Mojo Monday ~ Whimsy In the Garden

There is something so refreshing and fun about creativity and whimsy in nature.  I spotted a fun photo on Pinterest and followed the link back to the creator of the above signs.  The website where this image can be found is called Fresh Picked Whimsy and the blogger is artist Lori.  Her original post about how this sign came into existence can be found here.

What I loved seeing is how this project started off with a creative idea and a pile of old wood.  The photo to the left shows the pile of unused wood that was just waiting for a creative artist to come along.  


The simplicity of taking what is already readily available and turning it into an adorable garden art piece is brilliant.  


Look how simple it was to create in the following images.  First pick out some pieces. Next paint them.  

Lastly, add locations that have meaning to your life.  If you want to add the distance, simply look it up on google maps or some other on-line mapping program.  Have fun with the lettering. Lori did a beautiful job on these by using white and black to create some dimension to the letters.  I also loved a suggestion on Pinterest that stated you could also include dates for when you visited these various places on the back.  


What are you waiting for, go forth and create whimsy!

Mojo Monday ~ We Are All Meant to Shine!

“Your playing small does not serve the world.

There is nothing enlightened about shrinking

 so that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We are all meant to shine, as children do.”

~ Marianne Williamson

Come sit down.  Make yourself comfortable.  If it was winter I would tell you to go ahead curl up on the couch, with a soft cuddly blanket to keep you warm, and I would serve you some hot Moroccan mint tea, my favorite.  However in my neck of the woods it is summer and we are in the midst of our annual triple digit days.  So instead I will invite you to sit in a lounge chair in our backyard, and you can put your feet in the cool water of our kiddie pool, while we enjoy some cold ice tea together.   

Now that you are settled in I want to share with you how round these Cosmic Cowgirl parts we have been discussing the topic perspective.  I have two very simple points of view to present about life perspectives:

The first one is: Life’s too short not to wear a red boa.

The second one is: We are all meant to shine!

You may have giggled when I told you that life is too short not to wear a red boa.  Quite a few people do.  You may have even laughed when I surprised you by draping a red boa around your shoulders.  The other possibility is that you looked at me like I wasn’t quite all there, wondering what was up with this red boa thing.

Well, the philosophy of The Red Boa, as I like to refer to it in short, is about having more fun and enjoying life more in the present.  Now this approach to life may come easily to some folks.  There are people with naturally positive, happy and laid back attitudes.  However, I recognize that for some individuals this way of being can be very foreign and it can take some actual effort at first to practice at lightening up.  There are also plenty of people who, like myself, fall somewhere in the middle of that spectrum.  Of course there are always going to be tough life experiences that come along now and again and can make it tough to see the brighter side to things.  There are a number of things that can help us all to keep perspective about this thing called life.  The first one, while it may seem a bit morbid, it is to remember that this thing called life is not a permanent gig that will last forever.  Every single one of us on this planet has an expiration date, it may be many years from now, or it may arrive sooner than that.  The reality can be uncomfortable to consider, but when taken into consideration can help us keep things in perspective.

Let me assure you that I don’t walk around with rainbows shooting out of my ears, sprinkling happy glitter while I skip through city streets nor do I have birds and friendly animals scampering around me while I sing angelically in a forest.  On occasion I do wear glitter and truth be told I may bust a move while cleaning the house, especially if a band like the Gipsy Kings is playing.  

Sometimes my life feels grand and sometimes I want to scream “get me out of here.” Many wonderful things have occurred in my time here on planet earth.  My life has been full of abundance and I always try to be grateful for all that I have.   My life has also been affected by tragic and deep loss and I have even experienced depression.  A few years ago in fact I went through what I describe as a dark night of the soul.  Yet somehow I have always managed to return to what I call a sunshine spot.  Sometimes the return trip to my sunshine spot is quick and I stay there for an extended period of time.  Sometimes I can’t find my way back there for a long time, and those are the hardest times of course.  I won’t delve into all the details of my soul’s story right now, but I believe there is much we can learn from one another’s life stories.  Especially when brave souls come forth to share how they triumphed over adversity and chose to rise above it all.

