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St. Patrick's Day and Ireland-from A to Z

3/12/2018

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St. Patrick wasn't Irish, he wore blue, not green and there were no snakes.
​But there were vampires and leprechauns and witches. Oh my!
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In celebration of St. Patrick's Day, I'm using my alphabet prompts to learn more about all things Irish. I'm only doing one or two topics per letter, even though I can think of many more for some.. Even so, be warned. This will be a long post. Happy St. Patrick's Day!

A - Abhartach - the Irish Vampire

Let's start with something light and fun! Ha!

A is for Abhartach, the Irish Vampire. 
Even though Dracula, the character created by Bram Stoker, is most often associated with Transylvania, in reality he may have been based on an Irish king, Abhartach. He was said to be a dwarf and considered to be evil and feared by all who knew him.
He was a very jealous man and was suspicious of his wife, convinced that she was having an affair. While spying on her from a high castle window, he fell to his death. The entire kingdom was relieved.. They buried him upright, apparently the correct burial position for royalty, and enjoyed a peaceful night's sleep. One. Just one.
Because the next day, he rose from the dead, and demanded that all of his subjects slit their wrists and drain their blood into bowls. Well, you can imagine they were upset, so they traveled to the next village seeking help from another king, Cathan, who came, killed him and buried him once more. 
You guessed it. Up he came, ready for yet another snack.
This continued until Cathan decided to seek help from a saint who explained there was no way to kill someone who was already dead!
His suggestion was to bury him upside down, cover him with thorns and ash branches, and top it off with a huge boulder. As far as we know it worked, and peace returned to the kingdom. He served as inspiration for Stoker's Dracula, and all lived happily ever after!

B - Banshee

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A banshee is a terrifying, wispy, floating specter with a piercing scream who warns of a coming death in the family. First reports were in Ireland in the 8th century. This alarming figure, usually female, varies in age from a young maiden to an old woman. Some families were reported to have their very own banshee, possibly having been a family member who had passed. They were known for their  keening,  mournful singing and wailing, as they lamented the death of loved ones. 

C - Children of Lir

​King Lir, Bobd Derg, was left with four motherless children, one daughter and three sons, when his wife Aoibh, the queen, unexpectedly passed away. The king decided to marry Aoife, his wife's sister

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ABCs of Color

3/4/2018

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. Roger von Oech, author of A Kick in the Seat of the Pants and A Whack on the Side of the Head, shared this perspective from an advertisement for a library.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

“At your local library they have these arranged in ways that can make you cry, giggle, love, hate, wonder, ponder, and understand.

It’s astonishing to see what these twenty-six little marks can do.
In Shakespeare’s hands they became Hamlet. Mark Twain wound them into Huckleberry Finn. James Joyce twisted them into Ulysses. Gibbonpounded them into The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. 
John Milton shaped them into Paradise Lost.”

~ 
Quote taken from an advertisement to promote local libraries.
​
One of my favorite approaches to creating trainings is to use the alphabet to shift from a predictable list to concepts I might not consider. For example, simply listing the colors I plan to cover in my Exploring Rainbows course (Red, Yellow, Orange, etc.) tends to limit my thinking. 

​I used the alphabet to capture memories from trips, ideas for articles, brainstorming gift list, planning my garden, visits to museums, my annual gratitude lists, and in this case, workshop concepts.

So for each color of the rainbow, I'm planning to use examples of
  • Advertising- how colors are used to impact how we make purchases
  • Businesses and Brands 
  • Chakras 
  • Dining - orange to stimulate the appetite and prompt us to eat quickly and move on (fast foods), red to encourage us to slow down and enjoy (fine dining), and blue to decrease the appetite. Great for dieting. 

Then there are Fairy tales and Folk lore, Gemstones, Global interpretations, Quotes, Songs, Symbolism . . . right now I have 3 or 4 topics for each letter. Six weeks will barely be enough time to cover everything!

The next time you're brainstorming ideas, write down each letter of the alphabet and see what kind of associations occur to you that might not have otherswise! And if you're really feeling industrious, see if you can arrange those 26 little marks to make another book to add to the Library of Congress!



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The Zen of Seeing - Dr. Frederick Franck

2/28/2018

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.​Dr. Frederisk Franck is an author, artist, and oral surgeon but even more notably, a spiritualist.  He sees the sacred in the everyday beatify of life, and uses seeing and drawing as meditation. ​He worked  with Dr. Albert Schweitzer in Africa to provide services to those in need.
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Hiroshima - The Unkillable Human
This sculpture depicts a man's silhouette flashing against a wall when the nuclear bomb was dripped.
One of Dr. Frederick Franck's sculptures in the Peace Garden in Harrisburg, PA 
​

Frederick Franck has been on my mind recently for several reasons. 


