What is Animal Assisted Inspiration?

These posts are an ongoing project from the creative core of Marti McGinnis. Each one focuses on some aspect of learning with animals that highlight Marti’s own creative considerations as integral to the process. Look for a book sometime later 2011.

More Than One Way to Cross a Creek

The Genius of Squirrels!

One day while paused at the end of my driveway to let a wide truck pass on our narrow lane a movement in the bare winter branches of the trees caught my eye. There, a squirrel was scampering from branch to branch, as they do, in an apparently random pattern.

But, no, it wouldn’t be random, would it — this is winter and wild animals don’t tend to waste energy in winter. I recalled I had watched other squirrels make their way in the upper branches of trees quite deliberately, repeating the pattern, their progress describing a deliberate course.

That’s what this one was doing — following a very complicated, three-dimensional trail through the branches he had discovered and apparently memorized. This squirrel had figured out how to cross a creek following a route that rose up and down, back and forth between branches of various trees that were close enough for him to hop or otherwise pass safely between. If I were to draw it, it might look like this:

Non-linear Squirrel Pathway

Where > = hop.

Watching him I marveled at the complexity and pondered the number of trials and errors he had had to endure to find this elegant path.

The subject then branched exponentially off in a couple of directions for me:

• Squirrel Intelligence
• How trees cope with each others’ branches
• The hidden pathway changes that occur when trees are felled in whatever manner (ice and wind storms, chainsaws, etc)
• How a lot of what may seem random progress at first may actually be a complicated solution
• And, of course, the pleasantly obvious: There’s more than one way to cross a creek.

For those of us who may from time to time feel at odds with our non-linear career path it may be Squirrel has demonstrated quite clearly the elegance of unpredictable solutions.

Creative Consideration

See if you can find a squirrel highway yourself, then draw it!

Or look at a photograph of tree branches and trace out your own squirrel pathway amongst them.

Adjusting Subtle Energy

Uncomfortable Places

Stuck Energy

Sometimes a space feels weird. A room has an odd ‘energy‘, a house gives you the willies. This can happen for animals too. A stall agitates the horse who tries to rest there. A dog won’t relax in your new apartments.

I’m not saying we’re talking about hauntings because I think that concept calls up a lot of pulp fictiony, cartoon-style imagry and vulgar, misleading interpretations.

I am talking about energy, specifically, energy that’s trapped or otherwise stagnated that, rather than dissipating, seem to spiral in uncomfortable vortexes, that, while we can’t see them with our eyes, other ways we connect with our surroundings seem attuned to. These semi-trapped energy bundles seem prone to collecting in corners and other tight spaces.

Brand Named ‘Bad’ Energy

Stuck energy bundles are created from a variety of means mostly having to do with mood and intention as emanated by the occupants or former occupants of a space and go by a whole bunch of different identifying ‘brand’ names assigned by various philosophies and religions: demons, ghosts, spirits to name some popular choices.

Ever since I saw the movie “The Exorcist” with its frighteningly demonic depiction of energy I’ve turned away from such explosive interpretations. Those scare tactics designed to instill fear seem truly counter productive to creative peace, happiness and personal spiritual enlightenment so I shun them. However, the truth from which these interpretations draw is the energy I’ve described. That exists.

Imagination and religious branding can turn it into various scary forms to be sure, but conscientiously dealing with it using some simple, almost folkloric, tools is perfectly do-able even for the non-spiritual.

Energy: Art + Science

Quantum physics tells us a bunch about the oddities of energy and how it can seemingly bend what we tend to think of as solid realities with apparent quantifiable effects that warp the real time observances of the space-time continuum. Just because we can’t see an energy or a force doesn’t mean it isn’t there. We live with such magical ideas all the time. Gravity, for starters – the smartest among us still don’t exactly know what it is – just what it seems to do. Or how about Gamma rays? Or X-rays — the power of suggestion, too. Weird forces you can’t really get at with ordinary senses but are there and apparent nonetheless.

