synchronicity

A Rainbow with Pots of Gold at Both Ends

~ pamela penney ~ Leave a comment

Happy New Year 2019!

Yes, I know we are already 10 days in to the year.  But I’m just getting acclimated to the 2019 energies.  So, far I’m noticing two themes showing up in my life in the last few weeks.  First, I am really observing the duality that this earth-life offers us.  Every life lesson comes back to our perspective of the situation.  And while this has always been true, I am seeing it from more of a “witness” view than I ever have before.  Taking a step or two back to observe all sides of situations and pulling my desires and energy out of things has really created some neutrality and peace within.  Yes, peace!  On Earth!!!

For example, to one person the world may seem upside down and for another they may see the exact same situation as a confirmation of their beliefs and be thrilled at how things are going. If I can let go of my own desires I might not get the satisfaction that things are going my (ego’s) way, but I can allow the situation to unfold and not be wracked with frustration and anger.  It might not mean my desires change, but I can also skip a few beats and realize not everything turns into a crisis if things don’t play out the way I think they should.

The second theme for me is manifestation.  I feel like my thoughts are being reflected in my physical reality much more rapidly.  And yikes, I better be careful about what I am thinking…because for good or bad, it’s going to show up in some form, and soon.  So, here is a little thing that showed up for me….

Manifesting Gold:

A year ago, at the beginning of 2018 I set an intention to “Spin Straw Into Gold”.  I have become passionate about yarn spinning as a metaphor for life, and I set about utilizing yarn spinning as my contemplative practice.   I also re-utilize as much salvaged and up-cycled materials as I can incorporate in my custom art yarns as possible.  So, my intention was to go about turning what would normally go into the waste stream into beautiful art yarn, GOLD!  And in turn, further the abundance that my textile art business brings to me and work to heal our mother earth.

This year I have a new mantra.  It’s a bit long, but here goes….A Rainbow with Gold at Both Ends.  I think I tend to get so busy looking up at either the storm clouds or the rainbows (duality in the world) that I forget to look down and notice the gold sitting at my feet and all around me.  I’ve spun “straw into gold” and will continue to do so, but this year I intend to notice and enjoy the fruits of my labor.  I intend to bask in the nest of gold I’ve metaphorically spun from of the bed of straw life sometimes brings.

One of the reasons I did not blog here much in 2018 was that I was working hard this past year to create a written journey titled “Spinning Straw Into Gold”. I am excited to say it is almost complete and ready to share with the world.  Stay tuned, I love to have companions join me on my adventures.  I hope you will join me in taking your straw bed and spinning a creative alternative. In the meantime look at what I’ve already manifested for myself in 2019…

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Bottles of Amber and Gold

The day I realized my 2019 theme these two “pots of gold” showed up in a local Facebook Marketplace that I follow.  They were nearby, an easy “porch pickup” and a good deal.  I knew they were supposed to be mine.  I know at this point in my life I really don’t need to acquire any more “stuff”.  But I’ve been doing a lot of clearing and organizing this past fall and as they say “the universe abhors a vacuum”.  So, with the intention that these will continue to remind me to “look for the gold” in every situation, I brought these home to hold some of my essential oil blends.  Some days I just rub the sides of them to see if a genie will appear! No sighting so far, but I will post if that wish comes true!  (Again, I better be careful of what I wish for.)

And in addition, yesterday they offered up a unique way of viewing the world differently.

Please enjoy my “upside down” world view in the gallery below!

Why Can’t We All Just Get Along?

~ pamela penney ~ 1 Comment

For the last nine months or so, I have been focusing my time on spinning yarn (and spells, I am the Stitch Witch, you know!)  I took up spinning yarn as a way to meditate, relax and create in a new way.  For me spinning is somewhat of a metaphor for uniting the past and the future to create the NOW.  When I hand-spin yarn at the wheel I pull out bits of fiber (this to me represents material from the PAST which includes the creation, the nutrition, the experiences, the skills, knowledge, talents and qualities inherit in the fiber and in life) . I then add energy to that fiber through the treadling and spinning of the wheel to draw in the twist.  The fiber goes from being loose, weak and ephemeral to being strong and functional.  It moves from the draft (the NOW) unto the bobbin as a “potential” (the FUTURE).  What it is to become is still just a dream.  It is complete in the now and yet holds the possibility of becoming something so much greater through the art of knitting, crochet or weaving.  Spinning keeps me focused and in the moment.  I also like to put forth prayers (spells) as I spin.  Yesterday I reflected on this question….

