A Sneak Peek

 Thursdays are typically my day to be in the clinic but last week people were healthy and I wasn't needed. YAY! So I was fortunate enough to have the house to myself for several hours. Initially I had planned to go to the art gallery where I can glaze my pottery but Ed was out of town so that was not an option. I can get easily overwhelmed if I don't have any direction when I am trying to be creative and that can be disastrous resulting in a completely wasted day. It can also cause my projects to become of mammoth proportion and that's exactly what happened on Thursday. While in Nashville I bought a craft book (surprise, surprise) about doodling. The above Zentangle type doodle came from the new book and I used watercolor to wash over the drawing once I was satisfied with what was on the paper.

 A few months ago I purchased 3 pieces of bamboo at a farmer's market in Jonesborough. Originally they were going to be poles for a semi-covered area in my backyard. That's another thing that happens a lot, objects are purchased for one purpose but turn into something completely unrelated. C'est la vie.

So far this creative endeavor has taken about 4 hours and as you can see the project isn't complete and it may be a while before it is fully transformed. I have a couple of ideas in my head as to what the end result could be but I would be interested in any ideas you have! This has been fun and I'm really excited to see the end result. In the mean time have a brownie!

Blessings

 I may have mentioned in a previous post a lady from my church had recently passed away. She was a young woman with two daughters who are under the age of 13. I didn't know her very well but we had a common thread in that we both serve in the children's ministry. The prayer flags were such a big hit at the skilled nursing facility and The River I thought this would be a good gift for the little girls as well. I also wanted to make something that could be used in several different ways as a means to remember their mom.

Some of the items I used in the flags were items from other projects. The colored strings above were used during an experimental painting project. I thought the rainbow of colors made a nice touch and since rainbows are also utilized in Christian symbolism it seemed only fitting.

This is a polymer clay bead I made a few years ago and just never knew what to do with it. I'm glad it finally found a home.

I chose not to write anything on the middle flag. When I give this to the family Sunday I will include some information on prayer flags and how they can be used as a beneficial piece during the grieving process. I will also let them know the bird flag was left without text should they desire to write their own message for their mom. ~Peace

Find someone to bless

I've been out of the blogging realm for a bit, seems to be a common theme for me these days. Hopefully this post will make up for my absence. It's difficult at times to keep therapy functional and interesting but Thursday I went with purpose. Consider this part of a "pay if forward" mission.

I've visited a place called "The River" which serves many functions for women. Women can wash laundry for a quarter, shower, craft, garden, socialize and just experience some semblance of normalcy in a safe environment. To me one of the coolest things they have is the garden. It's very humbling to see the excitement expressed over being able to grow vegetables for a modest salad. Needless to say an opportunity was born! This brings me back to Thursday.  I had those who were interested make prayer flags to be placed in the garden at The River.

The amount of creativity that flowed from this project was amazing. One lady who typically only comes to therapy for the minimum amount of time came back after lunch just to finish her flag. It was awesome!!

This is her flag. She made the dandelion flowers and the nest from scraps of yarn. Although you can't see it, the string connecting this flag to the others is embroidery thread braided with loops on each end. Definitely above and beyond on all the details in her flag.

The lady who made this cut out some fabric for the birdhouse and drew the rest of the design on the flag using sharpies.

I loved them so much!!!

I delivered these on Friday and led another expressive/creative art group for the ladies at The River. They also made prayer flags to be placed in their garden. I heard stories about being homeless, being a young mother who was recently evicted and general struggles with the day to day things life brings. It seems most people are so busy with their over scheduled lives that the circumstances of others can't find room in our minds. Next time you are on your way to practice some sport, learn a new instrument or have the privilege to sit down with your family during a meal know how blessed you are and say a prayer for someone less fortunate than you. ~Peace