Gaia Community: reenchantedearth's Blog

Goddess of the Dream Cave

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 21:42:50 GMT

This is part of a series I am working on painting the Spirits in the land. This is the Goddess of the Dreaming Cave...The Dreaming Cave represents the womb where anything can be created with seeds planted by our thoughts......

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Chaco's Heart

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 03:39:11 GMT

chacoweb

Here is one of my latest paintings. I will refrain from explaining it...just let it live the life it needs to. I have gone into a real quiet space since my surgery. Lots of things moving...and lots of questioning about my art...I feel scattered, feel like things are falling apart so something new can grow...and I am just trying to breath my way through it, not resist, and accept....yes....

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Shamanic Course beginning this month

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 20:45:15 GMT

Shamanic Path to Creativity

For years I have worked with a nature based ceremony. Some may call it shamanism, but I do not. Actually, I don’t even like using that word, because it comes from other cultures. Alchemy is a better word considering my family heritage and culture. I believe in going within, discovering the stuff that keeps me from expressing my True Self, and through different techniques, transforming all that stuff that weighs me down in life, and transforming it into gold or light.

Growing up I was told that becoming an artist wasn’t the best idea. “Try to find another way to make a living.” I did everything I could to shun this path for years, moving from job to job, and being completely miserable in all of them until I finally surrendered to my passion. However, discovering my passion was just the beginning, and it is a journey that I pray I will be on for the rest of my life.

With this new excitement, I began to paint and show, but I kept running into more and more inner roadblocks. I was my worst enemy. People may have liked my work, but I never heard any of it. When I painted, I was always guided by Spirit. However, outside of that, my doubts were ruling the roost.

This is when, on a journey, I was guided to a new place…my Inner Counsel. My times spent with this Inner Counsel transformed my life. We all have these inner councils…they are different aspects of our ego that speak to us…the council says those things that convince us to not take a risk, to wait until everything is perfect, that you can never be as good as anyone else, or that voice that is sure everyone is talking about what a fool you are making of yourself….this is your Inner Council…the Council of Doubts and Fears. The council that makes sure you stay exactly where you are right now. This council of fears make all of your choices, make all of the decisions, and often push away what is good for your life.

Well, I wanted a different Inner Council. I wanted one that is empowered, proactive, creative, imaginative, supportive, adventurous, and passionate. After several years of work, I am ready to teach these alchemical tools to others.

That is what this class is all about….through different techniques, we will create the best tools for you that will help you deal with any problem, that will help you walk through all of those self-imposed roadblocks or imposed by others, help you make choices from an empowered place, and allow you to start creating your life. Some of the things we will learn during the three month course are:

- How to journey

- How to meet your Allies

- Introduction to Soul Retrieval

- Meeting Your Inner Counsel

- Alchemical ways of transforming our fears into our strengths

- Introduction to Ceremony

- Alchemy/Healing Meditations

I will create a private e-mail list for the class where all of the students can share, and where I can post meditations/lessons/thoughts for you to work with. We will meet once a week on-line where I will guide you through your lesson for the week. You will be partnered up with another student from the class for support. We will touch base privately on-line or through e-mail once a week (or more if needed), so I can offer you private instruction and support. Full participation is required for this class, so if you think that you can’t commit to this, maybe wait for another time to try it out. The class costs $60 a month, and I can accept a payment of $30 every two weeks. If you wish to pay for everything up front, you will receive a 10% discount. I can accept payment through Paypal, or through my own merchant account. I accept Visa/MasterCard and American Express. You can also pay me with money orders…whatever works the best for you.

Like I said, this is a three month course that will begin in two weeks. The class size is limited, so if you have any questions, please contact me at istazi@reenchantedearth.com. I can answer any and all of your questions, and I can send you my references.

We will not borrow from anyone else’s culture. Instead, you will connect with the roots of your own heritage.

Tags: shamanism, alchemy, on-line class, soul retrieval, ceremony, meditations

Happy New Year's

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 00:05:54 GMT

Hi Everyone, I just want to wish you all a Happy New Years. May it be filled with love and peace. This world is getting crazier every day....My New Year's Resolution is try to bring peace to my community in whatever way I can even if it is just saying prayers and offering smudge smoke...for the people that I am truly struggling with to find compassion for, may they be my teachers of patience and compassion. May I practice loving kindness no matter what the situation may be...I will recycle everything that I can, and we hopefully will be switching to biodiesel here this summer when the plant gets going. I will walk or ride my bike whenever possible as my way of trying to reduce greenhouse gases in honor of my beloved Polar Bears and all of Wakan Tanka's beautiful creations.....We can only dream a new dream by starting out small, and watching it spread like a wildfire...so on New Year's Eve night, I will go out in my garden with a seed of corn from the Holy Corn that was gifted to me at Hopi with these prayers...my prayers for this generation and for the next seven.

This is a painting I did of these beautiful women I saw at Indian Market two years ago. They were watching me as I was watching them. They allowed us to take a picture of them, and we exchanged contact information. As I painted them, I heard John Trudell sing, "We Are The Seven Generations," and this became the name of the painting. The elder is a beautiful woman and a renegade with her rugs.....and she is stern, and she sized me up pretty good. Her daughter was in absolute bliss as she held her beautiful son....and the Grandmother doted on him in a silence that was so gentle and loving....

Please forgive me for not writing of late. I have been without a computer, and then I got a cold. I am almost over it...take care and be safe!

Go San Diego Chargers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Maka Ina's Loving Support

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 13:38:33 GMT

I received this image the day after one of my cats died and the morning I found out two of my friends had lost their homes in the California wildfires this past October. I was feeling pretty sad obviously. I had to go to school to work that day (I am a sub), I had no students this one period, so I pulled out my sketchbook, and this image drew itself. The more and more I drew, the more I became enveloped in her, the better I felt. It was a sketch of the Mother Earth's Spirit, and I felt her wrapping her loving arms around all of us...supporting us...and a reconnection. We are so quick to create waste and hurt her, because we are not connected with her. If you meditate with this image, it may help you find that connection.