First, we passed his sculptures at the Peace Garden in Harrisburg along the Susquehanna River several times when I visited Pennsylvania recently. I've painted his sculptures numerous times over the years - with vibrant spring and summer floral plantings, the earth tones of autumn, and stark black, grays and whites of winter. All were given as gifts over the years, but the photos above will give you an idea of the power of his work,  
The Peace Garden was created in 1990 by the Harrisburg/Hershey chapter  of the Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR). The garden was created in response to a speech given in Hiroshima by Dr. Bernard Lown, President of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, which earned a Nobel Peace Prize. The garden features three sculptures that remind us of the devastating destruction, yet also acknowledge the continuation of life and the human spirit in spite of inhumane decisions. 
Second, I'm including several of his quotes in my overview of my course on Exploring Rainbows this spring. He makes a differential between looking and seeing, and notes that we would fall to our knees in horror if we really saw what was on the evening news.
​We have become desensitized, but that's another post. 
​


"Merely looking at the world around us is
 immensely different from seeing it."

​"When the eye wakes up to see again, it suddenly
stops taking anything for granted."

~ Dr. Frederick Franck, The Zen of Seeing


Third, his book practically fell off the shelf when i was in my office today. Books have frequently jumped off shelves to get my attention - in bookstores, libraries, my own book shelves. One even saved my life and that is not an exaggeration. When books jump,, I pay attention. So for today's treasure, I am sharing my long time love affair with the work of Frederick Franck. 

If you aren't familiar with his work, I suggest you consider looking him up. And if you really see his messages, instead or merely looking at his words, you'll see life in a whole new way. 
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Gather Ye Rose Buds (and Rose Hips)

1/15/2018

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"Gather ye rose buds while ye may,
Old time is still a flying, 
And this same flower that smiles today, 
Tomorrow will be dying."

~ Robert Herrick

Roses are used in both of the projects below. Rose hips are scented with blue spruce oil in the first, and rose potpourri is used to make the lace rose sachets in the second. Both are wonderful remembrances of time spent in the garden in the summer, collecting rose buds (and rose hips) while ye may!
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Just added more Blue Spruce oil to my rose hips. The fragrance is divine!
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Rose potpourri ready to use for sachets.
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​Each rose sachet is made with 
  • a nine inch circle of lace
  • 3 Tablespoons rose potpourri
  • 20 inch lengths of satin cord or satin ribbon
Place potpourri in the center of lace circle. Gather the top, keeping edges even. Tis with ribbon.

​The sachets make wonderful Valentine girts. 
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Living Outside the Lines

10/6/2017

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Seeking the Sacred

3/18/2016

 
​"Only people who are willing to put all they've got on the line  
. . . make a difference."
 
~ Perry Noble
​

Yesterday I turned in two course proposals for the fall. One was a repeat of my course on Herbs, and another is on seeking the sacred in everyday life - not a new concept, but one that needs to be repeated.  

Workshop description: Our world is filled with beauty and wonder but we often miss the miracles as we are bombarded with fear based, negative messages. What we put our attention on increases, yet too often we focus on illness, not health: fear, not joy. This course will include readings and video clips from some of the world’s most innovative thinkers, past and present. There will be exercises for self reflection, and techniques for finding daily treasures.

Last night I started to have second thoughts. Maybe another topic would be more valuable. Today several messages crossed my path validating the need to speak if there are words that are helpful, even it we feel we are taking a risk by sharing an opinion that may not be understood or embraced. 
​
And this from a friend - 
"I think your class sounds absolutely amazing! And you have been waiting for something to pop up for you in regards to direction....perhaps this is your purpose? Is to teach wellness and give people a compass for happiness? It is dearly needed in this world! Mikell I honestly believe that people no longer know how to actually feel happiness or have a compass for well being. They have become so immersed in the world they don't even recognize the horrible level of negativity they are exposed to on a daily basis!!! These are much needed skills!"
~ Carrie Faden
​
Carrie's observation that some of us don't remember what health or happiness feel like rings true. Someone very dear to me has been diagnosed with lung cancer. He has trouble breathing and a cough that sounds painful. His energy is depleted and he walks slowly with a cane. Yet he keeps reassuring me that he "feels fine." It reminds me of the story about the frog who is thrown into a pot of water and it is slowly brought to a boil. It happens so gradually that he doesn't realize things are changing and he is in danger. If he had been thrown in at a rapid boil, he would have jumped out immediately. 