Perhaps even after the introduction to The Red Boa philosophy you are still asking yourself “But why a red boa?”  I am here to tell you that wearing a feather red boa can be transformative.  There is something about a feather boa that is sassy, playful, mischievous, sexy and a little bit wild.  If the thought of being “wild” sounds a little intimidating consider what reknowned writer Clarissa Pinkola Estes, Ph.D writes about the “wild woman” in her introduction to Women Who Run with the Wolves:

"Within every woman there is a wild and natural creature, a powerful force, filled with good instincts, passionate creativity, and ageless knowing.  Her name is Wild Woman, but she is an endangered species.  Though the gifts of the wildish nature come to us at birth, society's attempt to "civilize" us into rigid roles has plundered this treasure, and muffled the deep, life-giving messages of our own souls.  Without Wild Woman, we become over-domesticated, fearful, uncreative, trapped."

If you do not yet own a feathered boa add it to your shopping list right now.    Then make up reasons to wear it.  For example, on my 30th birthday (which unbelievably was 13 years ago) I had my birthday party at a roller skating rink.  My family and friends requested lots of disco music (think Michael Jackson Off The Wall) and a few of us even wore feathered boas while skating.  I for one, am the owner of a rather fabulous collection of feather boas.  I often incorporate them into Halloween costumes too.  There is the flamingo pink boa, the fire red and orange boa, the parrot rainbow boa, as well as boas in simple black, red, green and blue. The photo collage (top left and then counter clockwise) above features me as "Fire," a rainbow parrot with my twin kittens, a pink flamingo, and then see how I use the rainbow one for decoration by framing a mirror in my art room.  

The reality is that I am a regular run-of-the-mill woman.  I have my low melancholy times, I get angry and feel impatient.  My figure will never walk a fashion show runway and from time to time I even have (gasp) bad hair days.  Yet, underneath there is also my wild woman, who occasionally howls at the moon, has danced in a bar cage and in the rain in Paris, and will when needed (or just for the hell of it) break out the glitter and feathers to help me keep that Red Boa perspective.

Put on

that red boa,

fling it round

your shoulders,

shimmy shake

those full

feminine hips

take pride

 in your stride

delight

 in the tickle

the caress

 of the feathers

feel your skin

oh how good

 it is to be you

one of a kind

a singular creation

of love

What do you do or could you do to stay in touch with your wild woman?

How do you keep perspective (or your cool), if you even do, when the shit hits the fan?

Do you own a feathered boa?  If not, what are you waiting for??

Mojo Monday ~ The Cowgirl's Guide to Riding Wild Donkeys

A brilliant email landed in my email box this weekend from Leonie, formerly known as Goddess Leonie.  She offered for FREE, her book called The Cowgirl's Guide to Riding Wild Donkeys.  As a member of a women's tribe called The Cosmic Cowgirls, I have to say that seeing the word cowgirl in her title made me happy inside.  


Now here is what Leonie offers in her brilliant (and FREE) Project Finisher Ebook:


* Her secret to producing and creating effortlessly, easily + with ridunkulous amounts of joy
* How to get your projects finished + out into the world in record time 
* How to transform your biz + creative practice with this simple, powerful technique 
* The secret to making your ideas into real, finished, tangible creations that can touch the world + give you gorgeous income!


Here is one of the fun pages from the book:




























To get your FREE copy of this delightful book visit Leonie at her web site by clicking here. 


Here is the full web address:
http://leoniedawson.com/free-the-project-finisher-ebook-how-to-finish-your-projects-get-them-out-into-the-world/

Mojo Monday ~ Releasing the Past

"Removing an arrow/error like believing your past 

was the BEST and your future is less bright, 

is easier said than done, if you know what I mean. 

We get a LOT out of holding onto the the things that harm us, don’t we? 

I know as long as my past is better than my future, 

I cannot call in the future that is mine from a pure heart, 

or as Dr. E puts it: 'clean, calm, clear heart'." 

~ Shiloh Sophia McCloud 

Sharing from her experiences at 

Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes' 

SoulFire Vision Quest in June 2012

The past can be an anchor holding you back.