As we enter 2018 I wonder “why can’t we all just get along?” as Rodney King asked back in 1992, it still seems to be as relevant a question as ever.   The Republicans and Democrats becoming so extreme on both ends of the spectrum hold no hope of finding middle ground.  The #metoo movement has left men and women wondering if they can ever find the trust needed to heal the wounds of past abuses.  Even in my everyday relationships I’ve experienced disharmony when there is a lack of listening in a spirit of cooperation and a teamwork approach.

And so yesterday I spun a spell.  Lavender, like the pink and blue of divine feminine and masculine coming together in Divine Unity.  Like bi-partisan red and blue joining forces to become purple.  Like a soft fine merino wool coiled around a strong core of cotton.  Soft and strong coming together to make something much more functional, beautiful and lasting.  When I spin with a core I let one of the “singles” ply loosely around the other.  For this yarn I also added in coils (the bumps in the yarn where the coil is “bundled”) which took advantage of the thick/thin wool single that I had spun previously.  The core cotton single was a yarn from my stash.

Lavender like a pale version of the Pantone Color of 2018:  Ultra-violet.  Coincidence?  No, more like synchronicity!

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If you would like to follow more of my spinning adventures, follow pamelapenneytextiles on Instagram.  I will also be adding my hand-spun yarns to my Etsy Shop very soon…..go HERE!

Resistance

~ pamela penney ~ 2 Comments

Exactly two years ago I was traveling Europe through Paris, Belgium and Amsterdam.  On November 16, 2014 I went through the VerzetsMuseum (Dutch Resistance Museum). It was an enlightening experience. The permanent exhibit space is laid out in a chronological path through time from the 1930’s to 1950’s with a focus on the 1940-45 years during WWII and the Netherlands occupation by Nazi Germany. From the Museum Website: “The Resistance is not about heroes and villains, but ordinary people who found themselves in a time of scarcity and oppression (with) dilemmas and had to make choices.”

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Concerns of the 1930’s -Display from the VerzetsMuseum, Amsterdam.

The displays are made up of everyday artifacts from the daily lives of the Dutch people during that time. The exhibit lays out a story of difficult choices that had to be made in the face of fear of retaliation, hunger and scarcity, and societal pressure. I walked into the Museum believing I would be one who would resist Nazism at all costs. I walked through the exhibit with a realization and a new understanding of what that would truly cost an individual. I was also surprised to find that many of the same issues facing society in the 1930’s could describe the current climate we are still experiencing. Issues regarding the separation of church and state, issues of racism, issues of severe economic differences between the haves/have-nots. Issues of what it means to be patriotic. Issues of what certain choices can mean in the long story of history. How decisions to resist, adapt, ignore or collaborate all play out over time when faced with policies that oppress any segment of society; be that a certain race, religious faith, gender or even a free press.

 

One of the displays struck a particular chord with me, as a textile artist.  It showed the simple everyday embroideries of Jacoba Maria Blom-Schuh of the Hague. She refused to give money to the Winter Help fund until the queen returned to the Netherlands. Because of her refusal she was imprisoned for three months. During her time in prison the SS guards gave her their socks to mend. She played ignorant and sewed them shut! In reality this was her form of further resistance to the Nazi cause. She later embroidered imagery from her time in prison onto these textile pieces (I call them artwork!) that are on display in the museum.

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The Story of Maria Schuh- Display at the VerzetsMuseum, Amsterdam

I found that reminiscing about my experience at the VerzetsMuseum (Dutch Resistance Museum) to be very cathartic today, one week following our 2016 Presidential Election. This past week the media has been filled with many differing opinions on how America will move forward following this contentious campaign season. Many questions are being brought to light. I return to my experience of walking through that museum, being offered choices and questions along the path (through time): Faced with different situations would you Resist? Adapt? Collaborate? or Persecute? You may think you know the answers, but when faced with pressure to Adapt by your family and friends and even the leadership of your country, it can be difficult to hold your ground for what you truly believe is Right. You may find that in the face of severe hunger your Will is broken. You may find that is seems more loving and unifying to Collaborate with others who hold a very different View of what they would like to see their world look like. You could find that to get what you want or Need, it is easy to turn a blind eye to the Persecution of others. Or worse, you could find you are the instigator of that abuse somehow justifying it as a means to the end you would like.

