to do

"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"
                                                                                                Mary Oliver

 

 

Something to think about...

 



Rejoice!

It is so much fun when things happen to confirm or magnify something that has been brewing under the surface...I am pondering a verse, or an idea, or something I have read and then someone else "randomly" mentions the same thought...or the pastor preaches on that thought...or I read a blog where it shows up...it is enough to give me pause...sometimes it takes my breath away...why?  Well,...I do NOT believe in coincidences...I believe that God is totally sovereign...and when things like this happen it is like God is saying, "I am here...I know what is on your mind, let's explore that a bit."  It is GOD WITH US...Immanuel...with me! (which is why it takes my breath away!) That's where this page came from...

Hope you are enjoying the impact and significance of this wonderful season...Chirst coming TO us! :)

THANKS

 So...its been a while...here is the acrostic I came up with for the word THANKS...its meant to be read like a sentence-ish...     :)

Today, each day...To
Him, my Heavenly Father, my God, my Lord and King
Acknowledging, Appreciating
Naming, then
Kneeling in gratitude for each and every
Small and/or Significant gift given from His Hand.

Here are how the "pages" are progressing as I journal on them, a bit here and there...as I can...

The first page...T...

and the back...
  (dictionary scrap glued down, gessoed, Distress Ink in Wild Honey , acrylic paint over drywall mesh tape   across the bottom corner, Tim Holtz clock stamped with black Archival Ink on vellum cut out and glued on with Glossy Accents...)

Next is H...
  (Distress Inks-Rusty Hinge & Gathered Twigs- sponged and textured on background, script stamped with Gathered Twigs Distress Ink in lower left corner, letters and words cut from magazines, glued down with clip art...words inspired by Ann Voskamp.)

and the back...
  (dictionary scrap, gesso, Distress Ink-this time Seedless Preserves, Peeled Paint Distress Paint over my own stencil, stamp on vellum, graphite pencil to highlight around stencil...)

 

 Fun, fun!  And as I have said before, I just love the meditative focus and process of "working" in my journal...or is it "playing" in my journal?...either way it is ALL GOOD!  :)
Give it a try...Enjoy!

November

When I was thinking about November's journal, I knew that I wanted the focus to be "giving thanks"...for the obvious reason of Thanksgiving this month, but also to keep me mindful to appreciate and enjoy the moments-big and small-of my days...so here is the beginning...
I cut a manila file folder into the basic tag shape, and then put the letters on each...

 ...together the pages spell out...

...and then doodled..."zentangled"...

I'm working on a THANKS acronym...as I ponder thankfulness.  :)

Till next time.

beginning

in the beginning...I collect all the "ephemera" that is inspiring to me at that moment...what a fun mess!

 

 This crumpled piece is actually a paper towel that I has used to blot and clean with...I loved the inky colors and saved it (I should probably be embarrassed by that but I'm not...sigh...).  Now I will use it for texture and to add a little character, to alter this book... :)

...kinda like what happens to us...colored, torn, wrinkled, used by our life experiences...AND in Him, we are altered into something beautiful, something new... 

 

...as I was doing this, I started thinking of icons...images that hold some significance for us...I know that I am drawn to certain images and will use them over and over again...things like keys, clocks, birds, butterflies, etc....and without putting more weight on this than it deserves, I still like to ponder why it is that I like these images...anyway, instead of using any of the things I initially pulled out, I chose these mini images by Tim Holtz, stamped, cut them out, glued them down...again, the "process" was fun and meditative.

I may add more journaling to this, maybe not...but I'm happy with it...the scrunched and wrinkled color in the bottom corner grounding the black and white "icons"...what are your personal "icons"?

Here I am!

Welcome!
I am so glad you are here.  Starting this blog has been a long process.  God has prepared and very gently nudged me along until I realized that this was something that I HAD TO DO...and I am so excited!  When you visit here, you will find lots and lots going on:- lots of art, especially art journaling...what I am creating...what I am learning...what I am reading...questions I am pondering...things I am processing...aaah...the glorious mess...all mixed together and being altered by God.
 Grab a cup of coffee, and stop by anytime...let's journal,create, learn, read, ponder, process together!