Being aware of how we want to feel, and comparing it to how we are feeling, can guide us to making better choices. We can begin by asking questions. 

How many times a day do we stop and consider out blessings?
Do we spend more time in the present, or are we living with the fear of the future or regrets of the past?
Do we actively use our senses? (for example, do we gulp down fast food instead of preparing and savoring quality meals with a variety of colors and textures)
Do we realize the power and impact that words have on us? Do we carefully chose the words we use? (firing off Instantaneous e-mail response instead of thoughtfully composed letters)
Do we spend time in nature and value the lessons she teaches? 
Are relationships deep and meaningful or are we paying more attention to our screens than the person across the table?

Walter's Art Gallery

3/12/2016

 
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We spent yesterday in the exquisite Walter's Art Museum in Mount Vernon, Baltimore, MD. It was originally a private collection of William Thompson Walters, born May 23, 1819, from Liverpool, PA. Walters moved to Baltimore at the age of 21, made his fortune and married Ellen when he was 26. He and his wife had 3 children but one died in childhood. Henry, born in 1848, and Jennie in 1853, survived. Walter began collecting art with his wife in the summer of 1861 in Paris, then traveled through out France, to Italy Switzerland and England. Ellen died of pneumonia when she was forty years old in 1862 and William continued collecting with even more intensity to attempt to dissuade his grief.  After the war, in 1865 he and his children returned to Baltimore. His son eventually became involved in his father's art collection and carried on after his death. 

Their collection of 22,000 works of art from 55 centuries of art formed the basis of the collection and today the collection contains over 35,000 works of art including an expansive Egyptian collection, china, Faberge eggs, illuminated journals, French Impressionist paintings, bronze statues and so much more! 
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​

Insights From a Child

Their are endless opportunities to learn and enjoy for all ages as evidenced by this young person's observation in a "What have you discovered?" journal encouraging comments.
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"I learned that Greeks were always nude or wearing a tablecloth."

Great Reminder!

2/17/2016

 
"To avoid criticism, say nothing, do nothing, be nothing." 
`                                                                                     ~ Aristotle 

Power in Gentleness

2/13/2016

 
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When people are born they are gentle and soft.
At death they are hard and stiff.
When plants are alive they are soft and delicate.
When they die, they wither and dry up.
Therefore the hard and stiff are followers of death.
The gentle and soft are the followers of life.

Thus, if you are aggressive and stiff, you can't win.
When a tree is hard enough, it is cut. Therefore
The hard and big are lesser,
The gentle and soft are greater.

     - Yi-Ping Ong, from the introduction, Tao Te Ching

Reflections

11/3/2014

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"Light cannot be seen without shade.

Shade cannot be seen without light."


By moonlight, we see in black and white. We cannot see colors. There is something fascinating and valuable about seeing the world that way. We see only what is essential.

 We see form emerging from a sea of blackness. . . . We can look at the world so familiar by daylight and see it anew in the black and white of moonlight.
     
You see yin and yang. . . 
The day warms, the night cools. 
The sun moves over a hill, changing the face from brightness to shadow. 
Stand in the middle of a forest and watch all the shadows and sunlight shift second by second.
     You see yin and yang.


     - Deng Ming-Dao,
The Lunar Tao (edited)


This morning I stopped by the business center to check my e-mail and website stats. i was surprised to see over 800 visits yesterday even though I've posted very little since my computer met its demise. (A friend is doing his best to help me revive it but it doesn't look promising) You are such a quiet group that unless I check stats I'm not aware of visits. I appreciate your stopping by and will be  more proactive in posting. 

Not having a computer has caused me to abandon my plans to participate in NaNoWriMo (National November Writing Month) this year. I've completed the challenge twice and was planning to attempt a third. Maybe next year. I'll be cheering for those of you who are participating and will look forward to hearing of your progress!

I'm feeling blessed. I was spending too much time in front of a screen and I've returned to painting and more heart'-to-hand writing. There are always gifts in loss  It has given me a chance to look at the world in a different way - the yin and yang.
 
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    "My mission is 

    to help others see and cherish the beauty, 
    romance and treasures within and around them 
    that are often dismissed or completely overlooked."
    



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    Mikell is a writer, artist and professional treasure hunter, finding the greatest treasures in the wonderful people who enter her life!

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