Art of Flow Discovery Class

This summer I've taken several online classes, but Art of Flow was my first art class. I've been going to First Friday Crafternoons with Edie at our library for a couple of years now--it's two hours of exploration and play. I used to sketch a lot as a child (and get punished for it because it was in the school notebooks, or on the walls, oy) so I stopped. Oh, I still doodled and even made a couple of homemade books with stick figures for the kids when they were little, but my creative energy was focused on writing and then music. What a balm it has been. And now something new!

I can't tell you what a gift it is to be a beginner. To play. The older I get, the more I return to my child-self. 

I came into this class thinking I'd like to paint four seasons since we'd be working with four panels. But I let go of all expectations that first day as we began exploring colors--opposites. Then came tissue papers for collaging. On a whim I painted some words too. Why not? I love words. I collected leaves, grass, and flowers, since I love organic materials and natural textures. But oh boy, did I discover that they are a pain to work with the following day. I probably didn't have the proper glue either...but I pressed ahead. My "believe" panel got ruined when I began glazing, so the next couple of days were spent trying different things to salvage it. I wanted to scrape away all the tissue paper, but I decided to see where it might go. So painted over the bits I didn't like, added more tissue paper. 

I discovered that I liked painting the leaves! I added some feathers and tiny words, sand and seashells. I'm still not completely happy with these, but I learned so much, and a lot applies to my writing life. I'm learning to let go of expectations, to sit with uncertainty, to sit with questions. Below, the evolution, the process. Strangely, they tell me a story in the order I've place them at the end. 

 

There was a private FB group for those of us taking the class and some of the paintings were so breathtaking. It gives me hope for my own journey. Gabbi would do a reading before the start of class and share a poem or quote. Some favorites:

Consider all the unknown possibilities for joy. What will thrill you? What might you love that you don't even know yet? What are you certain there is more of? ~ Rhonda Willers (Isolation Journals) inspired by Emily Dickinson's poem: I dwell in Possibility. 

One thing you must do is accept whatever comes of it without concern for the outcome. Otherwise you will be stuttering when you could be singing! ~ Stephen Wesley Gorton, Gabbi's friend and mentor.

Invariably the resistance to this exercise comes from a desire to be in control, and a fear of being out of control. Concern for the outcome becomes the impediment. The desire for control is the left-brain intellect wagging its finger at you because it thinks that your well-being resides exclusively in the known. ~ SWG

Do whatever brings you to life. Follow your own fascinations, obsessions, and compulsions. Trust them. Create whatever causes a revolution in your heart. ~ Elizabeth Gilbert

Reading

I've read so many interesting books this fall so let me share the best if you are looking for a gift for a young child or writer in your life. I recommend all these but one, as you'll see. 

Silent Night by Brigitte Weninger and Julie Wintz-Litty is a beautiful story of this beloved Christmas carol. Will it be ready in time for Midnight Mass? 

Hanukkah is right around the corner and what better way than to celebrate with a new book: Kugel for Hanukkah? by Gretchen Everin. I reviewed it earlier. You might think it strange for a Catholic to be interested in a Jewish holiday but you have to realize that Catholics honor these Maccabean martyrs as saints. The story is documented in Maccabees 1 and 2 and part of Scripture that's read in church. Jesus Christ celebrated Hannukah (see John 10:22-23). I do so love how the Jewish and Catholic faiths dovetail. They each illuminate the other.

I came across a gem on the Picture Book Builders blog: The Lost Words by Robert McFarlane and Jackie Morris. I immediately ordered it for our library and they were all oohing and aahing over it when I came to pick it up. It is a gorgeous book. Enjoy! 

Our local newspaper ran an interview with John Conley, author of Daniel Island Unearthed and I was so impressed I got a copy for myself. It's a field guide to the artefacts one can dig up. I love living here. 

Try not to throw up at the next picture. It was completely coincidental that these next three books ended up in a pile together. I was re-reading On Writing Well by William Zinsser for a nonfiction workshop and James' Fifty Shades (it is truly awful and also pornographic) ended up in the same pile of library books. I wanted to skim through it because of a very interesting book, The Bestseller Code by Jodi Archer and Matthew Jockers, that was first discussed on Writer Unboxed by Keith Cronin. Almost all of us know the elements of a good story instinctively; we respond to them in books and movies, and as writers we analyze them. What Archer and Jockers did was to feed bestselling books to a computer and have it spit out patterns. We know that our characters must go through trials, have ups and downs, but the essence of the bestselling book is that these emotional ups and downs need to happen at regular intervals. What was fascinating was how similar the curves were for Fifty Shades (romance) and the Da Vinci Code (thriller). The only difference lies in the end. Da Vinci ends on an up-note whereas Fifty Shades plummets because it's the setup for the sequel. I found The Bestseller Code very enjoyable and informative and I think we all can learn from it and the bestselling books. Fortunately, not all bestsellers are poorly written. There's enough variety for people with different tastes. 

I'd read reviews of My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite, calling it darkly comic. I didn't want to read it. Yet another discussion on Writer Unboxed piqued my interest. I didn't find it funny at all. It is a beautifully written story about two sisters, one who is beautiful and attracts men like honey, and the other who literally cleans up her messes. My heart ached for the narrator because how well I understand those deep familial bonds, but I also wanted her to have a true and faithful love. I wanted to rewrite the ending on a more hopeful note. The author is a poet and you can tell because of the spare and beautiful language she uses to tell a story that lingers in one's heart long after you've closed the book.

The title of Jordan Peterson cracks me up because even God gave only Ten Commandments. The men's reading group has been going through 12 Rules for Life this fall. Max was the first to read it in our family--it was his birthday present last year. This is one of the few books by psychologists that actually makes sense. So much common sense.

I always pick up extra copies of Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren whenever I see them at the thrift store. It's one of the best books I've ever read in developing a deeper relationship with Christ. It makes a wonderful Lenten or Advent meditation or let's face it, anytime meditation. Last year I discovered a companion journal at the library book sale and it was in pristine condition. What a treasure. It's been a God-send.

 

Finally, I want to draw your attention to a slim gem of a book that I discovered on Kristi's blog: it's a meditation on the Prayer of Jabez. It is beautiful and it reminds me very much of John 10:10 I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly. The Christian life is that of abundance! May you have the peace and joy and blessings in abundance. 

I'm writing Christmas cards and listening to beautiful Advent music. One of my favorites is Rorate Caeli and the reflection by Msgr. Charles Pope is so lovely, as is the plainchant and Byrd arrangement of the first verse sung by Voces8. I've been captivated by this group ever since I listened to their Ave Maria. Of course, I'm also practicing our Christmas menu for choir. But it won't be Christmas until the kids are home--soon, soon!