When I read the words above that Shiloh Sophia McCloud wrote they literally leapt off the page at me. Fairly recently I had found myself in a bit of a funk and during this time frame I also happened to flip through some old photographs.  Some were of my days of living and traveling in Europe.  Others were of me in my college days and with various friends sharing fun experiences.  I found myself wistful of my youth, my courage, my appearance (one that required I work out damn hard to achieve), my freedom and some of my relationships.  The words Shiloh wrote spoke to me deeply though.  At the age of 43 was I really ready to declare the best years of my life were over?  Was I really thinking that nothing fabulous would/could happen that might make those experiences of my twenties and thirties seem small in comparison?  When had I grown so disillusioned, jaded and skeptical?  Was I going to throw in the towel and live my life talking about the good ol' days and the "remember whens"?  Heck, I had to admit that I was falling into that pattern.  

Recently I also made some observations about we humans.  I saw first hand how easy it is for we humans to hold onto the past in a death grip of remembrances, and not in a good way.  It is fairly common for people to keep track of the hurts and the ways we have been wronged.  I make no judgments of this tendency, because most of us have been there at some point or other, and according to psychological research it is now believed that it is in our human nature that bad events wear off more slowly than good ones.  Here is a quote from an article called Praise Is Fleeting, but Brickbats We Recall by Alina Tugend, "As with many other quirks of the human psyche, there may be an evolutionary basis for this. Those who are 'more attuned to bad things would have been more likely to survive threats and, consequently, would have increased the probability of passing along their genes,' the article states. 'Survival requires urgent attention to possible bad outcomes but less urgent with regard to good ones.'"

I have personally experienced my own propensity to remember the bad, as well as witnessed that of others. I have found it sad to observe once close and treasured friendships crumble because of one or two negative interactions, in spite of years of wonderful times spent together.  I have also witnessed someone complaining and talking about their resentment for events that took place 30+ years ago.  Yet reminding someone that those events are far in the past, cannot be changed and really don't have to affect them in their current life, isn't often productive.  You can't make someone else see through your eyes how they are allowing their old resentments to steal their happiness in their present life.  Again I don't judge anyone that is stuck in such a place.  There is a time when it might be necessary to delve into the past in order to really get the muck out and heal it.   When Oprah and Iyanla Vanzant teamed up earlier this year Iyanla stated that in order to heal our pain three things to need to happen, we have to feel our pain, we have to deal with it (really deal with it) and then we can heal it.  Feel, Deal, Heal.  She also bluntly told a former addict that while he was no longer using drugs and drinking alcohol that he was now addicted to his story and that he needed to move on because he was the only one standing in the way of his happiness. 

I am also here to share that Cosmic Cowgirls has a secret weapon when it comes to transforming one's pain and past into glitter and gold.  The remedy is art and writing one's Legendary Story.  All of our lives offer us up the most wonderful material for a kick-in-the pants, rollicking, roll-in-the-hay read.  That bar fight you had back in 1995, don't you dare leave it out, and your stories from when you raced wild with a roller derby team called The Angry Beavers will be sure to have your readers staying up all night.  If you danced in a cage or on tables in a bar tell us all about it.  Perhaps you lived in Europe and had several foreign lovers.  Hmm....now we are getting to some good stuff.  Yet, there are the tougher stories, perhaps the boyfriend or husband who cheated and left you for Paris Hilton.  There might even be tragedy, the fiance who died in a car accident or the abusive childhood you survived.   All of these provide you with a champions story and the back story to who you are today.  If you have any doubts about that one pop on over to Effy Wild's blog called The Glitterhood and begin reading her powerful and moving mini-memoir. 


As we are beginning our Legendary journals over at the Red Key Vision Quest consider what stories you have to tell.


Is there something that you first need to feel, deal and heal?


Do you feel addicted to any of your stories that are causing you pain and keeping you from moving forward in your journey?  (feel free to share or think about privately)


Which stories or experiences of yours first come to mind when you think of the word Legendary?


With love and encouragement to shine, shine, shine!
Michelle

** Mojo Monday was born in May 2010 and has been featured on Cosmic Cowgirls Rodeo of the Soul since that time.  Mojo Monday offers up inspiration, interesting ideas, questions and more to get our week off and running.  We like to gather around the campfire and share  our stories and our experiences with one another.


