welcome to this world sweet ellie jane

Eleanor Jane Lamoreux

"Ellie Jane"

Born June 3, 2010

7 pounds, 1 ounce

20 1/2 inches

Everyone is home and a new chapter has begun...

just be (a guest post from patty waite)

while we are awaiting the arrival of our little one or maybe by this time soaking up the wonder of a newborn in the house, a few of my blogging friends are sharing some guests posts...enjoy today's musing from patty waite.

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so often it seems i

look but do not see

listen but do not hear

touch but do not feel

sniff but do not smell

eat but do not taste

have you ever felt this way?  like life is passing you by and you didn’t really live it?  like a whole year just passed and you can barely remember more than a few really experiential moments?  it was, in part, this realization that prompted me to choose my word(s)-of-the-year for 2010: JUSTBE.

it won’t surprise anyone reading this blog that a lot of what i’ve learned about “just be”-ing, i’ve learned from one of the best role models around – that would be the lovely liz lamoreux!  i mean, reading her posts is like taking a little box labeled “this moment”, slooowly opening the lid, then digging into it with a little hand shovel, searching for jewels of buried treasure, pulling each one out and examining it, then putting each one back in the box, closing the lid and being that much richer for the experience.

so i’m making progress and doing better with the whole justbe endeavor.  and while i could never attempt to take liz’s place in this regard, i will share a few of my favorite “justbe” images.  my hope is that one of them might prompt you to pause and dig deeply into this present moment.

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About Patty: I am primarily a perpetual student of life.  I would love to discover your take on things and would happily share mine with you. My goal is to be open in all situations and to see both sides of an issue (as well as the lighter side!) and hopefully spread a little love along the way.

Secondarily, I am a photographer, teacher, writer, mixed-media and digital artist, seeker, presenter, back roads traveler and hiker and, most recently, hospice volunteer.

links:

website
blog
flickr
facebook 

mindful writing (a guest post by jennifer mcguiggan)

while we are awaiting the arrival of our little one, a few of my blogging friends are sharing some guest posts. enjoy today's wise words and invitation from jenna mcguiggan.

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The Chocolate Room, Brooklyn, April 2010

Last summer, I declared that I was learning to write badly:

I am learning to write badly. Don't misunderstand me: I can write badly. Very badly, in fact. But I hate doing it. I hate to write when it's hard and cumbersome and ugly. I hate to write when the words aren't flowing easily and every sentence feels like a Herculean effort laden with clichés. I hate to write when I don't know what I want to say or can't get to the heart of what I mean. And since I'm all about pleasure, I avoid the writing when it's hard and bad. But this doesn't help me as a writer. So today, and tomorrow and tomorrow for however long it takes for it to become more natural, I'm practicing writing badly. I'm practicing sticking with it even when I can hardly stand it. I'm practicing the writing process, no matter what the product looks like. I'm learning to write badly so that I can write well more often.

In the months since then, I have indeed learned to write badly more often. This is a triumph! I still have days when the words don't flow and I just want to stop trying until inspiration (that elusive lover) returns. But now, the difference is that I have more staying power to sit still and keep writing rather than fleeing to more palatable tasks like doing laundry or watching videos of adorable kittens online. I wouldn't go so far as to say my discipline has improved, but I guess that's one way to view it. (I've written about my preference for the term "enthusiasm" rather than "discipline.")

Of course, the end goal isn't to write badly. It's to keep writing, to keep honing my craft and using my skills, so that the good stuff has time and room to come out on the page. By increasing my commitment and quantity, I've also improved my quality. By working through the rough patches, I've opened up new fields where I can play and have fun with words.

This struggle with writing reminds me of the way people often describe the challenges of meditation. When I practice sitting calmly and try to clear my mind, it wants to get up and run around, showing me all of the things I should think about or attend to. My internal dialogue is similar for both writing and meditation. It goes something like this.

Okay, I'm concentrating. (Oh look, laundry!) Come back to the page. (This is hard. Wah!) Breathe in and out. (I need cute kitten videos right now!) Write a few more words. (Don't wanna!) Breathe and be still. (I need to call the pet groomer tomorrow.) Write.

Writing and meditation both require a certain paradoxical level of mindfulness and detachment. In meditation, I try to notice the thoughts that float through my mind and then let them go without attachment or analysis. In writing, I notice my resistance, and then I write another sentence without judgment. Meditation and writing both require ongoing practice. Breath by breath. Word by word.

Here's a mindful writing exercise for you to try.

The next time you sit down to write, notice how you feel if it seems to be going badly. How long does it take you to feel frustrated? What do you feel compelled to do instead of write? How can you bring your attention back to the story at hand? What helps you to push through and to keep writing?

Try this exercise a few times over the coming weeks and see if it becomes easier to be committed even when you don't feel the magic of inspiration. Notice if there is a certain point at which the magic shows up for you in the writing practice. Does this tell you anything about how you process or pursue your creativity?

I'd love to hear how your writing practice is going. Are you feeling enthusiastic? Meditative? Like you're engaged in a wrestling match? Please consider sharing your thoughts in the comments or sending an email to jennifer{at}thewordcellar{dot}com.

This post was originally part of In The Word Cellar, a twice-monthly column about writing. See other articles in the series here.

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Jennifer (Jenna) McGuiggan is a writer, editor, and writing coach who works with artists, writers, and bloggers. She is the creator and editor of Lanterns: A Gathering of Stories, a collaborative book of prose, poetry, and photography about women in creative community.