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Display of the Resistance Embroideries of Maria Schuh

This is a wake up call for me as I step into each day going forward, to be aware that my individual choices have an effect on my community and country as a Collective. I intend to take off my blinders to the plight and ideas of those who may not share my vision. To realize what I can do as I am faced with tough choices. To ask myself the tough questions:  Am I ignoring the oppression of a segment of our society, and making light of it? Am I looking to find answers that work for all of us, or just for myself?  Am I adapting to the new normal because it seems to be the peaceful thing to do, despite the concern that it could be causing others pain? These are the questions and many more that I (and All of US) will be faced with in the coming days and years. I know from walking through the Resistance Exhibit they are difficult questions to answer in the moments we are faced with them. These are difficult decisions to make. It is always easier to say in hind-site what should have been done. It is also easier to say in advance what you think you would do walking into a situation, than what you would actually do faced with the real consequences of your decisions.

One thing I know I will continue to do is use my Voice. My Voice comes in many different Forms. I will use my Words, speaking and writing freely as my U.S. Rights as a citizen allow.  I will use my Dollars, as very often speaking with the wallet is one of the most effective methods of communication. And I will primarily use my Talents and Actions (they speak louder than words!) to speak up when I see something harmful and/or hateful to others. I encourage you who would like to hold on to the good in the world and continue to make it better for All to also use your voices and your dollars and especially your talents to call out and continue to shine the light on situations that do not resonate with that vision. Make your daily actions and choices speak to the vision of the world you want to see. We are all an aspect of the Great Creator, what we envision is the first step to what we create here. We can not turn a blind eye to what we see as abusive, mean, selfish, divisive, or inhumane on an individual level or as a collective. We can not “be ignorant”, but just like Maria Schuh’s example we can all “pretend ignorance” (or use other methods) to resist wrong doing, and use A Stitch In Time (to) Save.

Please Note: I personally do not define resistance as a way to obstruct or protest any actions or ideas of the new administration just for the sake of hatred of “the other side”. It is a method of standing up for the protection and against the persecution of the Rights of All others (no “sides”).  I do not equate the election of Donald Trump as U.S. President to the rise of Hitler and the Third Reich. I am only making observations and pointing out a way of assessing personally how I choose to move forward as a citizen. History (and herstory) is only as helpful as what you learn from it.  Other than that, I tend not to look backward (unless I am reminiscing about a lovely European vacation), but aim to go forward doing my best to create a society that protects the Rights and Freedoms for ALL.

 

 

We Are All The Chosen One

~ pamela penney ~ Leave a comment
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The Moon outside my window~

It didn’t take long for the message to come tonight.  I stepped my toes into the “Hot Tub Time Machine” with my heart filled with love and gratitude for all my family, friends, guides, supporters, students and well any-one who has helped me get to this point in my life.  I feel like I have been running a marathon the last several weeks and I’ve made it to not so much of a finish line, but to a transition line.  Deep exhale~

But, I digress, back to the message:  Well, I said my prayers of thanks to the heavens as my body sunk into the warm waters.  Tonight is the Harvest Full Moon and as suggested by this forecast, I decided I should follow the advise of #6 and channel my “inner mermaid”.  I felt so filled with thanks that I had this thought that “I am the chosen One”.  There can be no other explanation as to why everything has fallen into place so synchronistically the last few weeks.  I’ve experienced things like the rain stopping or holding off until just the second I get the tent up for camping, or the car unloaded.  Time even seemed to stop in order for my daughter and me to get the U-Haul unloaded and back by closing time for her move into a new apartment a couple of weeks ago.  There has been so much to do.  And yet, it has all gotten done.  And with relative ease.  I must be “special” if the clouds are parting and time is stopping for me.  Right?

Ha ha, my Guides laugh.  Yes, and no.  The truth is “you are all the chosen One”.  Some just realize it sooner than others.  Others use their “free will” to delay the awareness of it.  Well, I don’t think I am at the arrowhead on this realization.  But, I am not on the tail end either.  I hope you hear this message too and join me in gratitude for being “chosen”.  There are greater things in store for all of us.  Tonight’s Pisces Full Moon and Lunar Eclipse Hold The Key To Letting Go & Moving On.  Join me in letting go, filled with gratitude for what has brought us to this Now.  Join me in Celebration.  Join me in Moving ON~~~It is Time we all realize that WE are ALL the Chosen ONE!

