Wellness Wednesday
This week's topic is on Journaling, Art, Music, and To Do Lists.
My Motto is "Write it down, and if you can't write it down, draw it out."
What has helped me most on my journey is writing. I have written since I was a little girl - whether writing poems, writing in a journal, or free style writing. What has assisted me even more on my journey is art. Something pure and refreshing happens when one can connect deep within oneself, and put pen to a notebook, or even better, paintbrush to a canvas, or even just colorful crayons to paper. It is really not so much the "form," but the "content" that displays itself in an unfiltered and pure manner.
My law of 7:
Journal every morning for 10/ 15 minutes in a place where there are no distractions.
Keep handy - colorful pens, crayons, markers, poster board, paints, brushes, canvas (for those who think they are not "artists" - everyone is). Art is the place where purity, creativity, and uniqueness come out from the depths of one's soul.
Instead of a "to do" list, try a "not to do" list. Take some time to just be, instead of doing. The paradox: "doing nothing," is actually "doing something" rings true!
Many love spreadsheets, and excel. I prefer my pie charts, which are really just large circles, cut into halves, and quarters. Here I can look at and review priorities, and energy expenditures (which I call Energy ROI). How much energy do I spend doing a particular action? Energy drain versus good/great energy investment.
Find time to reflect upon old journals, and art. Often we are expanding upon previous "lessons" - learning on a deeper level. Since we evolve more in a spiral, than in a straight line, it may seem that we are revisiting similar core issues, but on a higher level and point of awareness and consciousness.
Find time throughout your day to listen to some good vibe music! When I was a young girl, I loved classical music, especially classic piano. As I got older, I expanded my fondness of music to include jazz, and now really enjoy blues/ jazz. Great musical composition, is great for the soul!
Question everything! Curiosity meets wisdom! Write down deep questions, to ponder. For those who think they have all the answers, this will not be a good practice for them, clearly; but for those of us who live in the present, want to learn and grow, and ultimately seek truth, this is a great daily practice.
Following are ten of my favorite quotes on art and music.
Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything.” – Plato
“Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without.” – Confucius
“The music is not in the notes, but in the silence in between." - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
“Music is your own experience, your thoughts, your wisdom. If you don’t live it, it won’t come out of your horn.” – Charlie Parker
“Music in the soul can be heard by the universe.” – Lao Tzu
“Mournful and yet grand is the destiny of the artist.” – Franz Liszt
"Love of beauty is taste. The creation of beauty is art." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
"A picture is a poem without words" - Horace
"The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls." - Pablo Picasso
"If you hear a voice within you say 'you cannot paint,' then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced." - Vincent Van Gogh