Change out an incandescent bulb for a fluorescent!

Go for a walk instead of driving

Turn down the air conditioning or the heater by a few degrees

RECYCLE!

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Peace

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 14:22:31 GMT

This was being passed out in a flyer when I was in Santa Fe a few weeks ago. Wherever you may be, think about this before you go to vote. Think about whether or not your candidate thinks so poorly of us....for me it reminds me of what happened with the Bush Administration and what almost happened with Iran.

Hitler's designated successor, Goering, wrote in his Nuremberg Diary the following: (I never thought I would quote this man)

"Why of course the people don't want war....But after all it is the leaders of the country that determine policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy or a fascist dictatorship or a Parliament or a Communist dictatorship....voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country."

Remind you of anything?

I have decided that I am not going to say that I am against war anymore. I feel like by doing so, I am entering into the push and pull of an argument similar to that with a friend or a foe. It enables the other person, gives them fuel to keep attacking, to keep proving me and others wrong for their need to be right. Instead, I am simply for peace. My artwork is for peace, for dreaming a new dream. If I am to dream a new dream, I cannot take part in the old battles anymore. This doesn't mean I won't speak my mind, but it will always be for peace and showing where we need to create it or where the seeds of it are being planted.

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Fire is 0% Contained

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 12:03:49 GMT

The fire in San Diego is 0% contained. I don't live in California anymore, but all of my friends do...my mom, my brother and his wife and kids. The fire that was heading towards them split into two different directions. For right now, it seems that my family is safe. However, several of my friends have lost their homes...It is about to burn to the ocean right now up in Oceanside on Camp Pendelton. I don't care what Homeland Security or FEMA says, they don't have enough firefighters. Jamul, where my parents used to take me to visit a friend's farm at least twice a month, is about to go up...Julian, a very historic mining town, one of the places that helped me fall in love with the mountains, and one of the reasons why I live here in the Rockies, is threatened. During the last big fire, they were able to save it. Now I'm not so sure the way the embers are moving around. I grew up with fire, living in San Diego. This isn't unusual. Actually, when I was three there was a huge fire...they were talking about evacuating us on Navy ships. I grew up to be a wildland firefighter. I loved working with fire. It is a living being...I used to tell that to new students, and it is. It will do everything it can to stay alive. It will generate its own storms, and when it does, be careful. That is when it is at its most dangerous point. It is at this point all over Southern California. When it gets to this point, it is absolutely amazing. It leaves you in awe no matter what is happening. The roar is unreal and terrifying. I heard it at a couple of fires here in Colorado from a distance. I heard it up close at the Lost Alamos, New Mexico fire...When you hear it holding that dinky little hose, you realize you are absolutely nothing. You realize how your ego has been lying like crazy to you about your importance. I worked for ten years as a firefighter...Now I am thinking that I should get red carded again, because I should be home helping....

Two of my cats died this week....living in the wilds isn't always safe for cats. My heart is on the ground with everything. I am hoping to to breath. I hope to help my friends in whatever way. My childhood is burning up. I guess it is time for it to change. Nothing lasts forever...not even the mountains or the oceans.

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Helping A Friend

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 16:01:43 GMT

Hi Everyone,

A friend of mine needs surgery, and she is self-employed, so that means she doesn't have insurance yet. The surgery costs $5,000, so I thought I would try to help her by putting some paintings up for auction on ArtByUs and Ebay. 10% of all sales will go to Doctors Without Borders or Wildlife Rescue as well, because I want to keep spreading out the energy of helping those who don't have the help. All of the money raised from these auctions will go to the surgery besides the 10%. I will ship anywhere, and they will come unframed. If you know of anyone that might be interested, could you forward this onto them? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

http://www.artbyus.com/auctions.php?a=2&b=176640

http://www.artbyus.com/auctions.php?a=2&b=176671

http://www.artbyus.com/auctions.php?a=2&b=176668

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=290169547003&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT&ih=019

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Blues and Brews

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 20:05:19 GMT

Blues and Brews

Well, Blues and Brews is around the corner, so I thought that I would do a couple of paintings of two of my favorite blues musicians. One is of Howling Wolf, who I named my dog Chester after. I found Chester abandoned at a park in Austin, Texas. He was scared to death when I brought him home. He would barely lift his head up to look at me. I decided to put this new Howling Wolf CD on for whatever reason, and he sat up, stared at the speaker with his head tilted to the side, and that is when his personality came to life. Howling Wolf's real name was Chester Burnett.

howlingwolfweb

The painting of Stevie was really difficult and emotionally exhausting for me. I used to work for Texas Monthly Magazine in their New York City office. Once a month I had to call in advertising placements to this wonderful woman, and we became phone buddies. When I went down to Austin, Texas for business, we finally met in person and hung out. Little did I know or really care was that her husband was the drummer for Double Trouble in Stevie Ray Vaughan's band. She told me that the next time they came up to New York for a concert, I should come back stage...well, okay.

A year later it was my 21st birthday, and my dad took me out to one of my favorite Russian restaurants for dinner. He started drinking...he has/had a drinking problem, and he proceeded to get sloshed. He began, for some unknown reason, telling me about his marriage to my mother....how he never loved her, but married her anyway because the invitations were out....then he was going to divorce her, but found out she was pregnant with me...so he was stuck. I was sat there dumbstruck....all of my fears about my childhood were spilled out of my drunken father's mouth. I ran out of there and headed downtown. A friend of mine owned a bar not far from Madison Square Garden, and we decided to create a new drink...well, like my father, I got totally sloshed...beyond sloshed. I hated drinking....never liked alcohol at all....Actually, as I look back at it, I think I was trying to drink myself to death that night.

