Perspective...

I made a little photo collage of our trip down to Sanibel Island. The island is one of my favorite places on Earth and I am thankful to be living just a short road trip away. Time slows down when you cross the bridge. Life is as simple as Beach, Eat, Sleep. Repeat. As soon as I get there, I am inspired. I don't know if it is the shore breeze playfully blowing through my hair, the fine white sand beneath my toes, or the amazing sky that kisses the sea. I feel comforted, safe...I feel like I am exactly where I am supposed to be.

As the iron lighthouse stands guard nearby, we comb the shoreline seeking treasures. It isn't long before someone calls out, "I found one!" or "Look what I found!" I am always in awe at the abundance that the ocean has to offer. Every year I pick a differnent type of shell to collect. This year, I set about easily collecting white scallops. I have an idea to make some pendants, possibly using wire wrap. I keep a lookout also for any interesting driftwood. This time I scored some woven palm, nature's "fabric". I can hardly wait to incorporate that into an art journal page somehow. Texture. Color. Composition. It is all around. Nature is creating magic here.

I am aflush with the ideas that wash over me.

Although my time spent on the island is fleeting, I remind myself to remain in gratitude for every minute I am there. When I am there, possibilities lay wide open. I feel like that is the life I am meant to live, and I feel like I have the power to create it.  I hear the calling...

So, when I return home, I try to hold onto that feeling, that inspiration, that I CAN create whatever life I desire.
Below, is a work-in-progress, one of the many island ideas that are begging to be let out. It reads:
a day at the BEACH can change your whole PERSPECTIVE in the BEST way possible.

Go out and Be Kind.

A little mixed media...

Hi All,
I've been away from the computer for a little while, absorbing myself with my new job. Unfortunately, with so much information to take in, I have had to limit my time on the blogs and FB in order to prevent any overwhelm that could arise from trying to DO IT ALL, ALL THE TIME.

I know that soon I will settle in and with camp starting this week for my daughter, I will soon have a lot of studio time during the day to myself, and a lot of time to devote to working out....SOON. Looking forward to these free summer days.

Here's a little somethin'-somethin' that I created for my art journal group. It will actually be in my own book, as this was a page devoted to how we are feeling about our group and the experience of art journaling up to this point. With art journaling, I am "feeling free". Able to explore all different mediums, often without any notion of how it will turn out. Just going with the flow, and reacting to ideas this way and that as they pop into my head. It's about happy art surprises and loving what I create with my own two hands. It's about using glitter with abandon just 'cause I feel like it. Stamping, cutting, clipping, gluing, stapling, painting, drawing, and adding words, words, words! Without any thought about whether it is fine, folk, whatever genre it fits into, or whether someone will like it or not.

As I mentioned above, this page will go into my journal at the end of the circle. Upon showing it to my husband, he asked..."Do you think Shari will like it?"

I think she will LOVE it.

Go out and Be Kind.