IT'S A NEW DAY--IT'S A NEW YEAR

It has been a while since I have posted. Things kind of got away from me last week with the fact that we were celebrating our "Christmas" with our kids on New Year's Day. It gave me an extra week to get things completed and wrapped though! I say: prolong Christmas for as long as you can.

This bird, above, was a gift to me from my girls. Earlier in the year they asked me to give them a list of things that I wanted for Christmas but I told them: "You know me really well. I'm sure whatever you decide to give to me I will love". And boy! Did I LOVE this gift! I got so excited when I opened it I even got a little sweaty. I hesitate to blame it on anything like hormones because I am sure it was due to the excitement I felt when I lifted this wonderful crow out of the box.
They purchased this piece from a lady on ETSY named Sylvia Anderson. You can go to ETSY and search for her there or she also has a blog at SylviaAnderson.blogspot.com This kind of gift is right up my alley. First of all, it is unique. Second, it has an image of a crow, which I dearly love. And third, it helps promote the art of other wonderful artists. Artists struggle most of the time and especially when times are tough and money is hard. So, the fact that my girls helped out another artist with this purchase thrills me. It is also my two favorite colors: red and black!

Here are the wonderful feet of the crow, perched on an old croquet ball and you can see that he has picked up a shiny object along the way. In the photo prior to this one you can see that he has watch elements in his mouth. It is my interpretation that he is carrying time away with him.

On his back there is a silver beetle, which for me speaks to my love of bugs and the job I worked at last summer (trapping bugs for the county). His wings are so incredible...formed out of old paper that has been formed into accordion-shapes and mounted in the place of real wings. The words "judicate" (on one side) and "let in" (on the other side) seem to speak volumes to me. These words are a reminder to me not to judge others and to let things in to my life. I am a firm believer that there are no accidents in life. These words and their meaning were sent to me on the wings of this bird; a lesson...a message just for me.

"Let in" held in place with the remnants of a watch face...another message, as I perceive it, to let things happen in their own time and to not worry about time. I think that it is just a random assignment that someone has decided we need, to make sense of things. Justin Evans has a blog called Utah Poet. You can find it on my sidebar or here and he wrote a posting here where he describes time as this: "Time was invented to explain the phenomenon of aging, of the sun rising and falling, of someone dying before another person, of memory and nostalgia." Go read his stuff. He makes a lot of sense.

"Judicate" "Judicator" "Judicative" on the other side.

So, even though Christmas came at a different "time" than usual for me, it turned out to be one of the most memorable ones that I can remember in a long time. The kids came over on New Year's Eve and spent the night with us. We woke to a blanket of white snow all over the ground the next morning. What a way to start out the New Year: a fresh, new clean layer covering everything from the year before. We opened presents after having a really nice breakfast that was prepared leisurely, without a time constraints. See: there's that word again: time! It does crop up a lot doesn't it.

I have seen different people's posts today regarding what the new year holds for them. Some people have talked about New Year's Resolutions. Some have picked out words for the new year. Last year I chose the word: grace. I think that I handled the year gracefully and that I learned to slow down and accept things as they were meant to be. This year, I feel the need to choose the word: Listen. I am starting to see that the world is sending me messages. I am becoming more and more aware of the fact that if I am open and accessible to them and acknowledge them as they arrive, I can really grow spiritually. This piece of art, with its message, is proof enough for me.

I attended a Burning Bowl Ceremony on New Year's Eve. It was so powerful! You arrive and are given a piece of paper that says: I release, I let go, I relinquish...You write down everything from the year before that you are willing to let go of and then you place it in the "burning bowl" and watch all your worries burn up into the universe. And then you proceed indoors and "wash your hands" of them all in a bowl of warm water. Then, you are instructed to write "Your Intentions for 2011". You place these intentions into a sealed envelope, address it to yourself, and then around Thanksgiving of 2011 you receive it in the mail. I can tell you from my own personal experience that approximately 80% of last year's "intentions" came to fruition. And I would say that the remaining 20% are works in progress. This has been such a powerful experience for me. I am happy that I have found this outlet.

I wish nothing but the best for all my followers (and those people who read this but are not followers). Life is a journey, not a destination. Enjoy the journey each day to the fullest. And I'll see you on the other side some day! We'll be "time travelers" together. CROW will guide us along the way.