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Joy and Beauty in the New Year

9/19/2015

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After living so many years of my life in synch with the school calendar, September always feels like the beginning of the new year for me. This makes me think back to my New Year's resolutions of last January.
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In January 2015, I posted on my Facebook page that my word for 2015 was going to be "JOY". Nice idea but easier said that than done. Now, in September, I recognize that I am in a situation that is familiar to me from the painting studio. A painter starts out with an intention: I am going to paint "Joy". 
For a while it works. Flowers, rainbows, balloons - the painting is light and free. But after a while the painter runs out of energy. When I check in, the conversation goes like this:
Me: How is it going?
Painter: I'm making a happy painting.
Me: How are you feeling as you paint?
P: I'm feeling sad and heavy.
Me: Could you let some of that show up in your painting?
P: But I want it to be happy! I don't want to ruin it!
Me: You did paint happy. But this is process painting. Could you let your current feeling show up in the painting too?Usually the painter agrees. New, darker images appear but instead of ruining the painting, it becomes richer, more complex, and more satisfying.
I love the way that lessons learned in the painting studio reverberate throughout my life.  As I struggle to find space for more joy in my life, I know from my painting experience that admitting to the dark parts doesn't undermine the happy stuff - it makes the painting better. Both sides of the struggle - the wanting joy and the dark feelings that block it out - deserve to be in the painting and make it beautiful.
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So this is what I am learning from process painting this month:
My life may not always be happy but it is beautiful.
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Finding Time for Happiness

8/9/2015

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What would you do if someone gave you three hours of completely free time and a budget of $50?

This is not a rhetorical question. Take a minute and think about your answer. Or better yet, think of three or four very different answers.

Did your answers make you smile? I hope so. One of the biggest challenges in a busy life is to find time for things that make us happy. We spend so much energy on things that are important and necessary it can hard to find time to do things that recharge our batteries. This is an invitation to find time to follow through on just one of those ideas. You may not be able to do it exactly the way you imagined. Focus on the essence of your idea and try to find a way to make it happen.

With all that said, I confess that sometimes, like the cat in the painting, I just want to stay home and sit on the couch. 
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No matter how fun the other options may be, my deepest wish at that moment is to just sit. So, I do.

If you would like to share your wishes or make a public commitment to your plans, please use the comments section below. 
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    Process painting is such a magical experience that I want to share. My invitation to you: Paint. Play. Discover.

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