In 2011 Steph Cowling who currently resides in Brooklyn, New York, joined the Mojo Monday team and inspired us all for a year with her incredibly thoughtful writing and her beautiful photography.  Fortunately you can still find her writing in her column Soul In the City in Cosmic Cowgirls Magazine.


This year the inspirational Trish O'Mally is co-facilitating Mojo Mondays with me.  Her writing carries magic within it and if you attend a Cosmic Cowgirl Conference you may get to experience her gastronomical brilliance as well.

Mojo Monday ~ The Red Key

The tribe I call my own, Cosmic Cowgirls, is offering an invitation.


This is your invitation to open the door of the heart with the flaming red key of possibility! 

How would you feel if you could take charge,
AUTHOR YOUR OWN FUTURE
instead of letting life happen to you? 

If there was a place to express your TRUE voice now instead of later. 

WHAT IF THERE WAS SOMETHING YOU COULD DO RIGHT NOW – TODAY
to change how all of this is landing in your heart, your life, your spirit?

Maybe you are saying…I’ve heard that before

Painting by Shiloh Sophia McCloud

I want to live my true authentic self. Whoever that is… Life is too precious to live an unexpressed life. But I don’t really KNOW what my path is or where it leads, OR how to get there. I’ve tried change before and it didn’t stick. How is this going to be different?

Many women say that this work that we offer is just what they have been waiting for all of their life. A true connection. Belonging. A place to express the songs and images within them. You are a choice that you get to make. What it is you want to say, be, cause, create, manifest? How you want to experience your life and how it occurs for you? And you are right, it is not easy to do it alone and that is WHY we are doing it together, as a tribe of women who are TOGETHER committing to a life path of sacred work that reflects who we are instead of living a life that is not consistent with us. Why would anyone keep living a life that does not reflect who they are? Because many of us don’t know where to turn.

Now there is a place to turn, and something to turn it with – a magical red key that lives inside the heart – a key that belongs to you and your very own muse.

Are you, like so many of us, feeling:
• life is passing you by and your life didn’t turn out the way you wished?

• are living like you are dying instead of living like you are living?

• you would like to be creative, feel that you are, but tell yourself you don’t have time?

• there is no creative spiritual community you can truly call home?

• that the voice of the critic is your own voice, and you believe her when she says: you’re too old, you don’t have time, you’re not smart enough, not creative enough?

What if we told you all of those were lies?

Come learn more about this journey that begins June 21, 2012 at:

http://www.cosmiccowgirlsuniversity.com/education/2012/redkey/

Mojo Monday ~ Fierce Women

Fierce Women

Some years ago at a work training about self defense for women, the instructor asked the group what they would do if they were attacked.  A couple of the women in the room, shook their heads and audibly said things like "I don't think so" and "He'd get a face full of my fists," but more comments were about screaming for help.  The instructor listened to these comments and then said "Now what if you had your children with you and this person was going to attack you and your children?"  My, oh my, the room erupted in a cacophony of women stating very firmly what they would do to protect their children. When they quieted down, the instructor then asked "Why would you scream for help and not take any actions to defend yourself if it was just you, and yet fight to the death to defend your children?"  


Now of course it is hard to really know how we will react in such an extreme, adrenaline rush of a situation where we actually believe our life is being threatened, but it was a fascinating question.  Why would some women turn into a big mean mama bear to protect their children, yet not do the same to protect themselves?


Personally, I am a peace loving person.  I don't support war.  I cannot watch flagrantly gorey and violent movies.  Just watching pretend situations where people are cruel, hurtful or inflicting pain on other people disturbs me.  I also don't think that revenge or retribution is productive, but rather only leads to more human misery.  When I read stories of people who rise above and forgive others I am deeply moved.  (You can find some amazing stories of forgiveness on the web site called The Forgiveness Project) However, if you give me a scenario where someone is intending to inflict violence upon a loved one, I know without a doubt, that I would turn into a fierce fighting warrior.  I have had a few experiences in my life where I acted to protect others, without even considering the consequences.  My instinctual nature was that strong.  

