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a free e-newsletter from Soul Flares
Anyhow: from my standpoint the only thing--if you're some sort of artist--is to work a little harder than you can at being who you are: while if you're an unartist (i.e. aren't) nothing but big&quick recognition matters. (sic) E. E. Cummings, September 7, 1959, from a letter to his daughter When the demons become unmasked, you may feel you are going mad or doing something wrong, but in fact you have finally begun to face the forces that keep you from living in a loving and fully conscious way. Jack Kornfield, from A Path with Heart (with thanks to Steve Marston)
Anyhow: from my standpoint the only thing--if you're some sort of artist--is to work a little harder than you can at being who you are: while if you're an unartist (i.e. aren't) nothing but big&quick recognition matters. (sic)
E. E. Cummings, September 7, 1959, from a letter to his daughter
When the demons become unmasked, you may feel you are going mad or doing something wrong, but in fact you have finally begun to face the forces that keep you from living in a loving and fully conscious way.
Jack Kornfield, from A Path with Heart (with thanks to Steve Marston)
Quiet Walk by Kathy Mitchell This oil on canvas original is available for $150 (5" x 7") by visiting here. Archival Prints can be ordered for $30 by visiting here.
Sarah: Was there a moment of epiphany for you when you realized you didn't know what you really desired? Sam: Yeah, it was a gradual epiphany that came in the period before the breakup of my first marriage. I thought that I was a loving guy who knew what I wanted. I'd always thought the problems in my marriage were just my wife's dissatisfactions. Unfortunately, it turned out I was wrong. I got my wife to go to a therapist to get her "fixed up" and then went along to the therapist myself to help him fix her up. He gingerly suggested to her that maybe half of the problems were mine - that I was angry at her, angry at my mother, and distrustful of women. Boy, that got me really pissed off with that jerk! Then one day it came down on me - oh my God, he's right! At the time I was teaching courses on love at a seminary; I was supposed to know about this stuff! And to find out that I didn't - to find out that a lot of what I called love was fear, and a lot of what I called caring was just trying to control somebody, and what I called play was sarcasm and cruelty. Somebody once said, "When the clock strikes 13, everything that went before becomes questionable." I never, never thought there would be a divorce, but when it happened, the clock struck 13. After that, I began to ask myself, "What is it that I do want? And what is it that I call love?" Sam Keen, from an interview "Loving Arts" with Sara Gelder in YES! Magazine, Winter 1988
Sarah: Was there a moment of epiphany for you when you realized you didn't know what you really desired? Sam: Yeah, it was a gradual epiphany that came in the period before the breakup of my first marriage. I thought that I was a loving guy who knew what I wanted. I'd always thought the problems in my marriage were just my wife's dissatisfactions. Unfortunately, it turned out I was wrong. I got my wife to go to a therapist to get her "fixed up" and then went along to the therapist myself to help him fix her up. He gingerly suggested to her that maybe half of the problems were mine - that I was angry at her, angry at my mother, and distrustful of women. Boy, that got me really pissed off with that jerk! Then one day it came down on me - oh my God, he's right! At the time I was teaching courses on love at a seminary; I was supposed to know about this stuff! And to find out that I didn't - to find out that a lot of what I called love was fear, and a lot of what I called caring was just trying to control somebody, and what I called play was sarcasm and cruelty. Somebody once said, "When the clock strikes 13, everything that went before becomes questionable." I never, never thought there would be a divorce, but when it happened, the clock struck 13. After that, I began to ask myself, "What is it that I do want? And what is it that I call love?"
Sam Keen, from an interview "Loving Arts" with Sara Gelder in YES! Magazine, Winter 1988
Dear Fellow Travelers,
The ashes are settling now and the parts of me that felt alive and real because of who I was married to and the work I was doing at Heron Dance have finally stopped running around like desperate crazy people -- as if their oxygen supply had been suddenly cut off. (because it had.)
Let me introduce some of them to you: the blameless partner, the selfless lover, the tireless-indispensible worker. Looking at them now, I shake my head and ask, "Why did Annie feel she had to work so hard to be indispensable?" Some answers are found talking with the 15-year-old Annie with big feet and flat chest who felt that unless she was the most super fantastic girlfriend ever, her boyfriend would leave for a curvier, prettier model. And there is the super-athletic, 18-year old Annie who believed other people were creative, not her. Those are the selves I hold gently now and say, "Just relax, sit down and let Annie shine."