I guess the owner of the bar sent me home in a limo, and the limo driver carried me up the stairs and left me in my apartment on the floor next to my door. When I woke up, the pain I felt was excruciating and blinding. I couldn't stop throwing up. I was drinking bottle after bottle of pepto, and nothing worked. My friend called asking me where I was and reminding me that he had a surprise for me...to hop on the bus and get into the city. Ride the bus!!!!!!!!!

I somehow made it into the city without throwing up all over everybody on the bus. I somehow climbed into my friend's car and made it back to Jersey to the Meadowlands without dying. I remember praying to die...I had no idea where we were going or what we were doing back in Jersey, especially at the Meadowlands. I couldn't even talk to ask I was so sick. Slowly, we made our way to our seats...fourth row center. I sat there in misery praying for the end of whatever concert I was about to go through. I just wanted to hide in my apartment forever...

Then, it got dark, and then....one note of a bass dropped me to the floor so hard and so fast. I knew exactly who that bass note belonged to....Tommy Shannon. He was the bassist in Double Trouble. My friend brought me to see Stevie Ray Vaughan. Everyone was screaming above me, and I was down on the floor sobbing....Tommy's bass kept vibrating through me until it finally shook all of the sickness out of me. I told him this story a few times...Then I listened to Stevie play...to see him in concert, literally, was a spiritual experience. The way he played was not of this Earth....and then he started talking about his heroine addiction, and how horrible he had felt about himself...and I realized someone knew...I wasn't alone, and I didn't have to drink myself to death or hide in my apartment...he played it all out...and created beauty from it....so now I try to paint it all out I guess.

After he died, I travelled around with Chris from show to show in Austin. His wife asked me to, because she was bedridden for the rest of her pregnancy. I watched a lot of people go up to Chris and Tommy talking, sharing about how Stevie had changed their lives...trying to figure out what to say to make everything better...Stevie used to go to AA meetings and share his story with everyone he could, trying to show them that if he could sober up, they could do it too. People from the Dallas area to this day tell me about when he showed up at their meeting, and how it changed their lives...he was and is an inspiration. For me, he got me started on healing instead of hurting...I am forever grateful to him.

I have no idea if I captured him in this painting or not, but I know that this was one of the most emotionally charged paintings I have ever done.

srvweb

Tags: Stevie Ray Vaughan, Howling Wolf, Blues Music

Taos Paintings

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Sat, 01 Sep 2007 13:20:09 GMT

Here are some paintings that I have done for the Taos Arts Festival. I swore that I would never paint the church in Rancho de Taos, because it has been painted and photographed by everyone...Georgia O'Keeffe, Marsden Hartley, Ansel Adams and Paul Strand to name a few. When I took Bill there, so he could photograph it, I got sucked in by the lines, those irresistibly seductive curves. The front of the church is like most adobe churches, but the back! The back is phenomenal...the architecture so unique, and the way it captures the New Mexico sun and shadows...Before I knew it, I was sitting down and working away with all of the other artists. I took a bit more of a radical point of view for the paintings, so I am including some pics for you to see what I was looking at!

ranchodetaos

taosweb

churchpic

churchweb

adobesunweb

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Fritz Scholder

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 21:51:55 GMT

Fritz Scholder was and is an inspiration for me...I first read about him and saw pictures of his work when I was a teenager. He was a Shamanic Artist, and he painted some very powerful works. I just saw several of his paintings in Santa Fe, and they really get to the core of your soul...they shake you, stir you up, and make you want to move forward on the Path of a shamanic artist....

I wanted to post the below, because they are his words...and I think they are inspiring and can apply to everyone. Check out some of his work at www.scholder.com

Fritz Scholder made the following remarks on May 11, 2002, in a commencement address for the College of Fine Arts at the University of Oklahoma.

I had packed my suitcase the night before. So, early on the morning of September 11, I was dressed, waiting for a car and driver to take me to the airport. I had a ticket to Washington, DC, where the next day I was scheduled to meet President and Mrs. Bush at a White House reception for artists. It was the Millennium Project: Gift to the Nation.

I had not turned on the television that morning. The car arrived and we headed down the street. A few minutes later, I asked the driver to turn on the radio and we heard the news. We turned around and headed back to my house.

For the next three hours, I sat in front of my television. I saw the most horrific and surreal images in real time over and over and then I turned it off. Any more looking, for me, would be masochistic. I had to make myself happy. I went to a movie.

That helped a bit.

I then realized that a new Bob Dylan CD was coming out that day. So I bought it and returned to my studio. It was good, but depressing, so I went to the market and bought some orchids. That afternoon, I started a Flowers Series of paintings.

I am still painting flowers.

I tell you this story regarding my personal reaction to September 11, for I am a natural optimist and on that day, which has changed everyone in the world forever, I had to produce something civilized and universal with classic form and pure color.

Attitude and approach will color you life. For me, it is the act of producing a work, which hopefully will outlast me and will be seen by my grandson years later.

Picasso once said, "Art is a lie, which forces one to realize truth." Gertrude Stein, the famous art patron, asked Picasso to paint her portrait. When he showed it to her, she said, "That doesn't look like me." Picasso replied, "It will."

Art and religion are the two constants inthese strange days of terror. The artist as shaman is more important than ever.

You must be yourself on purpose. First, find out who you are and fully accept it. Fall in love with your life and live your life with finesse and manners. Be a role model for yourself, and many will be influenced. To truly keep something, you must give away.