Older cultures attuned to their own perceptions of subtle energies came up with some perfectly wonderful ways to adjust their effects on themselves or their populations. Some of these methods have survived the often suppressive limitations of evolving modern beliefs and are easily attained and likewise easily used. There are several I use with some regularity to impact how interiors feel or seem to feel.

The Tools

Sage, Tibetan Bells and Wind Chimes.

Sage Smudge Stick

Sage smudge sticks are little bundles of leaves and sticks from the sage plant. They are meant to be slowly burnt so the smoke generated can permeate an area. You will see them mentioned when people are talking about ‘clearing’ a room or house or a tipi. This article goes into more detail.

Tibetan Bells or Tingsha

Tibetan Bells, or Tingsha, are sort of like little cymbals that hang down from a short length of leather. You’re supposed to hold the leather and bang the bells together so they ring clearly. They say the ringing, along with your intentions doing so, help the sound waves emenating from your actions affect stagnant energy, loosening it up so it can join the sound waves and move along and disburse.

Beautifully Tuned Wind Chimes

Wind Chimes work a lot like the tingsha except they’re more passive and react directly to the natural forces of weather when well placed. I believe their harmonics, tone and timbre are very important to the cleansing process. Great care should be taken when acquiring them, choose a set that sounds right or resonates pleasingly to you. Usually the better ones, those that have been mindfully tuned, have been designed to vibrate beautifully together and will cost a bit more. It’s always worth it.

Some Background

When my husband and I bought our 200+ year old log home we were told by people who had lived in it that it was “most definitely haunted”. They proceeded to cite numerous personal experiences that described how this had played out for them and the people that lived here.

The house seemed to echo with all the strife....

With such an old presence I had little trouble envisioning the house’s history being full of the after effects of many human emotions. As I came to know more about them I learned the people we were buying it from were full of personal turmoil with a tendency towards negative emoting initiated by a lot of explosive drama in their relationships with one another and those they came in contact with.

I felt the house we had just bought was full of their buzz so I took immediate steps to reverse the effects.

The Process

Step 1

Because we weren’t going to move in right away I decided to start the energy readjustment passively by hanging wind chimes off the side porch so the spring winds would catch them and start the new harmonics flowing. It was sort of a pleasant promise to the house itself that things were changing and peace would reign again. I spent as much as I could afford on that set that chimes away happily to this day in the very same spot.

The side benefit to this was even though I was still hundreds of miles away the energy our new house was being bathed in positive sounds every time the wind blew.

Step 2

Before we moved in our first load of personal belongings (after physically cleaning the place up top to bottom, inside and out – believe me the porr house was a mess) I then lit a sage smudge stick and slowly walked its smoke throughout the entire place; into every room, every closet, every hallway, into every corner — waving it slowly high and low until every spatial inch had been occupied with wisps of the smoke. It’s kind of an odd smell, sage is. A little like burning fall leaves with a sort of resin-y acidic ‘after burn’. Not altogether displeasing, actually.

Step 3

The tingsha help disburse stuck energy

Tingsha, the Tibetan bells. With a little practice you can get pretty good at ringing these. You’ll come to discover that you can actually hear for yourself when you’ve come close to some stuck energy. It’s usually found in corners and the residual ringing of the bells in your inner ears will sound ‘flat’ or off key. What’s really amazing, at least to me, is how you can hear the flatness be resolved as you continue ringing in this one spot allowing each ring to play fully out. You just bang the bells together allowing their sound to fully disburse until the next ring – repeating until the harmonics sound right to you.

You can also help this process along by gently moving the vibrating bells up and down and side to side to sort of create a path for the stuck energy to follow. Do this all throughout every room or stall or office or space in the place you’re adjusting. I have done gardens and cars and art fair tents too. I would plan on spending about 10 minutes per room or space – though it could be more or less – your ears will tell you!

Summary

That’s the 3 step process I use for deliberate energy cleansing. I follow up with some prayer flag placement and other sort more day to day positive energy influencing – addressed in other posts. I have had repeated great good luck with it! Since moving into our grand old home I have never had any ghost like or bad energy experience here. Nor have any of our guests or animals that I’m aware of. I’m often told our house feels comfortable and homey. I don’t think people are just being polite.

