Hello friends,
First of all, I want to say thank you to all of you who followed up with me on my last blog post and how sharing my story helped you in some way. I can't tell you how cathartic all of your comments and words of support have been. Thank you.
Secondly - Happy spring! I don’t know about you, but I am excited to turn the corner on a new season. Locally, mask mandates are being lifted and there is a real sense of a return to “normalcy” – whatever that looks like in this iteration of the word. The bottom line is that I feel a sense of hope again… which is what spring often brings to me. For me, spring sparks a fire in my core that says – “It’s time to wake up again!”
Wake up from what? What am I waking up to?
Well, the answers to those questions are as individual as we are. But for me, the answers often come from the earth – deep down in my roots I feel the tingling of new energy welling up. It is stirring from the compost of the past seasons’ experiences. The digestion, decomposition, and processing has made way for new ideas to begin to swirl around in me. And soon I feel the call to wake up and move – to take action of some sort.
This is more than just your “to do” list kind of action. This is a deep-calling-of-your-intuition type action. It’s not always exactly clear what action you should take, but I feel antsy inside – something needs to happen.
“Uh hello, this is your dharma calling.”
I believe all of us have superpowers beyond what we were taught (like math or writing). Deep in our beings we are drawn to use those powers to serve. I believe we all have pretty profound natural abilities, but we have been taught to focus on the mundane, fact memorization, and wisdom from outside ourselves. In fact, we’ve even been rewarded for it – and we all want to be rewarded because with a reward comes being “seen” or “acknowledged.” But sometimes in this process of learning, we unlearned our natural gifts.
Thankfully I have been blessed with some wonderful teachers and spiritual guides that have reminded me of some fundamental truths. And as I have moved into this chapter of my life, I’ve learned a few things about myself:
- Self-care comes first. Taking time to listen to my own inner wisdom and use this voice as my absolute north star is how I stay aligned with my natural gifts and on my own path.
- The good or bad opinions from others mean less and less to me. It’s more about how I feel about myself.
- Oftentimes it is life’s most challenging times that give me the most richness and depth. My broken parts are valuable.
- Quality over quantity. I don’t need to do everything for everyone to be seen or appreciated. When I say yes to something, I also ask, “What am I saying ‘no” to?”
Have I figured it all out? Absolutely not.
But I have learned that when I feel the stirring inside, it’s time to listen - CAREFULLY. As an achiever, I know that I have to be careful about climbing the wrong mountains or attempting to climb multiple mountains at once. (Yes, I’ve tried). When I feel the spark of inspiration, I need to be discerning. I can either channel this precious energy into a bunch of little sprouts that don’t make it, or I can focus it into one strong little seedling that is destined to thrive with the resources it needs.
How are you channeling your spring growth?
So as we dive into this new season, I encourage you to listen to the stirrings in your soul. Is there a drive to try something new? Is there a pull to explore some creative endeavors? There are so many things that go into your personal practice – but the most important thing is that it’s YOUR practice!
For me, I find two places that reliably help me find clarity:
Nature and Creativity.
If you’d like to explore these concepts deeper in one class, I’ve got some options for you this spring.
In April, I’m offering a brand new 3-part series for adults – beginning collage! Many of you have been asking for a class like this and I am excited to finally be able to bring it to you. In this 3-part series, I will guide you through the process of making a mixed media collage of an image of your choosing. You choose an image that you'd like to collage and send it to me ahead of class. I will format it to fit a canvas and will guide you step-by-step on how to turn it into a mixed media collage. And if you’ve attended any of my classes in the past, you know that I always weave in lessons and wisdom from the natural world into all my classes. It’s creative play, learning, and connection at its best. I hope you can join me!
And for the kiddos, I’ve got another 6-part series of Nature Art Play Dates! Every Tuesday for 6 weeks starting April 5th, we will meet at the Mt. Hood Town Hall from 3:30-5:00pm for a creative play date to do a unique art project that incorporates social/emotional learning and lessons on the natural world. We'll start our time together outside for some spring exploration and movement after school. Then we'll move into the multi-purpose room at the Town Hall for some science and art. Over the course of the 6 classes, we will make 3 art projects (spending two sessions on each project). The skills and lessons will build on one another, offering a unique opportunity for your child(ren) to experience the pride and self-confidence of working on a few more complex art projects. Every class will use a playful, engaging, and supportive tone. We place the highest value on curiosity, the creative journey, and taking risks over achieving an expected outcome or finished product.
This is one way I am channeling my spring energy into collective growth in our community. I hope you will join me and find your own spark!
With lots of love and gratitude!
Jordan