One additional note:  This full moon completes a cycle that started on March 8, 2016  with a solar eclipse.  This is where I was then:  Clearing my Mesa and Activating Something New.  Yes, the NEW is finally HERE!

 

A Void Dance or Avoidance?

~ pamela penney ~ Leave a comment

Here it is the end of summer.  Labor Day here in the United States.  As I reflect back over the last 3 months I can say I spent a lot of time in both avoidance and a Void Dance.  I believe it is ok to spend time in either, the important thing is to know which place you are in.

Avoidance:  The act of avoiding something.

A Void Dance:  Time spent in the quiet space between the “stuff” of life.

I have recently decided to relocate my business and my art studio after many years in the same location.  It means sorting, clearing, organizing and packing the “stuff” of my life.  I have spent much of the time between other work obligations this summer doing just that.  Sorting.  Cleaning.  Organizing.  Packing.   At times I’ve been doing it to avoid doing other things I’d rather not be doing and sometimes I am doing other things just to avoid doing the difficult work of deciding what to “do” with the stuff.   But either way, it’s been a therapeutic process.

As an artist you learn to appreciate the voids or negative space.  It’s not always the matter that matters.  (a good thing to remind myself of, as I purge and de-clutter)

20160903_202301The voids are where the fertile earth feeds the roots.  The voids are where the flames lick and spit between the burning logs.  The voids are where the oxygen is.  The voids are what make the beauty of the antique lace.  The voids are what lets the soft breeze come through the screen door.  The voids are the blue sky between the clouds.  The voids are where the damp sand squeezes up between your toes on the beach.  The voids are where you run your fingers through soft hair.  The voids are where the sun peaks through the branches of the tree canopy.  And the voids are where and when we dance.  

I hope as you enjoy your last days of this summer you find time to Dance in the Void.  It is this space and time between the stuff of life that is important.  It is different than avoidance.   It is this fertile space that feeds our creativity and our souls.  It feeds what matters.

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“A Void Dance” artwork by Pamela Penney (c) 2015

 

 

 

Unsteady

~ pamela penney ~ Leave a comment

Ooh, Summer.  With all your distractions.  Some Good.  Some Challenging.  Where have I been?  In avoidance?  Or, in A Void Dance?  Probably a little of both. (more on that later).

But today I am in the midst of one of life’s little challenges.  Dealing with the illness of an aging pet. Our Dog showed up in early 2002 as a young pup.  She was found by a neighborhood friend just running along the side of a Chicago city street.  No collar, skinny, sun-faded fur.  She was about 2 months old.  That put her birthdate at about 1-1-2002.  She was adorable, but what would she turn into?  We had no idea of her breed or origins.  Could she be a menacing, agitated fighting dog in a few months?  She sure seemed sweet.

You see, the summer and autumn of 2001 were particularly challenging for our family.  We lost our first dog, Molly to illness at 11 years that July.  I learned much from my relationship with Molly.  She was supposed to be our “practice child” to see if my husband and I were ready for parenthood.  But, I mostly learned from her that you can struggle with the personalily of someone in your life and still really love and miss them when they are gone.  This was an important lesson for me at that time.  She was a “high-strung” border collie/belgian sheepdog mix who liked to bark (a lot) and as we got her a few years before having our children, she always seemed a bit jealous when they came along.  Not really the “family pet”.   Then a few weeks after we said a sad good-bye to our Molly my husband’s grandmother passed away.   And in August the death of my father-in-law was a huge blow to our family.  Followed of course, by the event of September 11th of that year that rocked the reality of the entire nation.  Yes 2001 was a tough year for many (most) of us.

So then that following spring, some brightness and joy bounced into our life.  Was I ready for another puppy?  My kids ages 7 & 9 at the time were ready.  They named her Lucky after a story they had read about a stray dog, but we were truly the lucky ones.  She has been the ideal dog (well if you don’t mind a lot of shedding fur).  She is calm, patient, great with the kids and topped out at 40 pounds, just like we like!   She has been lucky several times over the years too.  Once, when she was young she bounded out of our back gate as my son left it open just a moment too long.  She ran into the street and bounced off the bumper of a passing car.  She was stunned, but nothing more.  And she never did that again!  And 2 1/2 years ago at the end of 2013 we noticed a change in her behavior.  She quit jumping up on the bed, and seemed a bit off.  This again came at a very difficult time for us, just 2 weeks after we lost my mother-in-law to cancer.  A trip to the vet and an x-ray revealed a tumor on her spleen.  We were willing to do whatever we could for our Lucky.  We had the tumor removed, all 5+ pounds of it! (a stitch in time saved!!!)  And she recovered to be as active as she had always been.