Juana Galan, fighter in the Peninsular War in Spain 

There is something fierce about a painting of a woman holding a club.  The story about the woman featured in this painting is also quite dramatic.  Juana Galan is her name and here is a version of Juana's story as reported by Wikipedia: "At twenty years old, she was considered the best informed woman of the village, because she worked in a strategic location, the first tavern in the village.  On June 6, 1808, in the battle in Valdepeñas against Napoleon's troops, there was a lack of sufficient men to defend the village, so she encouraged women to go out and fight. The other women poured hot water through the windows and boiling hot oil on the road, while Galán was armed with a baton. She took to the street to fight against the French cavalry. Through this battle, the French army abandoned the province of La Mancha and was delayed at the Battle of Bailén, which ended in victory for the Spaniards."


My friend Susan Apolonio shared this painting and a brief introduction to Juana's story.  Susan had gone on a little road trip with me and my sister Wendy and during our adventure she also met one of my sister Cosmic Cowgirls, Ti Klingler.  Ti regaled us with the amazing experiences she had been having in courses she is taking with Mama Gena and her School of Womanly Arts.  When Susan sent me this image she shared that there was something in the eyes that reminded her of Ti and that I could pass it along to her.  After forwarding it to Ti, who I might add, works as a church secretary, yet is also adorned with body art and has the sassy Cosmic Cowgirl handle "Sugar Bitch," responded that she actually keeps a baseball bat behind her desk and calls it the security system.  


This story and the image led me to reflect on our identities and how we are more than what meets the eye.  It is both an exciting prospect and yet can also be disconcerting.  In the "disconcerting and disturbing" column you might find the example of the neighbor being interviewed by a camera crew because the house next door was discovered to have harbored a serial killer or a gangster.  The neighbor shakes his or her head in disbelief and stammers, "But he was such a quiet and pleasant man."  In the "exciting and interesting to discover" column you perhaps learn that a mother that you befriended on your children's kindergarten trip is also a novelist and that you share many fun interests in common.  


People who know me are shocked to hear my story of how at the age of ten years old I watched as a man walked up to my father at an outdoor wedding and proceeded to punch him in the face with a fistful of quarters.  A brawl broke out and in the midst of seeing my father covered in blood and fighting to defend himself, I then spotted an older brother of mine about to be attacked and have his broken leg kicked by someone.  I  blacked out and went on the attack myself and punched the adult male who was about to injure my brother.  I punched him so hard in the face with my hand that was encased in a very hard cast, (I happened to have a broken hand), that I not only knocked him down, but also broke his nose.  Who knows what might have happened to me if other adults hadn't some to my defense when the guy got up back up holding his nose, but threatening to harm me.  Later on I had no recollection of my actions and only knew what happened from stories of my fierce defensive reaction.    


Later in my teen years my dad confronted two teenagers trying to break into my sister's car at about 4 am.  The two young men were mouthy but took off.  They returned though in about 10 minutes with a larger group from an all-night party.  My dad, not one to take lip from some teens, went back outside to talk to them.  What he didn't realize at the time was that some of them were hiding bats and pipes behind their backs.  I looked out the window, took inventory of the situation, and yelled for my mom and sister to call 911 and grabbed our well-trained doberman pinscher and headed out the door to back my father up.  Our fierce dog immediately had an impact.  Most of the teens backed up and made comments about the dog who was snarling and barking at them.  I could also tell they were having second thoughts about their actions when I started commenting that I recognized some of them from my high school.  I really don't know what would have happened if my dad had remained outside by himself.  He could have been beaten, or worse.  Fortunately, some of the teens were probably already nervous about the situation, and between the threat of the dog and being told the police were on the way they all departed.  About a month later though we learned that the ring leader of the group in front of our house had been arrested for murder. 

My last tale of fierceness occurred when the abusive ex-boyfriend of a roommate came to our house.  He had actually come into the house and was upstairs.  He became verbally abusive to another roommate and I thought he was going to hit her.  Without thinking I threw my arm in front of the roommate to protect her and closed the gap between the abusive boyfriend and myself, so that I was in his face and poking my finger into his chest.  I was livid and I backed him down the staircase, my finger continuing to hit him in the chest as I told him in a loud and threatening voice to get the fuck out of my house.  I think he was in shock at having a woman be so aggressive with him that he started blabbering about it being his ex-girlfriends house too and that he was there to see her.   I told him that she only rented a room, and that I and my parents owned the house and that he needed to get the fuck off my property right then and there.  As he backed out the front door and down the porch steps and tossed out a few more expletives and yelled that was  never, never return to my house again.  Later on after the adrenaline had worn off, and we had reported the incident to the police, I shivered and considered what could have happened.   In the heat of the moment though my fierce warrior self had risen to the occasion.  