Jenna invites you to join her in The Word Cellar, which she envisions as a cozy, stone-walled chamber filled with twinkle lights, shelves of stories, nooks of books, and plush armchairs perfect for sharing your tale.

Visit her online at www.thewordcellar.com or email her at jennifer{at}thewordcellar{dot}com.

nine {with carla blazek}

Today's Nine interview is with the delightful and truly kindred spirit Carla Blazek. I remember coming across Carla's candle shop, Zena Moon, a few years ago and immediately knowing that this woman gets it. I mean candles with names like "everyday sacred," "honoring silence," "moving through change" paired with beautiful quotes and add in corresponding gem stones plus gorgeous subtle scents...ah, yes, please. Then, a few weeks later, I suddenly discovered her blog address coming across my stats. Is this the same woman? Yes! A fellow blogger as well. I was so thrilled to connect with this kind, smart cookie. And then her candles...if you have been reading be present, be here for a while, you know about my love affair with her candles. We first ordered them when I was going through a health scare. Lighting the "healing" candle each day invited me to feel like I had some piece of control in the midst of a scary experience. A few of the names of the candles one can find around these parts on an almost daily basis are: boundaries, namaste, serenity, owl, moon magic...and how the list goes on.

I am so thrilled to share Carla's answers to the Nine...

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Question 1: Who are you?

 

Question 2: What do you love about where you live?

Question 3: What might your perfect afternoon look like?

Question 4: If you had an hour alone in your studio/creative space, what would you do?

Question 5: Right now, what are some of your favorite things?

Question 6: What foods nourish your soul?

Question 7: When you need to simply take a breath and reground yourself, what do you do?

Question 8: How do you nurture your creative dreams?

Question 9: Does your heart have a secret wish you want to share?

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Carla Blazek is a writer, candlemaker and doggiemama. A longtime Seattleite, when life painfully fell apart she landed back in her hometown, Spokane, WA. Like many women in their 40s, she is in the exquisite, bewildering and exhilarating process of re-discovering and seducing herself as a single woman. New passions include photography, burlesque dancing, triathlons and calligraphy.

She is the founder and owner of zena moon, Oprah’s favorite candles (http://zenamoon.com). Her first book, Women at Rest, is nearly finished. You can find Carla at http://www.facebook.com/carla.blazek.

(All photos copyright Carla Blazek.)

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Nine is an interview series with creative folks that began in the Spring of 2009; the interviewees are asked to respond to the interview questions in photographs (or video). You can scroll through all the interviews here.

the waiting.

we are waiting and timing and breathing and sharing hopes and putting our wishes for this little one out into the world and continuing to finish her room and enjoying time with my mom and showering millie the wonder dog with lots of love and cleaning a bit and gathering and nesting and breathing and dancing and trying to just soak up the hours, days we have until we meet her...

thank you for holding us in your thoughts...

over the next couple of weeks, a few of my blog friends are going to share words with you in some guest posts. i think you are going to enjoy the invitations and musings and personal stories shared here. i will be checking in every now and then to update on the happenings in our little corner of the world...

many blessings,

liz

senses view {play}

{see}

{touch}

{hear}

{taste}

{smell}

{and know}

who :: vivienne mcmaster :: me
where :: jericho beach, vancouver, BC :: my backyard
when :: may 11, 2010 ::  may 18, 2010

senses views is a collaboration series.
read more about how it began.
see all the senses views collaborations. 

bits and pieces from this week.

 

right now, i can hear the refrigerator, a clock ticking, birds chirp chirp chirping, my somewhat heavy inhales and exhales, my fingers quickly moving across this keyboard.

we are shifting wildly from sun to grey and pouring these days. sometimes within the same five minutes. it feels like indiana because it is like that insistent spring burst of rain that happens in the midwest.

i have a few blogging friends lined up to guest post here while i am experiencing those first few weeks of being a new mom next month. if you might be interested in guest posting, send me an email (just click the email link in the sidebar) and i will let you know the details.

the outtakes from my "reveal" video crack me up. creating that video took so many attempts, partly because i didn't write anything down and found myself rambling when i wanted to be short, sweet, and to the point. i forced myself to relax by just keeping the video going and making funny faces and then breathing before starting again. i highly recommend it (and would love to see your outtakes when you have some).

i am almost done rereading robert fulghum's book From Beginning to End. the rhythm of his writing invites me to take a deep breath and slow down. did you know that he has an online journal of sorts? this post really captivated me when i revisited his website over the weekend.

just discovered this delightful shop. loving katie's journals and prompts and invitation to share your story. yes yes yes.

and a little reminder that i am closing my etsy shop (for a few weeks) sometime next week in anticipation of the little one's arrival. there is still free shipping at the shop (and you can still use the special blog reader savings code from the gratitude post a few posts back to save an additional 15%).

i think these list posts are just easier for me right now as my mind feels a bit scattered with all the little things we are trying to get done. though, i have tried to finish this post about six times in two days, so maybe the lists are even too much at times. but, there is something to this checking in with myself, with you, to see where i am in this moment. and in this moment, i am breathing deeply and trusting. (where are you?)

today {an invitation}

today...

i stood outside, bits of blue above and below, and soaked in the on the cusp of rain scent in the air and found beauty in the unexpected growth that appears when you let go of the to do list.

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an invitation: pick up your camera and take a photo that represents today. then, share pieces of this day by finishing this phrasing: today...

then share on your blog or flickr and come back here and tell me all about it.

dare you.