Remember the paradox. Beware of progress, a myth made false by the true lies and factoids of our history. Like the Greek mask of tragedy, man's excellence is equal to his most tragic flaws. Are we the best and brightest, watching our planet dimming? The cybernetic age challenges each of us. The digital landscape quakes. Overpopulation and disease run rampant. The battle has begun between the shaman/artist and the cyber/technocrat. We are living at a place of crucifixion in a crossroad of time. Opposites cross. Polarities collide. Industry and technology have succeeded for two centuries by moving in complete indifference and denial toward nature.

Reinvent yourself with every day. Each day can be a new adventure in your quest for truth.

Discover yourself. Travel. Sensibilities change dramatically by placing yourself in a new location; an unknown street in your own home town or in front of the Sphinx. Learn to write well. Learn to read well. Learn to listen and speak well. Keep a record of your time. Learn the rules, so that you know which ones to break. Remember, freedom is not free. To be free rests in our ability to mold our thoughts. Learn responsibility. Establish priorities. Learn your strengths and especially your weaknesses. Know what you want from life so that you may attain it.

Banish greed and help your friends, town and country. Be more thoughtful, understanding and kind. We are all in this together. And do all of this with love and intelligence and most of all with passion.

Tags: Fritz Scholder

Indian Market

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 16:04:20 GMT

Well, I just got back from Indian market, and what a fantastic experience. We decided to stay in Taos this time and explore it...we ponder moving there every now and then. I like Taos a lot more than Santa Fe....it still has its heart. Santa Fe is becoming so huge. It's not like when I lived nearby at all.

We spent our first day roaming the galleries and stores in Taos. We went to RC Gorman's gallery on Ledoux Street, which is always an event for me. He was the only oil pastel artist I knew of when I first began working with oil pastels. He was Dine (Navajo), and he always painted the most beautiful Dine women. His technique was flawless, and the emotion, respect, and passion he had for women came through in the most beautiful paintings. His heritage shown through. He died a couple of years ago, and as I looked at his paintings my eyes welled up with tears. I remember buying two posters of his from that very gallery back in my 20's, and how I used to look at them every night as I fell asleep. My ex-husband tore them to shreds one night, which was devestating to me. I found one of the posters there that I used to have...Red Angelina. I will go back this September and get it.

Another fantastic oil pastel artist is Miguel Martinez who has painted the same woman's face for years. I often wonder who she is...his muse...beautiful work.

As I roamed the galleries on opening night, which is Friday in Santa Fe, I couldn't believe everything I saw. What Monet, Van Gogh, Rothko, Kamrowski and Pollack did to move away from form and break all of the rules of technique, many of today's artists are taking technique to new levels of perfection. Poteet Victory and Tony Abeyeta's works just floored me. The colors and the many glazes that they painstakingly did to such perfection left in me total awe. It made me wonder as I walked down Canyon Road if there was any place for my artwork.

I think the world feels so unsafe right now, and it is showing up in the artwork of our day. If you look through art history, artwork focuses upon technique during times of war. During depressions or times out of war, art moves away from technique and focuses more upon emotional expression. For some reason, I am constantly working on emotional expression. Technique is very important to me, but I am always trying to figure out ways to break my own rules, to shift my style, to paint looser, to be more open to the Shamanic experience and Spirits that guide my paintings.

Art today seems to be more and more slick, and my artwork is becoming more and more messy....hmmmmmmmm.....well, I can't change.

I feel like I am moving towards something, but I honestly have no idea what it is...that right now I am just scratching the surface of what I really want to do even though it isn't apparent to me as of yet.

Fritz Scholder was always an inspiration to me and is an inspiration to today's many leading artists. He taught Nieto and Furlow to name a few who are both very prominent artists in the New Mexico area. All of his work is from the Other World...that place I journey to. I recognize the images that he painted, but for some reason my art cannot go where he went with it yet. Check out his work on-line if you can. Really amazing and different...I wish I could have studied with Scholder. If only I could go back in time.

If you ever get the chance to hit Canyon Road during Indian Market, go for it! It is a fantastic experience.

Also, go to the Indian Market. All of the work that they do is simply amazing! So many people from tribes all over come to this event. Most of the "best" work is sold by 7am on Saturday morning. Collectors literally camp out waiting for the booths to open right at 7am to buy what they can from their favorite artisans. That is a sight to see!

We went to the Furlow opening in Taos on Saturday. That was a wonderful even. Three different artists were showing their work at the McCormick gallery, and they all were showing some beautiful work...very vibrant in color and composition. I had someone following me around the gallery, and not wanting to cause a scene, I left. I didn't want to ruin the night of all of these great artists...but when you are in Taos, stop in at this gallery as well...and go into everything on Ledoux Street and on Kit Carson. You won't be sorry.

Tags: Indian Market, Nieto, Furlow, Abeyeta, Oil Pastel Painting, Taos, Santa Fe, Canyon Road

Another Day

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 14:08:43 GMT

Hi Everyone....I just want to thank everybody for staying in touch with me even though I have been horrible about staying in touch with everyone. Summer is such a busy time for me, and this year it seems even worse! I want to thank everybody for being so encouraging about my artwork. It sure presents me with a lot of stuff....it is my constant teacher about what I need to surrender in my life, what I need to embrace, and what I need to just sit down and figure out....sometimes it is about memories as well....good and bad. I don't have any contact with my family, because we just don't seem to fit. I got tired of being the bad guy all of the time, so I needed to let those old stories go. In the process, my family let me go. Today it is my birthday, and I am missing them...I have a painting in mind to do, but I am just not sure I have it in me to do right now. This painting is of my horse...I kept seeing him in my dream....and I painted him....he is wild and has this exceedingly thick mane of hair. When I was five, two of our mares were pregnant. Since I was the oldest, my grandfather told me that the first one born would be mine. We named him Michgo...he was this beautiful chestnut colt. He had a mind of his own from the beginning, and boy was he feisty. He never took guff from anyone. I grew up in horse racing, so when the day came to register his name, we were told that another horse had it already. Two horses cannot have the same name in horse racing. I was devastated, because we had called him Michgo for two years! How in the world would he know his new name now? How would he know when I was calling him? I refused to accept the new name that my grandfather chose for him. I was furious, and someone had to stand up for my horse.

