When I saw the image on your newsletter this morning it brought tears to my eyes.
I certainly resonate with Everything is NOT ok right now.
And I am going to give myself permission to feel that fully.
A side story that goes with your theme, I used to carry around little stickers that said 'Everything will be OK' about 3 years ago and leave them stuck all over the place for people to find. I loved doing it, thinking its time to take it up again..
To reply to your question about art and how it's helped me to find meaning. Just last week I took part in something called Flow Painting that a South African friend of mine who runs them online via zoom from Seattle. It was 2 sessions, which ran over 7 hours, of silently painting, no music, just some check in's and trying our best to get the head and its judgements out of the way. It's the first time I took part in anything like this and I absolutely loved it. It challenged me, pushed me, opened me up and I was delighted and surprised by the outcome. I went into a meditative space and it was hugely therapeutic to me on a number of levels. www.inflowproject.com
"The intention of flow is to help people get calm, stay connected to themselves and live in a state of flow, so that they can fill up from the inside to love themselves more and love others better, and give out to the world from a wholehearted place of fullness, because the world needs more love"
Hi Katie, thanks for this week's newsletter - I seem to waiver back and forth with this one as well. I think the past few months has definitely brought out the best in so many people, but it is also showing up the worst and social media seems to amplify that. I'm the editor of a community magazine in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland and over the past three months we've been publishing 'mini mags' with a mix of useful information/resources, creativity and positive stories about people/orgs going above and beyond to help our community. Not all of the content is specific to our local area and I think you might enjoy some of the poems in the May & June issues shared by local residents a link to the free downloads is www.clydesider.org/publications. We also print 2,000 copies which local community partners are distributing along with emergency food aid and care packages. I'm not trying to use this as a plug for the magazine by the way - just thought the poems capture both the fear and hope really well.
Thank you for this message. I’ve been struggling with heavy depression recently. Seeing “Everything is not OK” IS hope for the depressed because it tells us we’re not alone. We’re not the only ones who feel hopeless and that itself ignites a tiny flame of hope. I don’t feel OK and that’s OK. I guess that means your art of writing has been uplifting... and “Diva” by Beyoncé. ;)
Hi! I love your newsletter. Your feelings echo many of my own. Since we all need some levity right now, one of the most fun-just-for-fun pieces of art I've ever seen was a bra ball, at the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore. I took my daughter (now 18) there when she was just about 10-12 and it opened her eyes to what art could look like. It was fun, sent a message and generally rocked our world. (I have photos should you need/want them.)
When I saw the image on your newsletter this morning it brought tears to my eyes.
I certainly resonate with Everything is NOT ok right now.
And I am going to give myself permission to feel that fully.
A side story that goes with your theme, I used to carry around little stickers that said 'Everything will be OK' about 3 years ago and leave them stuck all over the place for people to find. I loved doing it, thinking its time to take it up again..
To reply to your question about art and how it's helped me to find meaning. Just last week I took part in something called Flow Painting that a South African friend of mine who runs them online via zoom from Seattle. It was 2 sessions, which ran over 7 hours, of silently painting, no music, just some check in's and trying our best to get the head and its judgements out of the way. It's the first time I took part in anything like this and I absolutely loved it. It challenged me, pushed me, opened me up and I was delighted and surprised by the outcome. I went into a meditative space and it was hugely therapeutic to me on a number of levels. www.inflowproject.com
"The intention of flow is to help people get calm, stay connected to themselves and live in a state of flow, so that they can fill up from the inside to love themselves more and love others better, and give out to the world from a wholehearted place of fullness, because the world needs more love"
Hi Katie, thanks for this week's newsletter - I seem to waiver back and forth with this one as well. I think the past few months has definitely brought out the best in so many people, but it is also showing up the worst and social media seems to amplify that. I'm the editor of a community magazine in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland and over the past three months we've been publishing 'mini mags' with a mix of useful information/resources, creativity and positive stories about people/orgs going above and beyond to help our community. Not all of the content is specific to our local area and I think you might enjoy some of the poems in the May & June issues shared by local residents a link to the free downloads is www.clydesider.org/publications. We also print 2,000 copies which local community partners are distributing along with emergency food aid and care packages. I'm not trying to use this as a plug for the magazine by the way - just thought the poems capture both the fear and hope really well.
Thank you for this message. I’ve been struggling with heavy depression recently. Seeing “Everything is not OK” IS hope for the depressed because it tells us we’re not alone. We’re not the only ones who feel hopeless and that itself ignites a tiny flame of hope. I don’t feel OK and that’s OK. I guess that means your art of writing has been uplifting... and “Diva” by Beyoncé. ;)
Hi! I love your newsletter. Your feelings echo many of my own. Since we all need some levity right now, one of the most fun-just-for-fun pieces of art I've ever seen was a bra ball, at the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore. I took my daughter (now 18) there when she was just about 10-12 and it opened her eyes to what art could look like. It was fun, sent a message and generally rocked our world. (I have photos should you need/want them.)