Other Tools

• Gongs
• bells
• incense
• chants
• drums
• music
• pictures
• prayer flags
• colors
• plants
• candles, etc.

You can start to see where all of these items when used intentionally, actively or passively, can help ‘adjust’ the energy of a physical place. If you’ve got a favorite or one you’re particularly drawn to — use it!

Fox Seeking

Introduction

Around where I live they do this thing on horseback called fox hunting. Basically they talk a loud batch of spotted dogs into running over hill and dale baying as they dash after the scent of a fox and the people follow at breakneck speeds on willing horses.

The whole thing is nuts. Back in the day when lots of folks relied on their flocks of chickens for day to day sustenance foxes (Vulpes vulpes) became villains due to the easy pickings in the coop yards. Thus a grudge was born and perpetual open season on foxes began. Being that these people tended to also keep horses and hounds and maybe ran a still down yonder holler for medicinal squeezin’s or what-all a sport was invented. I think the guy with the biggest flask and baddest taste in clothes was elected head of the outfit. Ostensibly that red jacket made him an easier target to follow as they all galloped pell mell. I mean why go out and shoot a fox w

hen you can track it in the most circuitous and vociferous manner for an afternoon and then witness its unceremonious demise at the teeth of the dogs all woozy and knobby kneed astride your sweaty heaving sided equine? That’s fox hunting as far as I know.

Fast forward to modern times and everything pretty much is as it was then except nowadays foxes are largely left out of the equation and everyone – hounds too – follows the scented trail laid down by some poor sod chosen for the task who’s ment to drag a stinky bag hither and thither for the gang to lurch after later in the day. Of course this is an excellent time to practice diabolical orienteering. What with laymen buying their eggs from agri-congloms and all the vendetta has cooled, becoming less personal apparently.

Fox Seeking

Fox seeking is completely different. First off you’ll notie how not loud it is. You don’t need a posse, nor a passel of dogs, a flask, or even a horse – though including any or all of these is certainly acceptable though may cut into your chances of actually seeing a fox. The point with fox seeking isn’t to spook the furry orange wonder, but to catch a glimpse of something rare. You have to patient, and savvy to the ways of foxes. Or lucky. Or have a trampoline in your backyard.

Fox seeking entails forming a desire to find, discovering how to best your chances of being successful with that and then employing this knowledge going forth with your intentions. Seriously, this is how to accomplish anything creative. So I’ll go over those again.

1. Discovering how to best your chances of being successful
   Maybe this is research, looking stuff up, watching instructional videos, reading books, asking experts, attending clinics, workshops, classes….
2. Putting that knowledge to work intentionally
   Getting started, breaking through the barriet of not-doing to doing. This part stops a lot of people in their tracks. Maybe here is where they hear from others about how not successful they’re going to be, or how hard this kind of pursuit is – maybe these same negative thoughts are being self-generated; in any case they are non-productive and should be abolished or ignored if you want to get on with it.

Creative Consideration

Practice Fox Seeking in a way that pleases you. You know what would be ironic? Looking for a fox hunt to go watch or participate in. Not the killing kind, please. They do it in horsie areas. Otherwise go someplace where foxes live and see if you can find one. Or, last choice, decide to acquire some knowledge or learn some new skill and make the effort to do just that. Keep a log of your progress!

Buckin’ A+ Cowboy Ethics

Every once in awhile a quiet, brilliant soul rises noticeably within the fray that is the American hyperactive media machine. The latest is Buck Brannaman, a plain spoken cowboy who has practiced the art natural horsemanship for over a quarter century. Among his more notable mottoes:

I don’t help people with horse problems so much as I help horses with people problems.