My grandfather patiently took me by the hand and took me to the stables. These were my favorite times....anytime I had alone with him, and especially when we went to spend time with the horses together. My grandfather truly was a horse whisperer. He was born blind in one eye, and he had heard problems from the moment of birth. He was told he would never survive his childhood. He lived for 78 good years....:) He died when I was 18...just after I moved to New York City.

Anyway, we went down to Daisy's to hang out with the horses...to feed them carrots and sugar cubes, and for my lessons on how to "see and feel" horses. He could see problems before anyone else could. Anyway, we were watching my horse play with his teather ball. Yes, we installed a teather ball. He had so much energy that he was always going after all of the other horses. My grandfather put this teather ball in, and he and I used to play teather ball together....and he started leaving the other horses alone.

We were leaning over the wood fence when my grandfather gently began explaining why we had to change his name. I vehemently, and with tears in my eyes, explained my protests to this. "We just had to find another name!" I stated. He looked at me with that twinkle in his eyes, and that smile that told me he was completely amused by me in a loving way, and he said, "We have to change his name...there is no other way. I chose another name, and I want to run it by you to see what you think first. If you don't like it, we will find another name. I want to name him Big Ruckus. Do you know why? Because wherever he goes, he causes a Big Ruckus. Everyone notices him. He is always kicking up dirt, and he never follows the others unless HE wants to. He is just like you, and I am naming him after you." Well, of course I liked the name, mainly because I think someone finally got me...finally understood me and this beautiful horse of mine.

For some reason, this is on my mind today....

Below are two YouTube Videos. One is of my kitten nursing on my 100 pound puppy, and the other is of a Bluegrass Interview...if any of you like Bluegrass, then you might find it interesting. I am not the biggest fan, but as a violinist, I do love all of the strings!

A Kitten's Best Friend

Interview with Ben Kaufmann of YMSB at Telluride Bluegrass

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Sweet Surrender

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 22:25:46 GMT

I am sorry that I have been so quiet of late. Thanks everyone for being so kind and concerned about me. The summer is my busiest time. I do two Farmer's Markets a week, and I travel around doing art shows. I have been preparing for two art shows for the past couple of weeks, so I have been in the studio framing, framing and framing some more. Now I need to matte up a bunch of prints. I thought went I went into business for myself, I would have more free time. Not the case at all! I've never worked harder, but I've never been happier.

I've also been going through a challenging time these last weeks that Saturn is in my sign. Saturn is all about ending cycles and that started 30 years ago and starting new ones. Many challenges have come before me...seeds that I planted didn't sprout....something that has never happened to me, and for some reason triggered me greatly....then after I did some inner work about this, lo and behold, a month and a half later, they began sprouting! Sometimes you just need to let things go. You just need to let the winds come and blow away what you no longer need to hold of....sometimes it is about simple, sweet surrender...not giving up at all, but surrendering...trusting, finding faith, and in so doing, you create the fertile soil for things to grow.

Then my computer crashed a bad crash. It appears that Vista enjoys creating parallel realities, and my entire computer world is still in disarray even though I have a new hard drive. Usually, this is something that would have driven me nuts. However, it was another lesson for me to take things in stride...to do what I can when I can and to just let it all go.

I also have gone through some challenging relationship issues with friends of late. Luckily, my boyfriend is straight and true. He is such a support to me. His belief in me and my artwork never waivers, and I am so grateful for him to be in my life.

However, I have had a couple of friends that seem to think I need to give up my whole artwork dream and just focus on other things. In the past I have kept my mouth shut saying to myself over and over, "They are just saying this because they care about me." Then one day I snapped. If they did care about me, they wouldn't say these things. They wouldn't hurt me by saying these things, and it suddenly became unacceptable to me. I drew my line in the sand, and I lost a couple of friends because they just couldn't get what I was trying to say or ask of them. I am sad, but I understand that they need to be where they need to be as I need to be where I need to be. What is interesting after I let all of this go is that I have sold several hundred dollars in prints and I won first place in an art show and an honorable mention award!

Surrender, surrender, and surrender some more. Let things go, so new things can grow. Plant seeds to creativity, compassion, passion, loving kindness, and peace, and just sit back and watch it all grow!

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Gardening Alchemy

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Wed, 30 May 2007 16:16:22 GMT

Well, the season has begun for me. I took part in an art festival last weekend, which was a very emotional experience at the start, and it went well. I think I heard most of the nice comments. I also met a lot of wonderful people, which is always the best part for me. Next week I travel to two different areas of Colorado to drop off art for their shows and I am getting ready for the Farmer's Market's, which start mid June. I am also putting in my garden. We had our, hopefully, last freeze of the season last night. A gentle frost that took only three of my sweet basils...I got all of the seed into the ground, and now I water and pray over the seeds...waiting to see who they all decide to become. I love gardening...it is the best time of year for me. I love working with the Earth everyday in such a way. It is a great way to learn the Earth's lessons. I really don't read many books about how to garden. I just try to listen to what the plants and the Garden Spirit's tell me to do. Most of the time it works.

