Emily Perry Studios

coming out the otherside

things have been a little funky over here.  first it rained and rained.  then the family was sick, and now more rain.  my cameras are gathering dust.  i haven't cracked open any paint in days.  and now we are starting to pack the house for the move: all the pictures are down, the big bookcase is boxed up.  the purging has begun. 

and yet in the middle of all this, i am feeling the itch.  i have been lurking on flickr, and realizing how much i really need to be shooting more film.  i have an online workshop to start designing materials for (it will be in July!), and an art walk possibility that i need to produce some work for.  oh, yes, then there there are the articles i have started writing- and, well, you get the idea.

:::

so, what to do when there is so much to do?  i think today i will just hope for some sun, carry my camera, and let my lenses lead the way.

surrender

ah, february.  how you rock my world.  it seems every year, this is the month for me that is the challenge.  it's cold, raining all the time.  there are sicknesses about, and usually some objects in my life need fixing. last year it was both cars; this year, it is the dryer, phone line, and the persistent ant invasions due to all the rain.  you might imagine the extent of my crabbiness: when the kids are sick, and i have all of this going on, at a certain point i just have to give up.

 
so yesterday, that is what i did.  i gave up the mere thought of my to do list.  i dropped my expectation that my daughter could actually clean up after herself.  i waited for my husband to get home, and then ate chocolate & watched project runway.  what has asked you to surrender lately?  leave your comment below- i would love to hear!

moving house

ah, so it looks like our family is moving. 

we will be moving to the next town over, to another beach house.  and so we only have a few weeks left at the place we call sea ranch.

 

things we have learned here, in no particular order:

• how to quickly start a fire in the wood stove
• that great horned owls love to duet
• that orion protects our house in winter
• how the plants, birds, sea and stars change with the seasons
• how to bike without training wheels
• how to climb the pines
• how the swallows return in spring
• the way the seabirds follow schools of fish
• the way the dolphins come play in summer and fall

 

our new house is just a bit north, up the coast.  i cannot wait to see what it holds for us!

  

i can feel spring creeping in

where i live, i can feel spring creeping in.  skunks are about, looking for love.  there are little bunnies everywhere.  the california poppies are in flower now.  and another sure sign: i am feeling like i am ready for a spring cleanse.  now, i'm not talking anything radical, but i am going to start planning for a week of super-clean eating and yoga.  it will be fun.

and it looks like we are going to be moving to another house in a few weeks, which will be exciting!  it is also a beach house, but it is not as remote, and i won't have to drive so much.  but oh, how i will miss our owls and hot tub.  and of course, the move is during the same time that i need to be doing all my planning for changes to this website, my e-course, etc. etc. don't you love how everything falls into place at the same time?

if you live up here in the northern hemisphere, what are your plans for spring?  any changes coming your way?

::transformational space::

{tent, 2009}

Our lives are constantly transforming themselves:: they shift, open, and change according to what we need, who we are, who we need to be.  At times it is easy to forget that we have this ability:: to shape our lives into what we envision.  For this, transformational spaces can hold us gently while we become more of who we would like to be.  

In our everyday lives we often have small transformational spaces:: a place where we walk, a spot to paint in, a reading corner where you can dream your dreams.  What are your transformational spaces in your life?   How can you create more of them, or find time to explore them more on your journey?

breathing space

there is something to be said for the clarity of this season:: where i live, the foggy season is now over, and one can see for miles and miles.  storms come, move through, and leave behind crisp air and beautiful views.

 

everything is clear, now.  there is lots of seeing, and understanding too.  i have been thinking of this post by Lisa, about what i want for myself, my family, for this space, in 2010.  and this year, i am going to plan how to get there:: i know it is unromantic, but i am totally going to do some short-term and long-term planning:: i'm talking calendars, charts, and manifestos.  we shall see how it all shakes out, but my goal is to have something on paper by the new year.

so, perhaps these images from where i live can hold a little of that breathing space for you, as you venture into the holiday season, into your planning, into whatever this season has in store for you. 

where do you find breathing space?

 

Pioneering Our Own Path

pioneering our own path can be a long and crooked journey, and i think it helps to pull out all of our tools in the toolbox to get us where we need to go.  sometimes, like right now for me, we have the vision but not the energetic means to get us there.

when i discovered flower essences, herbal infusions of the energetic qualities of plants, i realized that this could be another tool to support my growth, and as such i think they can play a supportive role in Mandala Mapping^TM.  here are some of my favorites:

walnut: supports freedom from influences of the past and other's ideas; supports setting out on one's own path. [supports the clearing stage of the map]

sagebrush: helps is let go of the old "baggage", release identifications and attachments which no longer serve us, supports our ability to take the next step.   [supports the clearing stage of the map] 

blackberry: supports the manifesting process, and our ability to put thoughts into action. [supports the manifesting stage of the map]

:::

essences are easy to use.  put a few drops in your water (make sure it is good and fresh); add some to your lotion.  carry the bottle with you, and just bring it's energy along.  use your intuition, and see where it takes you...

quieting the mind

Just as impressions left by the constant stream of thoughts and sensations tend to propel more of the same, the impressions left through participation with the silent substrate of consciousness generates a flow itself.

-Donna Farhi, Bringing Yoga To Life

I really love this quote from Donna Farhi's wonderful book, because it really describes the process of the mind.  In essence, what we spend our time thinking about trains our mind's pathways to do more of the same.  So if you are constantly in a negative state of mind, it is as if those pathways in your mind get rutted and grooved, and it is easier for the mind to take those roads.

We can change our minds by changing our thoughts.  

Spending more time in yoga, in meditation, where we become aware of the silence behind the constant stream of thinking the mind generates, will lead our mind to spending more time there on it's own.

at the beach walking {video post}

a walk at the beach from Emily Perry on Vimeo.

on connections and energy

as you may know, the medicine i practice, Classical Chinese Medicine (Acupuncture) is a highly energetic medicine.  when i am treating patients, the whole experience involves interacting with their qi (chi, prana, or energy).  during the life-long study of this medicine, practitioners become more familiar with this energy, be it though Qi Gong, Tai Chi, meditation, or yoga.  and as we become familiar with energy, we develop metaphors and ideas about it in order to better understand the human condition.

that being said, one powerful condition one comes across in practice is the idea of energetic cords.  barbara brennan has gone into this in detail in her work, but in essence the idea is that all of our experiences create energetic connection.  no matter how you want to label the experience, we are connected to it.  some cords dissolve on their own when they no longer serve us, but some stay connected to us in unhealthy ways, draining our mental and emotional energy.

if we are in a space where we are ready to welcome the new into our lives, often i recommend that the beginning of the change begin here, with the examination and release of these old cords that no longer benefit us.  why not be free?  why not create space from the get-go?

a wonderful way to discover your energetic cords is in meditation.  once you get into a quiet space, try to visualize all of the energtic cords coming from your body, and where they might lead.  what do they look like?  are they tangled around you?  can you find any that really seem to be pulling all your energy away?

if so, these are the places to investigate further.  if you find that you cannot release a cord that seems to be draining you, perhaps there is other work to be done there before it is ready to be released. in my class and workshops i will be further discussing energy cords (aka relationship cords), and together we will have a cemermony to release them.  

for myself, i like to keep the idea in the back of my mind that all my interactions create these connections, and so it is my choice what i give my energy to.  so, let's choose to put it towards the positive, fulfilling places!