There is both darkness and light in all of us humans.  We can be complex creatures and our emotions sometimes get the best of us.  I know from experience that when push comes to shove I too have the ability to be a bad ass.  I prefer the peaceful path and using reason and understanding to deal with situations.  I certainly hope that I am never again put in the position where I have to physically defend myself or a loved one.  Yet I must admit that I stand a little taller knowing I didn't play the victim role and that when necessary I stood my ground and called upon my inner fierceness.


There are other times, much less dangerous, where I have also felt fierce.  I definitely felt fierce when I went skydiving.  There have been times when playing sports that I have felt tough and strong.  Sometimes I equate my resilience through difficult personal challenges with an inner fierceness too.  

I find stories of fierce women to be inspiring.  In college one of the papers I loved researching and writing was about Native American women warriors.  When I heard stories about Cosmic Cowgirl and artist Sue Hoya Sellars and how she rode a motorcycle through the streets of San Franciso decades ago I was incredibly impressed by her fierceness.  How about women like Amelia Earhart who dared to do things no other woman had ever done before?  


Consider ways to get in touch with your own inner fierceness.  What might you dare to do that scares you a little, or a lot?


What are some ways your fierceness has expressed itself?


Have you ever had to stand your ground in a difficult situation or confrontation?  How did you handle it?


Come on, tell the truth, are you a bad ass?


What is the most fierce thing you could think of doing right now?

Mojo Monday ~ Spirit Essence Portrait

Spirit Essence Portrait painted by Melissa Harris for Michelle Fairchild

Melissa Harris is an artist I have long admired.  I have followed her work for over 12 years now.  She is one of the artists that makes me go "Wow!"   


Melissa features two web sites of her work.  One is focused on what she describes as Melissa Harris Fine Art and the other is called Creatrix, A Division of Melissa Harris Art Enterprises.


She has the most amazing series with such titles as Empowered Women, Women and Magic, Women and Love, Women and Nature, Women and Meditation, Women and Dreams, Women and Cats, Cycles of the Moon and Mermaids.  

She has created two inspirational decks of cards. One is called Goddess On the Go and the other is Anything is Possible.


Melissa's creations while focused on her amazing paintings also often offer up her gifted insight and healing thoughts.  The messages in her gift cards are often poetic and powerful.  


Her art, which is sometimes available as prints, candles, jewelry, tshirts and more make very thoughtful and beautiful gifts.


For many years I have longed to have her do a Spirit Essence Portrait for me.  This year when my husband asked me what I wanted for my birthday it came to me to finally get this for myself.  I even offered to split the cost with him.  Melissa asks for a photo of the person and then asks the person to include some questions she/he would like answered.  Here is how Melissa describes the portraits on her web site:


Have you ever wondered what aspects of your being would reveal themselves to a psychic or "intuitive" and what these qualities would look like in a painting?
I combine my background as a clairvoyant with my artistic abilities to create your own spirit essence portrait. I will tune into you and do a 7" x 10" watercolor painting of your unique essence as it appears to me in a semi-trance state. I then combine the elements of what I find into your painting in a way that will be helpful for you in your path of development. For example, this might include reminders of issues you are working on, aspects of yourself that you may want to honor, patterns of behavior that you are working on changing, etc. I never know. These are just some examples. The session takes 75 - 90 minutes and you receive the double benefit of learning what I "see" as well as owning a Melissa Harris original painting.  


When I received my personal painting that is featured above I was so very moved by it.  Melissa included a cd on which she recorded her message to me.  It was incredibly thoughtful and intuitive.  At one point I found myself tearing up even as I was so touched.  


Here are several more of my favorite Melissa Harris creations:

Anything Is Possible

In Your Power

Queen of Hearts