I was "weeding" my strawberries yesterday. I have a bunch of blooms and a few berries are developing. Yummy. I really do hate to weed, because I feel that there is a purpose for everything...that the "weeds" are herbs. When I have to pull them, I am always talking to them, asking for their forgiveness, and promising to not pull them in other areas...they had an interesting lesson for me. In the areas where these herbs/weeds were growing...I noticed that the strawberries weren't growing...that small circles of nothing grew around these areas.....and I started thinking about how this goes on in all of our lives...I know it happens in mine. Maybe I allow something to grow in an area of my life where it really isn't suited for... maybe it drains all of the nutrients out of me, all of the live giving waters out of me in this area of my life, and maybe I need to transplant them to another area...an area where a type of alchemy can occur...but I will get to that later....but maybe in this area, instead of transforming the dross, those heavy metals in my life that hold me back from truly living and flowering into a beautiful gold, they are keeping it all safe...keeping it all the same...keeping me in my comfort zone. Maybe it is an herb, but it is the wrong herb or treatment for this area....so it needs to be moved...it needs to be uprooted, so something else can move in and transform this area into healing...into life...into the Golden Spirit that can allow me to move closer and closer to who I really am....and maybe by pulling that herb, that very act is the first stage of my Inner Alchemy, the first stage of transformation and moving those heavy metals...maybe that is the purpose of the herb to begin with...to uproot those things that are no longer useful....so I apologize to them for having to remove them from my garden, and I give thanks to them for the healing that they are bringing to me and maybe others in the process....and maybe there won't be too many barren areas in my life.

The painting is of the Gnostic version of Mary Magdalene...the Empowered Woman....she is the patron saint of Gardens and Vineyards in Southern France.

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Recycling Those Chakras!

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Sat, 12 May 2007 01:08:22 GMT

I haven't written for awhile, because I burned my hand and life has been a roller coaster. My cat Jaws...I had to put him to sleep, and it was really sad...although, I know it was right, that it was time, and I am so grateful for him being in my life. He was abandoned by my neighbors. I guess the woman that lived there hit him with her car, broke the bottom portion of his jaw, and had a wire inserted to hold it together while it healed. She never had it taken out. It had been in there for over a year before I finally tamed him enough to take him to the vet and have it removed, thus I called him Jawsey forever more and he became my best friend.

So here is a great exercise for cleansing those chakras in the shower. It is a good way to recycle all of those negative emotions before you go to sleep, thus you can wake up refreshed and ready for a new day. I did this quite a bit during the week, because I was feeling so bad about losing Jawsey. You can also do this with Reiki! It is great!

First, say a prayer or an intentional statement such as, "I intend to bring myself into balance with this work, and I ask for support from Creator, the Earth Mother, my Guides, Spirit Animals, Four Directions and Four Elements. I give thanks in advance for all of the love and support that will be provided to me." The elders say that when we give thanks in advance, we pave the way for the healing to come to us...we are opening a door welcoming the change that will come.

So when I take a shower and do this work, I like to turn off the lights, light some incense that is relaxing and soothing for me and I light a candle. Candle light is a fantastic thing to blend with a wonderful scent, and the sound of water.....that alone is healing for me!

In the shower, focus on your breathing...in and out...Work on breathing with your belly rather than your chest...so breath in allowing your belly muscles to expand..and hold for a couple of seconds, and then exhale all the air out...focus on doing this for a few minutes.. We have become chest breathers, which is actually bad for our health....it does not promote good circulation. If you suffer from cold hands and feet, start belly breathing and it could help correct the problem. It also helps me whenever I feel a headache coming on.

After my breathing is slowing down, relaxing me even further, I start to focus my intention upon becoming aware of my chakras....My intention is that I will begin to feel their presence within my energetic field....when I feel connected with them, I then begin the work.

I take my two fingers, my index and middle fingers, and over my root chakra, I begin spinning my fingers slowly counterclockwise visualizing myself opening the chakra. The friction of moving counterclockwise helps you feel the imbalances within your chakra. I then let my fingers do the talking. What are they feeling? Are they feeling blockages, sluggish energy? Tightness? Coolness? Does it feel closed? Whatever you feel is blocking your chakra from flowing in a balanced way, simply let it attach to your fingers and then wash your fingers in the water...releasing all negative energy, praying that it will be transformed into healing energy for the benefit of all...then if you do any type of energy work, such as Reiki or whatever, let the energy flow into that chakra...Also, visualize the color of that chakra flowing in with the energy. When you are done, slowly begin spinning your fingers in a clockwise motion, so your chakra can begin to flow naturally and in balance once again after the healing work you have done. You need to do this for each chakra.....so for the root chakra it is a deep, vibrant red...make sure it is clear and radiant. For the belly chakra, it is the orange of a sunset...vibrant, strong, illuminating...solar plexus is yellow...that wonderful yellow of a sunrise or of a sunflower....the heart can be green or a rose color....I always think of the deep green of a moss that I find in the woods next to water or the color of a pink rose from my garden...the throat chakra is turquoise and the third eye is a deep blue of lapis or the ocean or an amethyst purple...the crown for me is white...After you go through all of the chakras...lay down on your bed and allow your energy to do what it needs to do to find balance again. If you immediately go back to work or doing chores, then the healing that you just tried to do, won't last for too long. Give it a chance to become a part of your being. I always have amazing dreams after this.

Also, as you are working with this meditation, I feel that the four elements are very involved...fire from the candle, water from the shower, air with the energy, and Earth from the incense...so make sure at the end to also give thanks for all of the help that was provided to you...all of the support that came to you from Spirit.

You may experience a lot of different emotions while working with this meditation. If so, don't resist or deny them. Simply honor them and give yourself permission to allow those feelings to flow through you. Denial creates deep depression. Honest and expression allows you to move forward and through a situation. Also remember this, YOUR FEELINGS DO NOT DEFINE WHO YOU ARE! They are just feelings that are temporary. They are not permanent, and as soon as you allow them to move through you, they can transform into something else. This is alchemy...transforming the dross of our lives into pure gold. An elder I worked with always said to me, "Open your heart, walk through your fear, and you will find the answers on the other side." He was right...I could never find the answers to my questions as long as I allowed fears to keep my heart closed...

