably enjoy it. George Washington Crosby is dying. As he drifts in and out of consciousness, his memories intertwine with those of his father and his mother. The language is beautiful and often poetic as it explores the themes of life and death and what lies in between. This is not an easy read. It has a disjointed quality as it follows George’s dreams and hallucinations, but the images and ideas are vivid and thought-provoking. I imagine this is a book that is even better with every reading. I enjoyed it very much.

A Fine Place for Death by Ann Granger

I listened to this book on audio. When two young girls are brutally slain in the English market town of Bamford, one the heiress to one of Bamford’s oldest aristocratic families, Inspector Alan Markby and his pal Meredith Mitchel search for the murderer. A Fine Place for Death is the sixth book in the Markby & Mitchell Village Whodunit Series. I loved the characters and the setting, but the “mystery” was not satisfying. Perhaps if I started with the first book and read through to this one, I would have enjoyed it more.

Conversations with Woo by Meg Trafford

I haven’t read many pet books. I have mixed emotions about them. On the one hand, I enjoy reading about another person’s special relationship with their pets, something I can relate to since I have pets I love dearly. On the other hand, I always feel slightly uneasy because just like with kids, pet parents have strong opinions about the way they raise and care for their pets. If you completely align with a particular author, I imagine you feel great about the book. If you hold different opinions, you feel a bit uncomfortable.

That being said, I enjoyed reading Conversations with Woo. Meg speaks openly and honestly about her life and the part pets have played in it. Her relationship with her pups, particularly Woo, chronicles a beautiful love story and she shares many of the life lessons they taught her. I read this book very quickly, which is a testament to the author’s writing and not to my reading speed. If you like to read pet books, this is a wonderful pick.

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This week, I lost two Blogville friends.

Maggie made frequent appearances on Sue’s blog, Graceful Greyhounds. Maggie was Sue’s dad’s Staffie and faithful friend to Song and Polly. I fell in love the first time I saw her sweet, dear face.

Blueberry was one of the first Greyhounds I met in Blogville when I started reading Tales and Tails. She was sister to Bunny, Morgan and Kuster.

If you would like to leave a condolence message, you may do so here for Maggie and here for Blueberry.

Heaven is richer and we are poorer with the passing of these two darlings. Rest in peace, Maggie and Blueberry.

I ONLY WANTED YOU

They say memories are golden
well maybe that is true.
I never wanted memories,
I only wanted you.

A million times I needed you,
a million times I cried.
If love alone could have saved you
you never would have died.

In life I loved you dearly,
In death I love you still.
In my heart you hold a place
no one could ever fill.

If tears could build a stairway
and heartache make a lane,
I’d walk the path to heaven
and bring you back again.

Our family chain is broken,
and nothing seems the same.
But as we are called one by one,
the chain will link again.

Author Unknown

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Here’s what’s going on in my studio…

I received my monthly Paper Pumpkin box, so I made these cards for Cards For A Cause.

June’s featured organization is Community Pregnancy Center of Barberton, Ohio.

This Week’s Inspiration

In 2013, I’m doing Inspiration Mondays and Results Thursdays. Every Monday, I’ll post a painting “inspiration” and then on Thursdays, I’ll post how I’m interpreting that inspiration.

Last week’s inspiration was from my friend, Amy…LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD. Here is the girl I started, using that inspiration.

This week’s inspiration comes from The Typist (Georgia’s momma) of Little Dogs On Long Leashes…SCHOOL DAYS.

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A couple weeks ago, I mentioned that I’m in a transition period. What it feels like is a slump…stuck…not sure what’s next. The last time this happened, my daughter had left for college, and I was an empty-nester. During that period, I worked my way through the book, SHED Your Stuff, Change Your Life by Julie Morgenstern.

The idea behind the book is that “SHED is a transformative process for letting go of things that represent the past so you can grow and move forward. The four steps of SHED (Separate the Treasures, Heave the Trash, Embrace Your Identity, Drive Yourself Forward) provide a framework for proactively managing change, transition, and the feeling of being stuck and unsure. By releasing the defunct, extraneous, and burdensome objects and obligations that are weighing you down, you create the space to discover what’s next and gather the energy and courage to move forward.”

To begin the process, rather than thinking about your immediate options or next steps, you concentrate instead on the bigger picture. You come up with a theme…a vision, for your future. This theme is a “broad goal or feeling; an overarching simple expression of the adventure you’d like to be on.”

How do you come up with a theme? Julie offers five different techniques that can help you figure it out. Regardless of how you choose your theme, it should follow three rules:

1. Your theme should be broad enough to impact all the different buckets of your life.

2. Keep it simple.

3. Give yourself permission to say what you actually want, not what you should want.

My Theme – Caring, Artistic & Free.

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Every Saturday, I share my weekly Artist Date.

This past week, I’ve been on a road trip with my mom and sister.

We’ve had a great time seeing and doing so many different things.

It’s been a special time together.

I’ll share details on future posts.

For now…a few pictures from the road.

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Every Friday, I share a poem. Friday is also the day I post a prompt of something you can do to make the world a kinder place. I call this the Kind is Kool challenge.

I offer both the poem and the kindness challenge without any obligation, so “Comments” are turned off every Friday. Enjoy.

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For The Man Who Fails

The world is a snob, and the man who wins
Is the chap for its money’s worth:
And the lust for success causes half of the sins
That are cursing this brave old earth.
For it’s fine to go up, and the world’s applause
Is sweet to the mortal ear;
But the man who fails in a noble cause
Is a hero that’s no less dear.

‘T is true enough that the laurel crown
Twines but for the victor’s brow;
For many a hero has lain him down
With naught but the cypress bough.
There are gallant men in the losing fight,
And as gallant deeds are done
As ever graced the captured height
Or the battle grandly won.

We sit at life’s board with our nerves highstrung,
And we play for the stake of Fame,
And our odes are sung and our banners hung
For the man who wins the game.
But I have a song of another kind
Than breathes in these fame-wrought gales,–
An ode to the noble heart and mind
Of the gallant man who fails!

The man who is strong to fight his fight,
And whose will no front can daunt,
If the truth be truth and the right be right,
Is the man that the ages want.
Tho’ he fail and die in grim defeat,
Yet he has not fled the strife,
And the house of Earth will seem more sweet
For the perfume of his life.

 Paul Laurence Dunbar

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Kind is Kool Challenge

Week 24 Challenge – Write a thank you note to someone who provides you regular service (hairdresser, postal worker, person who picks up your trash).