I realized today that at 14 1/2 years, sleeping next to my side of the bed, and under my feet everyday, I have spent more of my “life minutes” with her, than with any other being. Probably more than with my husband of almost 29 years.  And now the last couple of weeks she has been struggling to walk up and down our stairs.  She is just not “herself”.  We went to the Vet a few days ago and they gave her an anti-infammatory that seemed to improve her movement, but she has been “up and down” every day this week.  I can’t tell which direction this is going.  And at her age, I’m not sure what to do.  So,  I’ve been bringing her into my work studio the last couple of days with me.  I want to spend as much time as possible with this sweet baby, and I want to watch how she is feeling.  This morning she was in the backseat, trying to lay down for the ride.  As I turned on the radio this song came on the radio.  I believe she was singing it to me.

X Ambassadors:  Unsteady

Hold, hold on, hold onto me
‘Cause I’m a little unsteady
A little unsteady
Hold, hold on, hold onto me
‘Cause I’m a little unsteady
A little unsteady

Mama, come here
Approach, appear
Daddy, I’m alone
‘Cause this house don’t feel like home

If you love me, don’t let go
Whoa, if you love me, don’t let go

Hold, hold on, hold onto me
‘Cause I’m a little unsteady
A little unsteady
Hold, hold on, hold onto me
‘Cause I’m a little unsteady
A little unsteady

Mother, I know
That you’re tired of being alone
Dad, I know you’re trying
To fight when you feel like flying

But if you love me, don’t let go
Whoa, if you love me, don’t let go

Hold, hold on, hold onto me
‘Cause I’m a little unsteady
A little unsteady
Hold, hold on, hold onto me
‘Cause I’m a little unsteady
A little unsteady

Hold, hold on, hold onto me
‘Cause I’m a little unsteady
A little unsteady…..

So for now, I will hold on to you Lucky.  

We are both a little unsteady.

And I’m not ready to Let Go.

My Lucky Dog
My Lucky Dog

Update:  Lucky closed her eyes for her eternal rest on August 20, 2016.  See Lucky.

 

Letters from the Future

~ pamela penney ~ Leave a comment

The following is a hypothetical letter.  I wrote it myself as though my sister has written it to me 26 years from now on my birthday.  I wrote it as an exercise for a Circle of transitioning Women led by Circle Tender, Susan Lucci that I am a part of.  The assignment was to imagine a celebration near the end of your life and ask some of the guests to speak on your behalf about your life and how you fulfilled your “Life’s Desires”.  In light of the issues our world is facing in the NOW this was very therapeutic for me.  Here is the hypothetical letter from my sister:

Happy Birthday Pam!  Can you believe that you are 80 years old and I am just a couple of weeks from being 79?  Who would have thought this is how the world would be in 2042?  Oh yeah, you would have!  You always believed and you were right, that the world and the humans living here would begin to transform and shift when we were in our early 50’s.  That we could overcome the issues of poverty and climate change during our lifetime.  I always loved calling you on the phone, (remember those crazy old devices necessary to communicate?)  and hearing about the books you were reading about the Unity Consciousness and our Higher Selves.  And that ET’s are Us!

Yes, I remember when you were younger that you would get frustrated and discouraged that you weren’t sure how to bring your value and implement your desires in the world.  And you were disappointed that your work didn’t really support yourself.   That you always had to rely on your husband’s income for the survival of your family.  But remember, that was back when we had the old money and banking system.  You were one of the few who believed we could find a better way to “survive”.  Oh yeah, not survive, but THRIVE and flourish.  And that abundance was a “basic right” that All Humans were born to on our planet Earth.  And you were correct.  Just see how fast that concept came to be accepted and implemented?  And your energy, faith, and creative vision were a part of our collective ascension into this new flourishing life for ALL.  You helped others SEE that this was possible.  You helped me see it, even though it meant I had to transform my own business and livelihood away from helping people file their annual income tax returns. (And pay the taxes!  Oh, remember how horrible it was for people to have to do that every year?)  The fact that there are so few people suffering and “in need” now, and that we no longer pay for WAR and military expenses as a nation has really made it so much easier for people.  And I much preferred helping people decide what to do with their abundance and decide how to best share their wealth and “pay it forward” as they used to say!