I hope this finds you all well and helps in some way!

Tags: Reiki, Reenchanted Earth, Chakra Healing, Energy Healing, Color Healing

Lets Stop Dreaming Nightmares Into Being

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Wed, 02 May 2007 18:13:14 GMT

I've been kind of quiet lately....been responding to my e-mails late, and I wish to apologize to everyone. It's my busy time...I travel to Farmer's Markets and to Art shows selling my art and soap. I'm my only employee, so I keep myself quite busy. I moved into a very quiet space after watching the Virginia Tech shooting unfold. When I was 16, my best friend and his mother were murdered. He was born a few months before me, and we grew up with one another. I literally knew him my entire life. Our families were very close...Mike and I got into a lot of trouble together, and as we got older we grew apart. However, he got into a bad wreck, and while he was healing up, we started talking again...hanging out again. Then one night my neighbor burst through the door saying that Mike and Mrs. Ford were dead. She heard it on the police scanner. I ran to the window, and there was one cop car there. He was putting up the yellow tape...people wonder why I hate yellow...The odd thing was that during the time that Mike and Mrs. Ford were being murdered, I was looking at the house from my bedroom window. I was listening to the kids playing up the road and thinking about when Mike and I used to do that when we were little...I never heard or saw a thing. They died a horrible death, one that I won't describe, but one that nobody ever deserves.

My mom and I both saw something, and we knew who did it. However, it took a month before the police could prove it. It was Mike's dad...someone I loved and trusted with my life all of my life. He came over to our house everyday during that month of investigation and talked about odd things....like how to tie a tie. He was no longer there. He was not the man I knew. He was the man he became when he had a break within him...when he decided to dream in a nightmare instead of compassion. Everytime he came over, I positioned myself next to something I coud use as a weapon in case he broke again. I just didn't know.

Then the cops found the proof. They let him know that he would soon be arrested. Why, I am not sure. He put his will and insurance papers someplace where his son David could find, and then he went over to a neighbor's and basically confessed. He was upset because Mike never got the grades that I did...he then got into the truck that Mike had built from the frame up with him, and drove 80mph into a tree.

My entire world crumbled at the edges and fell apart. Everything I believed in, vanished. I had no idea what was real anymore...what was truth. If Mr. Ford could kill his own son, then my parents could do the same. What I trusted as being safe, suddenly didn't exist. As I watched their faces on TV, I saw it happening all over again to so many people, and my heart broke for them.

They are standing at an important spot. They are waking up in many ways, but it is a paradox...You wake up, you start to explore the world in a whole new way...you let go of what no longer serves you, you find a much freer way to live, you begin dreaming new dreams, but the sad thing is that it all started from such a tragic space.

It took me ten years to totally wake up from the Fog. After that month, that horrible month, I was told over and over that "everything will be okay." Do not ever say that to anyone going through anything like this! I wanted to scream a blood curdling scream each time I heard that! Nothing will be okay...nothing will ever be the same. It simply changes...and either you wake up or you go deeper into your sleep. I slept for awhile. In fact, I almost died twice from an illness that seemed a lot like leukemia...but Spritual dreams called me back from my comas. Finally, I realized that Mike, Mrs. Ford, and Mr. Ford all died in vain if I did not keep living...enjoy life, etc. I learned how to ride a motorcycle, something that Mike was going to teach me how to do, and I started to paint and write...my passions.

I feel so sad for all of these kids and families going through this....I then think about how people in Iraq and Darfur, just for two examples, are going through this each and every day. I have no idea how they survive...except for Spirit...that seed of Hope and Belief that Spirit plants within us...

It makes me cry when I see all of the nightmares that we are choosing to dream into reality. We are killing ourselves with these horrible dreams. We can make a different choice. We can. I know that we can, because I did it...and if I can do it, then I know others can. We can dream in a more compassionate way of living...Instead of dreaming in anger, we can dream in loving kindness. When you are in a situation that normally triggers you into responding out of fear or anger, make a different choice. Take a step back, breath, and then be honest with yourself and others. Smile instead of attack....Dream another Dream....Dream yourself back to the Sacred Hoop...Stop dreaming in the Hoop of Fear that is causing so much destruction and pain in this world.

I will be uploading new paintings into the photo area if you wish to see them....later today.

Tags: Reenchanted Earth, Dreams

Dreaming In Ourselves

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 18:45:32 GMT

I spent a wonderful weekend in Moab again. We camped out along the Colorado River, and we were lucky to find a secluded spot. It was Jeep Safari weekend, so the entire area was filled with Jeepsters roaming all over the place. Our campsite was down a huge embankment, nestled within oaks while sitting not too far above the river. Across the Colorado was this beautiful red butte that I couldn't get enough of looking at. The river sounded so beautiful, and it was high and muddy from the spring run-off. That was good to see since our drought has caused this river to sink so low. I heard the other day that by 2030, the southwest will be a dust bowl...so I pray for rain grateful for even one drop that falls upon my face as I look up to the clouds.

That night it rained. It was such a beautiful thing, because I actually heard the river calling to the clouds, calling to them to share rain with it. The river became so loud within a few minutes before the rain answered and fell upon the land. When the rain began to fall, the river quieted, and the only sound one can hear was the sweet smelling rain. It rained for a couple of hours, and when it stopped, I snuck out of the tent with my dogs and headed to the river. I sat there and meditated for awhile, and some seeds were planted within me.

