Wednesday, April 11, 2012

52 Photo Project - SPRING

Today over at Bella's 52 Photo Project it's all about Spring.  I have not been able to find words to share here lately so today I will share Spring through my eyes and iphone in the below images.


Pink and Blue 70's Filter

Spring Green

Nature's Curtain

On display

In a row

Spring begins at the park

Delicate

Spring Night falls

Blooms everywhere

Tulip Time

Coming home with me

May you be enjoying the colors of spring wherever you are today.

Namaste,
Karen

Thursday, March 22, 2012

National Poetry Day - 3/21/2012


This Poem just knocked me off my feet, It literally felt like a punch to the stomach, my reaction was so strong. It speaks loudly and clearly to something in me.
Here it is : The Author is Jewel Mathieson

"We have come to be danced
Not the pretty dance
Not the pretty pretty, pick me, pick me dance
But the claw our way back into the belly
Of the sacred, sensual animal dance
The unhinged, unplugged, cat is out of its box dance
The holding the precious moment in the palms
Of our hands and feet dance.

We have come to be danced
Not the jiffy booby, shake your booty for him dance
But the wring the sadness from our skin dance
The blow the chip off our shoulder dance.
The slap the apology from our posture dance.

We have come to be danced
Not the monkey see, monkey do dance
One two dance like you
One two three, dance like me dance
But the grave robber, tomb stalker
Tearing scabs and scars open dance
The rub the rhythm raw against our soul dance.

We have come to be danced
Not the nice, invisible, self-conscious shuffle
But the matted hair flying, voodoo mama
Shaman shaking ancient bones dance
The strip us from our casings, return our wings
Sharpen our claws and tongues dance
The shed dead cells and slip into
The luminous skin of love dance.

We have come to be danced
Not the hold our breath and wallow in the shallow end of the floor
dance
But the meeting of the trinity: the body, breath and beat dance
The shout hallelujah from the top of our thighs dance
The mother may I? Yes you may take ten giant leaps dance
The olly olly oxen free free free dance
The everyone can come to our heaven dance.

We have come to be danced Where the kingdoms collide
In the cathedral of flesh
To burn back into the light
To unravel, to play, to fly, to pray
To root in skin sanctuary
We have come to be danced! We have come."

~ by Jewel Mathieson from her book This Dance: A Poultice of Poems

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

52 Photos Project - Week 47

Good day all!

This week over at Bella's 52 Photo Project  the prompt was:  Outside the lines, what is the unique way you see the beauty in life.

For me it's all about light and the way it can wash out part of the picture, some would say this is a flaw but I would say there's so much beauty between what can be seen and what's hidden within the light.  It's a beautiful mystery.

Here are some recent examples taken with my iphone.


Bella - between the light and dark


Tulips - lit from within and without

Getting my Irish on for St. Pat's
So what is your favorite way to capture images outside the box, what is your unique way of seeing the beauty around you?

Namaste to you and yours,
Karen

Monday, February 13, 2012

Pursuit of Healthfullness Week 8 and 9

Delicate yet still strong


So here I am 2 weeks later and getting back to posting with Melissa over at My Red Tutu  for  our Pursuit of Healthfulness as I  just start to come out of a major anxiety spin.  My Acid/Reflux came to a crisis point about 2 weeks ago, waking up each night from a dead sleep in burning pain.  At the same time I had some funky sinus situation going on, felt like I was being hit from all sides with weird symptoms.

I have had some health concerns this last year, achy body, reflux, inflammation.  I ignored the small signs that my body was in distress and I just kept eating, stressing, drinking and so on, all the things that aggravate my health.  So of course my body decided to give me the bigger wake up call and I find myself crying in the doctors office, frustrated to be at this point.  Long story short the Dr. put me on Nexium for the reflux since I have some irritation and of course as Doctors go they say well you can stay on this forever.  I don't want to do that, I know it's just a band aid.  I want to make the changes in my lifestyle and diet that can bring about real healing. 

So my plan is to stay on the nexium for the 6 weeks and wean off of it along with dietary changes.  So far I have cut back  or eliminated white flour, wheat, sugar, alcohol and dairy.  I have added juicing to my daily regimen to help bring me back into balance. 

