Big Magic Elizabeth Gilbert

Big Magic Elizabeth Gilbert

I read Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert and wow, I am in love with this author. I’ve read 2 of her other books, “Eat, Pray, Love” and “The Signature of All Things.“ If you haven’t read “Eat, Pray, Love”, you’ve probably been living under a rock. It was wildly popular for years and an international best seller selling over 10 million copies (much to the author’s surprise, according to her).  “The Signature of All Things” is very different. It’s a historical novel depicting the history of horticulture, agricultural trade (mostly herbs and spices) and the story of a woman growing

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3 Reasons Why Adult Coloring Books are Popular

3 Reasons Why Adult Coloring Books are Popular

Have you seen the amount of adult coloring books showing up on bookstore shelves and on Amazon? What’s the big deal? Why are they so popular? 1. We are all tired of technology. Computers, laptops, ipads, iphones, apps, updates, emails, texts, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest. Yikes!  It’s no wonder that people are taking to grabbing colored pencils and coloring on paper. We’ve had enough of it! Our brains are saturated. We’re overwhelmed. We’re sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. We need a rest. 2. Coloring settles the mind. Unless you live under a rock, you’ve

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Ever Changing: Always Changing

Ever Changing: Always Changing

This mandala was inspired by the ever changing nature of life. As I doodled it, I had no agenda in mind as to what I wanted to end up in the mandala. You may say, “That’s obvious! It’s so simple!” Yes, it is simple. The rule that everything changes is simple and easy if we allow it. Think of a few milestones in your life. We have hundreds of them! Everyday is a new adventure. Even as we’re going through big changes like getting married or getting a divorce, we still have to get up, suit up and show up.

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Grace and Ease: The Art of Allowing

Grace and Ease: The Art of Allowing

This mandala (my favorite one in the book) was inspired by the realization that life unfolds in perfect and miraculous ways like a flower blooming into perfection with no intervention. When I was going through the worst periods of my life, I thought it would never get better and that I didn’t deserve love. I could not see how I could possibly fix the mess that I perceived my life to be. Looking back, I see that by the grace of God, we are placed into circles and communities of people who are supporting us, even if we’re not aware.

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The Circle of Life: Relationships

The Circle of Life: Relationships

This mandala was inspired by all of the circles of friends, family and communities I have in my life. Each relationship effects us in some way and extends out to the other people in our lives creating a constantly growing and changing matrix of communities. We are born into our own mandala of folks. Our family. Our immediate family is the most influential community in our lives, and then our extended family, close relatives, friends, church, school, work, volunteer organizations. You get the idea. Sometimes we have to choose to create new communities if our current ones aren’t fulfilling us

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Self Actualization: The Individual Need to Evolve

Self Actualization: The Individual Need to Evolve

This mandala was inspired by Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. As human beings we are evolving from fight or flight to love and compassion. We are taking care of ourselves, our planet and our fellow man more and more. It’s not longer weird to do yoga or to meditate and use alternative, healthy ways of healing. Collectively, we’re listening our individual bodies, minds and souls for answers instead of relying on religion, the government and corporations to dictate what we do and how we think. Here are some questions for YOU to contemplate as you color this mandala: It seems that

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It Takes All Kinds: The Universal Need to Express

It Takes All Kinds: The Universal Need to Express

This mandala was inspired by the song… “This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.”   If your light isn’t shining, you’re dead. It’s the gift of life, this little light of yours. The energy that pumps your blood and makes you breathe. It’s a light that can not be stopped short of death. You need to express this light. You can pretend you’re not creative, you can hide away in your tiny little life. But the light will always be shining to keep you alive and wants to express in creative ways. It can be crunching numbers,

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And So It Grows: Expansion and Creation

And So It Grows: Expansion and Creation

This mandala was inspired by the natural expressions of water.   Most of us have very little knowledge or understanding of what’s going on underneath the surface. The waves come and go, they swell, they break. We love to listen to the waves, walk the beaches, swim and skim along the surface in boats, jet skis and rafts. We harvest the bounty of life, we collect shells and build sand castles. Underneath the water there are millions of things going on that are not only a mystery to us, but are critical to our well being and the well being of

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The Seed is Planted: Creation

The Seed is Planted: Creation

This mandala was inspired by planting pea seeds with our granddaughter Ruby. One spring morning the thought popped into my head that we should plant pea seeds together. “Wanna plant some pea seeds Ruby?” I said. “That would be super fun!” Ruby replied. In the garden, we dug a row with our fingers, carefully planted seeds and covered them with dirt. This simple act took less than an hour and resulted in hours and hours of conversations and trips to the garden. We watered and kept watch as the peas sprouted and grew. We planted sticks so they had a

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Create Your Dream Life in 2016!

Create Your Dream Life in 2016!

It’s the dawning of a new year and possibilities abound! You may want to write a book. You may want to learn how to build websites. You may have a big project already on your plate and don’t know how all the details will pan out. You may want to plant a garden in the spring. You may have a dissertation to write or a big proposal. You may want new clients, or new friends. Most likely there are at least one or two new “big” things you’d like to accomplish in 2016. And there could even be

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