Oh, and remember that summer evening under the stars when our children were young and we were sitting around the bonfire in my backyard?  The kids were running around in the dark playing on their “walkie-talkie radios”  (Talk about old-time communications!)  You pretended to talk to them like an alien from “Planet Micro-Brew”.  A few years later micro-breweries were everywhere!  And then a few years after that the Earth made peaceful and mutually beneficial contact with Advanced Life out in the Universe.  It was like you could SEE it that night looking out at the far away stars above our fire.  You also had a way of looking into the Flames of the Fire for “Life’s Answers”, too.

I thank you so much for being my older sister, my friend, guide, mentor and visionary.  You’ve always been there when I’ve needed you.  It’s so nice now to be psychically connected so that we don’t need to worry about the phone to communicate anymore.  Now, whenever we need to we can hear, feel and KNOW how much the Other One cares and loves us.  Even when we are apart.  Oh yeah, there is no such thing as “apart”.  We are each our individual spark of the Unity that is Life.  Thank you for making the Soul Contract to be the spark that guided me into this life with you in it.  As you Know, I love you.

Your Sister, B~

Note:  I went searching in my gift card pile for the perfect card to imagine having this letter written on and I found this.  The artwork is by Helena Nelson-Reed.  The Synchronicity of this card’s message goes beyond “perfect” to DIVINE!

 

Shame (Part 1)

~ pamela penney ~ 1 Comment

Oh, Dear.  I may really be just about to step into “it” today.  But, here I go.  I intended this blog to be an honest insight into where I am in my head and heart.  And the last few weeks have led me to questioning our collective and personal “shame”.  So, what is it?  Why do we have it?  Does it still serve us?  If not, how to we rise above it?

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“Shame” a work in progress.

So, how did I get here?  Well, the last few weeks I have started a new piece for the She Said/He Said exhibit coming up a the Groshek Gallery in Chicago.  I had an inspiration to do a Tree of Knowledge/Adam & Eve/ Paradise piece.  It has caused me to explore my memories of my childhood Sunday school lessons regarding the origin story (myth?).  April has also been a month of reflecting on a turning point in my own relationships.  I don’t want this to get too “long and involved” but, I do want to share enough detail that this makes sense.  So, I’ll do my best.

So the story of Adam and Eve for me is about “shame”.  We learn shame very young and, I believe usually from our parents.  (Confession: I’m a parent, I know I’ve fallen into my shadow and used shaming to attempt to solicit the behavior I desire from my kids).

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Every book contains a lesson.

Last Saturday I went to see comedian, Jen Kirkman where I bought her new book, I Know What I’m Doing and Other Lies I Tell Myself.  As I was listening to the Prince soundtrack and waiting for her to come on-stage I started reading the introduction to her book.  She starts out with “Ugh, my parents are going to read this.”  (I know what she means!) She then goes on to quote another of my favorite funny people, Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul).  He once said that people should make their art, whatever it is, “as though their parents were dead”.  And why is that?  I think it is because we worry about “shame”.  Not that we will cause our parent’s to be embarrassed by our work; but that they, our first source of “shame” will bring on that bad feeling within us again.  (Please Note:  I love my parents and don’t wish to cause them any embarrassment here or elsewhere nor do I wish they were dead, but when I stated I might “step in it” this is it. I just believe that we must rise above this concern for feeling shamed in order to “grow up and evolve”.

And how appropriate that only a few days after the death of the musician Prince while listening to his “Pussy Control” I was reading this book introduction and ruminating on “shame”.  Prince was a successful artist who by all outward appearances, rose above a concern for self-shame.  In fact by many recent reflections on his life his ability to be his true self and express his true artistry is greatly admired (and envied) by his fans and others.  And that is my point I guess.  Can we really do our best most creative work if we are in a place of shame?  And can we really bring to the world the healing and solutions needed if we are not creating from our highest, best self?

Well, I have gone on here for a bit, and while I have a lot more rolling around in my head and heart regarding the story of Eden, I think I will continue on another day.  You see the story of the Garden of Eden includes another figure,  Adam’s first “wife”, Lilith.  And she takes me on another “thread”.  So, rather than try to cover too much “ground”, you will have to wait for “that stitch in time” and for the rest of this story.  In the meantime consider the role of “shame” in your life.  Is it holding you back from being the highest, true-ist expression of your “self”.  What would you do if you didn’t fear (the feeling of) shame?

