unearth 2012

Kelly on the pier at Joemma Beach

Whenever I return from hosting one of my retreats, I have a hard time trying to capture it here in this space. I take very few photos because I'm experiencing more than documenting. And then the re-entry time after the retreat is intense as I go from this one contained experience where I play one role back to this other real-life experience where I play so many roles in a given day (just like you).

And then by the time I have some mental space to share, the weeks have passed and I feel silly going back in time. This happens to me often...this time moving on and me wanting to share here and then stopping myself from doing it.

Things don't happen on a real schedule when you have a two year old. I put things on a schedule and it just kind of laughs at me. I planned to share several other blog posts this week. A poem I wrote. That you can now get "The Gift of This Moment" in a three-month subscription. A story about how I went to an event last week where they sent a car for me. Crazy! And a story about how I found myself sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor holding a little girl in my lap as she cried and I couldn't fix it so I cried too.

Today, I want to share this handful of photos from the Unearth Retreat. It really was magic as we painted with Mindy and Kelly and shared stories and wrote poems that we read aloud and then walked along Puget Sound with the most gorgeous light I'd seen this year. Frog Creek Lodge just invites in laughter and healing. When I think about it all, I want to tell you this most of all:

There is so much beauty, magic, and truth found in those in-between spaces when someone shares her story and you breathe in and out as you listen and then sit in the quiet and then you give her the gift of saying, "Me too. Yes. Me too."

 

(Hoping to share more about the Spring 2013 Retreat next week.)

backyard autumn

today, the blue sky took ahold of my hand and guided me to this moment...this deep breath...this opening up to the beauty right in front of me.

you are loved

you are loved . a new beaded necklace in the shop

It's that time when the rain has arrived and we are settling in for days of grey punctuated with blue skies and glimpses of the mountain and walks in the green, damp woods.

It feels right, this cocooning that October brings. And it makes it easy to want to settle in for evenings of wire-wrapping beads and listening to words that are asking to be hammered into metal. 

Over the weekend, I added a few new beaded soul mantra locket necklaces to the shop. From now until early December, my plan is to add a few more every few weeks. You will see that custom options are available (a few with beads) as well. I am also able to customize a few of the beaded necklaces in the shop with your personal soul mantra phrase. 

I wear one of my "You Are Loved" lockets often around my neck. I suppose one might think it is egotistical, but I believe that trusting you are loved and loving yourself is one of the best gifts we give ourselves. A reminder I need often.

I hope your day brings with it moments to sit in the quiet and trust as you breathe in and out...

Blessings,
Liz 

in case you need to hear these words too...

a basket of poetry

As I work in my studio, I began to feel really moved to share a few words with you, so I just opened Garage Band and recorded these words plus a poem that I think you might need to hear today. And if not today, you can tuck these words inside your pocket to pull out when you might need them in the future.

The poem is "The View" by Mary Lou Sanelli from her collection Craving Water: Poems of Ordinary Life in a Northwest Village.

The audio is a little over three minutes long and you can listen by clicking "October 14" below (or by right-clicking and downloading/saving the file as you usually would and then listening).

October 14

these boots

There is so much I want to tell you, but the "want to do" list is calling me, so I will quickly share this:

Gosh I love these boots.*

(Discovered the timer on my camera+ app. Changing my life.)

*they even have them in wide calf for those of us who need them.

a glimpse into poem it out

As I continue to gather poems and prompts and other good things for (More) Poem It Out that begins on Monday, I feel neck-deep in the raw beauty and truth that is poetry. This course comes right from my heart to you because I know poetry can change your life. It has changed mine as it has given me a lifeline, a way to tell my story, and way to feel less alone. It is one of the handholds I turn to again and again to support me on this crazy, awesome path that is life.

Today, I want to share a glimpse into how I teach my ecourses. Throughout (More) Poem It Out, I will be sharing stories, poetry, and prompts through video. I do this because it is the closest I can get to feeling like I am sitting in a circle with you sharing in person. The following video is from the first week of my previous Poem It Out class.

(if you are having trouble seeing the video, click here to watch on vimeo)

And to be totally honest, when I record these videos, I feel like you are there. This is why I decided to create all new content with this next Poem It Out course. I wanted to start new conversations about new poets and new prompts and new stories.

As I talk about with my friend Jen Lee in our recent conversation on her Retrospective Podcast, I really feel like a companion for the people who show up to this space and begin to have a conversation with me on the blog, in my courses, through my newsletter, or in person at workshops and retreats.

It is a gift to me to be able to say to you: Here are some practices I use to feel more connected to myself, to life, to this moment. Here are some stories about how I use those practices and how I've stumbled and walked through grief and sat inside joy and decided to keep walking.

The Poem It Out ecourses are the way I share my most personal poetry adventures and create the space for you to open your heart to your own.

I hope you'll come along. 

Find out more and register here.

here

Yesterday we did something wacky...unusual...we took our two year old out to dinner and it was awesome. She is using so many words now and made it very clear that she wanted to go for "sushi" because she can have "ed-mama." 

The look on Jon's face when he came home and I said that I didn't make dinner but that Ellie and I had decided we were all going out for sushi and edamame...well...let's just say he looked a wee bit overwhelmed.

But I wanted to celebrate. It's been two years since I handed Ellie Jane to a nurse I had just met and down the hall she went where a surgeon would save her life. Two years.

So off we went.

And it was awesome. Edamame. Rice. She had quite the system going.

Followed by ice cream.

She smiled big almost the whole time. We did too.

Two years.

Yes.

Thank you for being part of our journey. I was looking for something in my archives on Facebook of all places and found all the notes sent while we were in the hospital and then looked through the comments here during that time. I felt the love then and am holding it close still now. Thank you.

i am beauty :: an invitation

I am open. I am curious. I am swirling laughter. I am 2 a.m. exhaustion. I am echoing kindreds. I am soft. I am fierce. I am folding. I am stretching. I am trust. I am light. I am love. I am beauty.

*

Over on Chickadee Road our October theme is "I am beauty." We are exploring all that this phrase can mean and we will be sharing stories about how this phrase came to be one of the most important ones Kelly and I each turn to, the ways we struggle with believing it, the ways we stand tall in its truth, and a few other good things. 

*

self-portrait by kelly

Kelly writes: I am giggles.  I am love. I am an irish warrior girl. I am everyday simple.  I am rare. I am on my way. I am velvety pinks. I am color. I am me. I am beauty.

an invitation

We would love for each of you to come along and share your own self-portraits + "I am" poem notes inspired by "I am beauty." Over on Chickadee Road, we are already sharing some reader photos + words. To participate follow these steps:

1) Join the Chickadee Road Flickr group.

2) Take a self-portrait (or choose one from your archives) and pair it with words inspired by the prompt "I am beauty."

3) Share your photo + words in the group.

A few times a week throughout the month, we will be sharing a few of your photos + words. (We will ask first and send you a little Chickadee Road love in the mail as a thank you.) 

You also might want to turn this into a weekly (or monthly or even daily) practice where you take a photo and pair it with an "I am" statement. Feel free to share these photos with your kindreds in the Flickr group.

We both keep visualizing October as a month where we can all help one another remember that we each are beauty. 

AND I hope you will take some time to settle in with a cup of tea and watch the video conversation we've shared that is all about self-portraits and body image.