This is all quite something for a person who, as a child on the first day of school, would set out to discover what each teacher liked and disliked so that she would be sure to get their approval and an 'A'. So, I can't say its been comfortable trying to walk freely without all those Annie's working so hard to be good, but there is an energy present in my life now that wasn't there before - something opening that has nothing to do with gaining approval.
There seems to be more appearing in each moment. More possibilities, more subtleties and nuance. Like how every time I listen to Kind of Blue by Miles Davis, I hear something new. My life feels more like that. I thought I was living with no cherished outcomes, but all along I must have beleived that if I worked really hard. I'd get that 'A.' Actually, I thought that the 'A' was the whole point. Now I am just a student learning how to live each moment without a script.
Blessings and love to you,
Annie O'Shaughnessy
What's New?
The Community Journal: I have set up a place for your voices to be heard. This is a journal where I will post messages and letters I get that seem to express a universal idea or question, and the writings and words submitted by Wild Soul Workshop participants. Your responses will make our journal an exciting way to connect. Visit here to check it out.
Readers Write: Our May topic "How Living Our Truth Effects Others" has some great responses. Visit here to read. Please submit your own by sending 200 words or less to annie@soulflares.org.
Wild Soul Journal: This is where you can read my own journal. This weeks' entry...
At my March workshop this year a participant arrived dressed in pinks and purples and smelling like a spring garden. Her shirts had lace on the edges and ribbons tied in bows. I was surprised by how much I wanted to dress like her, be like her and I told her so. She asked me during a break, “Do you feel feminine?” It caught me by surprise and pulled at something in my chest. “Maybe,” is what I think I said. To read more and post your own thoughts visit here.
At my March workshop this year a participant arrived dressed in pinks and purples and smelling like a spring garden. Her shirts had lace on the edges and ribbons tied in bows. I was surprised by how much I wanted to dress like her, be like her and I told her so. She asked me during a break, “Do you feel feminine?” It caught me by surprise and pulled at something in my chest. “Maybe,” is what I think I said.
To read more and post your own thoughts visit here.
Samskara - New Soul Flares Website Page: A dear Soul Flares reader, Doug Wilson sent me this article on the concept of Samskara, how "ruts" of response can form in our brain. I contacted the author and discovered a wonderful teacher and resource. Visit here to read and respond.
Reader Recommended Resources: Please remember to visit the Tools for the Journey section of the website and post your own recommendations for books, websites, and teachers. Visit here.
Support Soul Flares
I am passionate about building an organization that lasts long after I am here that offers support, resources, and inspiration to people who want to live meaningful, creative lives. In addition, I want Soul Flares to be the means by which kindred souls connect and find support in each other--men and women, young and old, of all religions and nationalities. I need your help to continue this effort.
Visit here to make a tax-deductible donation to support Soul Flares. Or visit here to view our wish list.
Wild Soul Workshops
A few weeks ago I led my 10th Wild Soul Workshop. I think I have had difficulty writing about these experiences because they mean so much to me. But, I have put together a page with a few words about them and some photos of the folks who have attended. More to come!
Visit here to read more and view the photos.
To read some participant feedback visit here.
Reconnecting with Our Wild Souls Upcoming Retreats: July 27 - 30 Bolinas, California
This retreat center in California is full of amazing healing energy. Perched above the Pacific Ocean and surrounded by beautiful trees and birds, this place feels like heaven to me.
Visit here for more information or to sign up.
October 5 - 8 Burlington, Vermont
Vermont is my beloved home, and this retreat center reflects why. 100 beautiful and wild acres on the coast of Lake Champlain where Eagles nest in a rocky cove right below the center.
Wild Soul Work - Seeking out Light
For many participants, the Wild Soul retreats act as a catalyst for change. One participant finally sent his poetry out into the world to be published. And it was! Another started the book he had always dreamed of writing.
Since Lynn Roberts attended a workshops in 2005, she has successfully launched her publication Seeking Out Light: A Gathering Place for Souls in Loss and Transition. Many of you will have received a complimentary issue in the mail, which includes an interview with me and an invitation to subscribe. Please support Lynn's new venture. Visit here to learn more.
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Soul Flares is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization founded by writer and workshop facilitator Annie O'Shaughnessy, dedicated to providing beauty, inspiration, support, and community for people trying to live a soulful, creative life in harmony with nature and all beings. Through art, workshops, bi-weekly e-newsletter, and an online community, Soul Flares will provide light for seekers on the path.
This product was added to our catalog on Wednesday 16 May, 2007.