Please see Shame: Part 2 HERE

Warrior New Moon

~ pamela penney ~ 7 Comments

The Warrior archetype is showing up all over the place for me. According to Jose and Lena Stevens of The Power Path School of Shamanism we all have the Warrior even if we have another over-riding personality or archetype. I am primarily of the “artist” archetype and often have a difficult time tapping into my inner warrior. The Power Path 2016 Trends forecast indicates that this year will have an energy of dominance and aggression. It could be very beneficial to utilize my inner warrior So, how do I reach my Warrior?

Well in late February I pulled the Tarot Card: II High Priestess and chose to work with it as inspiration for a mixed media sculptural art piece.  I had two 5th grade girls coming in after school and they wanted to work on sculpture boxes.   It is sometimes easiest to teach by example.  So, this was to be my example!  I like to work on process pieces that evolve over time answering some inner subconscious questions for me. (Learned through my time spent at Whispers from the Moon) This piece did just that.

I began my sculpture on an old blue box with the brand title “Crown” embossed upon its cover.  I created a tape and foil female figure with a long flowing skirt.  Each week she gathered more details.  Paint in violet and a red flowing skirt, beads, a “sea glass” face and jewels in her skirt.  Her hair was wild like vines with silver sparkles.  Her arms outstretched.  Yesterday I finished the box by collaging a magazine cutting that I had snipped and held in the box from the first day of the project.  “It’s a New Day!”  I then water-colored a sun-rising from the eastern edge of the box (This was inspired by Rebecka Eggers vision for over-coming the Domination System through the symbolism of the Great Eastern Sun of Chögyam Trungpa.)

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Last night I finished reading book that I started a few days ago, Coming Alive! Spirituality, Activism, & Living Passionately in the Age of Global Domination, by Rebecka Eggers.  (mentioned in yesterday’s post)  In the final chapter Egger’s states, “I want to address the aspects of the Passionate Warrior that are contained within the one who came to me.  Ishtar is inside of me. She is knocking around the edges of my being threatening to explode in a red-hot fountain of lava. Can you feel her too?”  Today I went to my trusty source Google, to find a comparison of Ishtar to the High Priestess.  I found this at the Tarot of Eli:  “The Thoth- THE HIGH PRIESTESS.  The Tarot High Priestess ….represents the Supreme Mother, without her smiling mask, revealing a True face of cold yet beautiful countenance.  This “cold and beautiful continence is also known as Ishtar (Sumerian Inanna/Ananna), who is depicted on The Babylonian key 2 card. One of Her titles was Belit (demonized by the Christians) the feminine of Bel, meaning Lord. As does the Moon, which is the planet attributed to The High Priestess, she has her “light and Dark” sides.  Complex and of many roles,  Ishtar/ Inanna (Lady of Heaven), had Three distinct Functions (As does the Three Paths of the Upper Triangle of the Tree of Life).”

Yes, Ishtar has indeed come to me.  I can feel her.  My Ishtar has a face of polished glass, cold yet beautiful.  She has a skirt of Lava.  From the Tarot of Eli, “The Thoth High Priestess is shown with all veils  removed, all illusion is dispersed, and we must face the crystalline reality of our own absolute free will when facing her; a task not for the weak who fear mortality.”  Yesterday I also felt compelled to add the word “Crone” to the box.  In my mind the word Crone played off the existing word on the box “Crown”.  I believe you earn your crown as a crone!  And as the silver threads start to appear on my head I just smile and tell myself my crown is coming.  The Crone is also a female character who has aged out of the fertile years, she is a bit more androgynous.  The Tarot of Eli goes on to say, “the High Priestess is the Womb of Consciousness, but she is both Male and Female, much like a Hermaphrodite (Hermes-Aphrodite) that can impregnate itself.” 

Through synchronicity,  my dear friend, artist and writer, Sallie Wolf discussed her encounter with the Warrior at our March New Moon Meeting. (I am part of a small group of artists and writers who meet monthly to set our creative intentions, plan action steps and witness the progress for each other)  Sallie had felt some inner resistance when her yoga teacher had asked the class “what are you a warrior for”.  I’ll let you read her story HERE.