I have to say although my digestive system is still out of whack I am noticing small changes especially less bloating and I lost about 4 pounds.  I am also noticing that I am getting tired at night where usually I am up to 1 or 2 am struggling to fall asleep.  Maybe without the sugars, caffeine and other stimulants my body is finding it's natural rhythm.

As for the anxiety it is still pretty high, when I am having health issues I go into crisis/survival mode and it can put alot of added stress on my system which ends up defeating all the good i am trying to do.  I would love to hear any suggestions (minus body work) you might have on bringing down the stress level.  It is an old way for me to be and that anxiety is always there right under the surface waiting to pop out.

So for now I am being gentle with myself and tying to soothe my inner worrywart and just taking one step at a time.  I will check back next week and let you know how it goes.

A timely reminder for me this week
I would love to hear how you are doing in your Pursuit of Healthfulness and don't forget to jump on over to Melissa's and she what she's up to this week.

Namaste,
Karen

Saturday, January 28, 2012

Pursuit of Healthfulness Wk 7, Wishcast and 52 Photo Projects


Hey Friends I am doing 3 posts in one this weekend as I could not get to my computer on Wednesday.  So I am doing my weekly check in with Melissa over at My Red Tutu for our Pursuit of Healthfulness, Wishcast Wednesday with Jamie Ridler and sharing pics with Bella over at 52 Photos Project.

The funny thing is they all kind of go hand and hand this week with each other and my Healthy Pursuit.

Jamie Ridler :  What do you wish for your Health and Wellness
Bella:  Where to you go to renew your spirit

I have noticed in my pursuit of Healthfulness this week  that I am truly addicted to sugar in the form of bread and dark chocolate, I literally can not go a day without them and I believe it is taking a toll on my health and energy.  I try to go for the apple but then I just eat the chocolate right after.  I'm also noticing the bread and chocolate feed off each other when I have one I crave the other.  This has been very frusterating for me because I AM noticing it but not changing it yet.  I have kept up with adding greens every day at least once if not twice a day.  I even had kale with my eggs this morning.  Another thing I noticed is if I go to long without eating I will overeat so I would like to plan my meal times a bit better.

In addition to diet and nutrition for Jamie's prompt what do I wish for my health and wellness and Bella's where to you go to renew your spirit prompt the answer would be to spend more time in nature. I have been pretty inactive lately and even taking a short walk in the park this week had my legs cramping, a sure sign that I have not been moving enough.  My spirit is renewed while taking photo walks through the park and just noticing the beauty of the trees against the natural canvas of the sky, it truly soothes my soul.

So as you wish for yourselves, I am also wishing for you.  I would also love to hear where you are in your Pursuit of Healthfulness.  Let's jump on over to Melissa at My Red Tutu and she what she has to share this week.

Namaste,
Karen

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

52 Photos Project and Wishcast Wednesday: 1/18/2012

green bokeh
Good Morning All.  Today is Wednesday and I am wishing over at Jamie Ridlers Studios and sharing pictures with Bella over at 52 Photos Project. 

Today's Prompt:
Wish:  If you listen closely what do you wish to hear?
Picture:  Color w/emotion, what color makes you feel good.

If I listen closely what I wish to hear is that all is going just as it should and I can trust that I am exactly where I need to be on my journey. 

I love so many colors so this photo prompt is a hard one.  When I looked through my pictures I noticed that I am drawn to colors in nature, especially the greens.  Green makes me feel good.  I almost never wear green but I painted my bedroom this amazing green and even though it's a vibrant green it brings me peace.  Here are some of my favorite pics highlighting the color green.

Green on White
Green Bedroom
Neighborhood green

Collard Green


So my friends what are you hearing when you listen closely and what colors soothe you?
As Always as you wish for yourself, so I wish for you also.

Namaste
Karen

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

The Pursuit of Healthfulness - Week 6


This week as I post my update (late) for week 6 of My pursuit of Healthfulness with Melissa over at My Red Tutu, I realize I have been doing alot of emotional healing lately.  This past week my pursuit has been as much about my mind and spirit as my body. 