We all keep talking about Global Warming and how we have to change our ways, start recycling, drive more efficient cars, etc....but what about ourselves? We need to change in order for any kind of permanent change to occur. What I mean by this is the inner pollution that we walk around with and spew everywhere; this inner pollution creates destructive behaviors, and in order for us to truly reverse Global Warming or to dream in a New World, we have to dream our new selves in.

I've been watching all of this stuff about Imus, Mel Gibson and Michael Richards, and what they are all showing us is their inner pollution. By letting that inner pollution come out into the world we are seeing the destruction and pain it causes in the faces of those that their comments were directed towards. The horrible murders we see everyday, other evidence of what our inner pollution causes. Pollution in our world is not just caused by toxic chemicals, it is also caused by toxic emotions and pain.

Corn is an interesting Spirit to work with. Every time I am about to pray, I am asked by this Spirit if I am sure that this is the prayer that I want to plant. Every time we go out of our way to avoid those nasty, ugly feelings; which are basically our fears, we are planting a different type of prayer into the Earth and into the generations that are yet to come. We are planting our fears, our turbulent emotions, and it will be carried on...and those emotions will continue to pollute the Earth. How can we clean up the Earth if we can't even be aware of what is going on within ourselves?

So often we don't honor the Divine within ourselves. Sit down for a few minutes and really listen to all of the things you say to yourself. Would you say any of that out loud for anyone else to hear? Would you say those things to people you care about? Think about how you are polluting yourself and how that will spread through every interaction you have.

We can not create a new world if we don't recreate ourselves.

So the question is, how do we recycle ourselves? There are plenty of self-help books out there talking about this in their own way, however they don't talk about how this directly affects the Earth. If you are out of balance, how can the Earth find balance? We are a part of nature. We are not separate from it, yet we are the only species that does live out of balance.

It seems that Spirit wishes to learn about all the ways we bring ourselves out of balance and the ways in which we move back to our center. Think about the sacred spiral....When we are born, we are at our center....then our fears make us spiral further and further away until the day comes when we wake up...and then we spend the rest of our lives moving back to our center.

I think some of the best self-recycling techniques for myself sitting on the earth. Yes, just sitting on the Earth. Usually, we sit on chairs that get to sit on the Earth when we are in the great outdoors. I like to simply sit upon the Earth and feel that connection.

I do the Vipassana and Tonglen meditation especially when I want to avoid it. When I feel resistance, I know that I am on the verge of something big, so I go through the Vipasanna and Tonglen meditations, and it usually gets me through the shift.

If I can't slow down my reactions in a situation, I usually sit down later and go back over it and keep questioning what was really happening. Peeling through all the layers as best as I can...and resort to the Zen Meditation by asking myself over and over, "Who am I?" Usually, I think I am these emotions, I am these labels that come up from these situations...so by asking myself this question over and over, I slowly shed all of these layers of skin and get to the core essence for a brief moment. It helps me see with the eyes of an Eagle, because you can never heal a situation at the level it was created. If you try to heal it at the same level, you will always be mired in it. This is usually why the same issue comes up over and over again even though you thought you already dealt with it.

Another way of recycling my toxic emotions is I journal. I do stream of conscious writing. I choose something that is troubling me, and I write three pages about it without worrying about what is coming out, without pausing, without worrying about punctuation....just writing....letting everything come out that needs to come out. Usually, this really helps me get to the heart of something and a solution comes out of it...a way to alchemize it into something functional and empowering.

A fourth way is simply going out into Nature and praying...I pray and pray and pray...pray until I feel it shift in me...and whenever that shift does come, here is what I do...I imagine all of that negative energy being released up to the Universe in the form of black smoke, and I ask that it be transformed into healing energy that then rains down upon All Of My Relations in Golden Light. As it rains down upon me, I feel myself filling up with this energy....all the way to the top of my aura and then I share it with everyone....

If there is someone in your life that you just can't stand, try to see beyond that aspect of them that is driving you nuts....look beyond and see and feel their suffering. Pray for them....share some loving kindness with them by smiling at them...by not reacting in your usual way....Make a different choice, and a different relationship may develop. Now I'm not saying you have to be best friends with those that are abusive towards you, but still, try to see beyond the obvious...find compassion for them. You don't have to be their best friend, but that simple act of embodying compassion for them will help cleanse you of quite a bit of toxic emotions...recycle, recycle, and recycle...

Now about dreaming ourselves into being along with the New World...well, this is a huge subject...but try to envision yourself and who you wish to be. I'm not talking about what you wish to succeed at in life...but the basics...the simple basics...such as for me, I wish to embody a creative loving kindness that I can share with my fellow relations....I pray that I can drop my armor, which just keeps everyone out, and let this come forward more...so I am working on creating this vision for myself...

Mitakuye Oyasin

Tags: Dreaming Ourselves, Mother Earth, Global Warming, Reenchanted Earth

Visit Arches

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 13:08:04 GMT

Meditation on Windows

This is a video at a wonderful arch in Arches National Park called Windows. There are several arches at this stop, but I was lucky to have it all to myself. It was wonderful...so quiet with the wind.

Driving Through Arches

Bill wanted me to video the drive through Arches. Please keep in mind that he drives like everything has the suspension of a corvette, and the roads are worn from years of weather. It really is an amazing drive with fantastic hikes that I wish you all could make one day.

Tags: Moab Utah, Arches, Windows

Tribes Get Computer to stop illegal logging in Brazil

http://reenchantedearth.gaia.com — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 13:56:49 GMT

I thought this was an interesting article and poses a lot of questions. I think it is great that people are getting creative as to how to stop the illegal logging in the rainforest...but some think that this will "corrupt" the tribes. Personally, I think this helps the tribes reclaim their power and creates a peaceful way for them to take care of their land and their people...this is also a great way to protect the environment....What do you think?

Read the article at:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6509973.stm

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