Today is the April New Moon.  I feel it is the Warrior New Moon.  It is also “a New Day” symbolized by the rising Great Eastern Sun.  Let us bring the Sun, the Stars and the Moon together, masculine and feminine, for a new Dawning.   My Warrior looks like the High Priestess, Ishtar.  I am a (Com)-Passionate Warrior for utilizing my talents and skills as a catalyst for Change through A Stitch In Time Saves.

Post-Script:  yes, the boxes that my students created turned out wonderful too.  See their finished creations at www.PamelaPenney.com.

Manifestation

~ pamela penney ~ Leave a comment

Can we manifest the world we would like to see?  If so, how?  I believe we are being called to.  At least I know I feel  called to this.  In searching for the “how” I have recently come across the book Coming Alive! Spirituality, Activism, & Living Passionately in the Age of Global Domination, by Rebecka Eggers.  (In fact, I don’t remember selecting it, but it seems to have just appeared in my Kindle about a week ago!)

Eggers lays out a story which refers to mythology, religion and anecdote to explain how we have created the “Domination System” in our current world.  She explains how this current system is the root of the troubles we face as a society and as a world.  She describes a process of how that old system can be transformed.  Much of her story resonates with my personal path.  My “wounds” and my healing path that have led me to my own revelations. I have an inner knowing that my healing is important as it will also assist in healing the Collective.  I believe we are all responsible for our own healing because it is necessary for the Whole.  This is the Way we influence the Collective Consciousness, at some point reaching the tipping point and shifting the Whole.  She inspires (me) us to find our own places to use our personal medicine to heal the issues we see hurting the world.  I believe that is what has brought me to “A Stitch In Time Saves” as my personal medicine for the world.  (Although I am still very much on the first steps of the path to how this may play out in healing the issues I see in the world!)

So, how am I currently seeing this play out in my life?  Well, yesterday I rode my bike to my studio from home and was giving some thought to the discussion from a meeting of artists/gallery owners that I had attended the evening before.  We are working to put together an art exhibit for this fairly new gallery to open in a little over a month.  Our show title is tentatively “He Said : She Said”.  The gallery had some interesting artwork currently on display with guns as the subject matter.  I was thinking how outside my comfort zone working with that subject matter would be for me.  Living near the west-side of Chicago has really made me very aware of the issue of gun violence over the last couple of decades.  And this is “worlds” away from my upbringing in rural Michigan and the use of guns for hunting and sport.

I reflected on these thoughts during my bike ride and I had a vision of a gun that would follow the bullet as it wounds with a needle and thread that would immediately “heal” the damage that the gun created.  Or perhaps it was some sort of sewing machine in the shape of a gun that could both shoot and stitch.  Anyway,  I got into my studio and I drew this sketch (today I added the watercolor paints to it).

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I titled it “The Seam Stress 2016” –  Designed to mend wounds as soon as they are created.  If guns must continue to remain “legal” then we must create different guns.  (I’m still not sure if this will lead me to create a more complete work of art with this subject for the exhibit!)

Today as I was eating my lunch at home I glanced at yesterday’s New York Times  Business Section lying next to me.  I noticed the headline of an article titled “In Rwanda, Blood Delivered by Drone”.  I immediately assumed this was about drone weaponry and how they were being used to kill (bring blood).   In my opinion, drone weapons remove the “human” connection making it even easier to kill without conscience.  But no, this article was about a small group of engineers near Half Moon Bay, California (I’m not making that up!) who have designed and are launching small fixed-wing drones that can carry medical supplies to remote locations almost 40 miles away.  This start-up called Zipline, plans to begin operating a service with these drones for the government of Rwanda in July.    “The new drone system will initially be capable of making 50 to 150 daily deliveries of blood and emergency medicine to Rwanda’s 21 transfusing facilities, mostly hospitals…”

Well, it may be just me, but I see this as an example of our weapons  being “created different”.  And as Eggers has described it is happening “from the bottom up”.  We can no longer look for our solutions to come from our so called leaders, from the top down.  We must create our own solutions and start putting them in place when and where we see the opportunities.  She calls this being a Passionate Warrior, embracing the shadow side and incorporating it into what we transform our World to be.

In order to create this change I believe that first, we must be able to envision these solutions.  (Eggers talks about the Seer)  I see this as the role of the artist and the dreamer.  So, that is where I will continue to play out my part.  Sketching and dreaming of solutions, no matter how crazy or impossible….a sewing machine that can shoot and mend?  A gun that stitches closed the wound it creates???  Maybe someday.  Or just as soon as someone sees my Vision for it.