On the nutrition/diet front I have been successful in adding greens to my diet each and every day, I have even been taking pics of them and posting them on instagram as #dailygreens.  My favorites are, collards, spinach, arugula, broccoli rabe and kale.  I saute them lightly in extra virgin olive oil with red pepper flakes, curry, salt and a touch of honey. 

On the mind/spirit front I have recently connected with Jane Cunningham over at Reframing Your Story.  Jane with listening and creating art will take one of your stories, you know the one you have been telling yourself over and over, the one that holds you back and keeps you stuck, the one you need healing from.   She will take your story and tell it from a different perspective, to look at it through eyes of love and compassion.  What I discovered in my session was that I have not felt loved or important for most of my life, and I have the power now to get in touch with that girl inside and give her that love.  The girl below with the two tight ponytails who is withdrawn and very sensitive, the girl who has pushed things down for so long.  I can go back and show her she is loved and important.  I know it may not be easy and it may take a bit to reach her but I am on the way. 

 Another resourse I am planning on checking out is the book, What are your Emotions Trying to Tell You, which was recommended by my friend Joy Tanksley who I have done coaching with.  I have been emotionally eating since childhood so now is the time to change those patterns, to create new ones.



I leave you with this Yogi Tea message, I love getting messages from the magical to the mundane from unlikely sources.  This one was a reminder, one I needed to hear this day, Yes where there is love there is no question.  Let's jump on over to Melissa over at My Red Tutu and see what she has been up to.

As always I would love to hear where you are on your Pursuit of Healthfulness.

Namaste,
Karen

Monday, January 9, 2012

The Pursuit of Healthfulness - Week 5

Fun with Instant Camera

Hello Friends.. This week post is late because I was having posting problems..but It's here now.

This last week as I and Melissa over at My Red Tutu finish our 5th week of our Pursuit of Healthfulness I noticed a few things in regards to my health that I believe I can make improvements on. 
  1.  I never seem to get to sleep before 12 or 1am and I usually wake around 6 when my husband gets up and the I go back to sleep for awhile longer.  So I am not getting a straight 7-8 hours of uninterrupted sleep.  And I usually fall asleep in front of the TV in the den and then wake and go to the bedroom.
  2.  I made a Good Luck meal on New Years Day that made me sick to my stomach..lol.. I am thinking it may be the combination of onion, lentils, fennell and sausage.  It may have been too heavy on my digestive system.
  3. I feel down and sluggish when just sitting around watching tv or reading.  low energy.
What I can do to make some small changes.
  1. Try to actually go to bed around 11pm even if I am not tired.  Stop drinking any liquids around 9pm so I don't have to go to the bathroom this might also help me sleep uninterrupted a bit longer.
  2. Try a clean food plan.  Eating closer to the source and less processed.  I think this may help me get my digestion back on a healthy track.  I have been getting this CLEAN EATING magazine and it has some great recipes and suggestions.  I'll let you know if I try any of the recipes and how I like them.
  3. Try to get outside in nature for a minimum of 1/2 hour a day.  This weekend I was out driving around taking pics of the sky and trees with my Fuji Instant Camera which I got for Xmas and am having so much fun with.  I noticed my energy and spirits being lifted by combining the creative with being outside. (see some of the pictures I took above in the group shot)
So my friends what are you doing this week for yourself, feel free to share your story below by linking your post or just leave me a comment.  Let's jump on over to Melissa's and she what she has to share this week.



Namaste,
Karen

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Day one ...2012

welcoming my words for 2012
Happy New Year my friends.  Today I am welcoming my words for 2012 starting with clarity and then flowing into focus.  I am also sharing these pictures over at Bella's 52 Photos Project, the prompt was:  Day 1.

We started the day making a good luck meal for the beginning of the New Year.  Sausage with fennell and lentils, it was so good.  You can find the recipe over here at  Epicurious.   You can also read the traditions around the world regarding New Years and good luck foods to be eaten this day here at Epicurious Lucky Foods for the New Year.



Today is also my 46th birthday which I'll be celebrating with family.  My husband started my day out with a great surprise of canvases and a Dick Blick gift card.  I love that he supports and encourages my creativity.


So how are you and yours bringing in this New Year?  I would love to hear your traditions, resolutions or words.  May this year bring you good luck, health, joy and love.
New Years Day night falling with a beautiful flare

 
Namaste,
Karen