Buck and Cindy by the round pen on location

Buck Brannaman has been  working with, retraining, starting and restarting equines for most of his adult life. Recently a very satisfied client of his was inspired to shadow him for as long as it took to get enough footage to turn his life, his way of being, into a documentary. Director, Cindy Meehle, founded Cedar Creek Productions in order to create a home for this wonderful piece of work. She and four other hugely gifted and skilled women collaborated to create this Audience Award Winning entry at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. With her background being in couture fashion Ms. Meehle may at first strike you as an unlikely candidate for being able to get this story right. Wrong! She nails it! Probably because she’s a horse woman herself.

Her film is respectful, down to earth and as naturally beautiful as the methods of the man she is filming. What rises to the surface in this film making it much more about broader perspectives than just human interaction with horses – is how it illustrates human interaction with self in the context of horses as only one area where personal cause and effect is immediately recognizable. Mr. Brannaman teaches that in order to work well with horses one must first understand one’s own relationship with them and be open to learning their ways in order to maximize positive and effective communication.

Creative Consideration

Let’s be like Buck! Here’s how:

Wearing this hat will make you feel different

• Get an awesome cowboy hat and wear it. Buck seems to like Stetsons. This one’s pretty cool.
• Pay attention to the body language of those you wish to communicate with.
• Use as little ‘pressure‘ as it takes to do anything all week.
• Be firm yet respectful.
• Add this film to your Must See list on Netflix. It isn’t in wide release but momentum may be building.
• Get the song that closes both the film’s trailer and the film itself: Just Breathe by Pearl Jam. (that’s the live version – it’s also on iTunes)

Creative Consideration

In your sketchbook or journal – document an unpleasant time in your childhood and record the benefits that resulted from that experience. That is exactly what Mr. Brannaman did in his book The Faraway Horses”, some of which is covered in the film. His childhood was less than ideal in so many ways – but set the course of his life. It probably could have gone either way – he chose the path that while maybe not easier has provided meaning and substance in deep seated foundational ways.

Delta Society and the Miniature Horse

Part 1

Three years ago I went out and located the perfect miniature horse to work with to become a registered “Pet Partner” team with the Delta Society. I went to select from several month old minis and ended up being selected by a two week old newborn. How I knew I was being chosen was after playing with the older foals the breeder invited me to look in on her newbie. This ultra cute weensy chestnut and white foal left his little gray mother and walked directly up to the fence where I was standing and looked me in the eye.

Now you horse lovers will know this is strange behavior for such a young foal. They don’t usually leave their mothers so freely nor do they tend to look people in the eye. As I had stated my intentions clearly to come up with the perfect mini to accompany me through the Delta Society training I knew who my partner was as soon as he identified himself in this way! Plus I was smitten. Well, here see for yourself how cute the little bugger was:

The young lad at 2 weeks

He was way too young to come home with me so I put a cash deposit down on him and drove away with the promise of getting progress reports from the breeder in the ensuing months up until he would be ready to be weaned.

The Delta Society

In the meantime I started looking further into what the training would entail for becoming a registered “pet partner” team with the Delta Society. They are an organization that has identified the clear benefits of the presence of animals in what are usually stressful places, especially medical facilities. If you have ever been in a hospital and saw a dog with a handler ‘making the rounds’ visiting patients and their families then you have probably seen or met a Pet Partner team.

Usually Dogs

I should mention that usually these Pet Partner teams are with a dog, but I had caught wind of their also being Pet Partner llamas, cats, birds, bunnies and perhaps even a miniature horse or two elsewhere in the United States. Being that I like near Lexington, Kentucky a city that proclaims itself to be the “Horse Capitol of the World” I figured someone better form a Pet Partner team with a horse. Who better than me? Besides I had done some advanced level trainings with EAGALA (Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Organization) and was well aware of the therapeutic inroads being made with human/equine interactions. I felt uniquely drawn to and qualified for putting this team together.

I waited patiently for the little guy to grow.

Part 2 coming soon!

I Love Trees

Trees are such awesome individuals. Like us, they begin life from a tiny tiny beginning; a seed and with time grow into large embodiments of the ideas held in that original encased potential.

They grow right where they are.

They don’t seem to particularly long for different conditions though they will definitely lean towards the favorable. They commit to place and get on with their business of living.  They drink when it is offered and dance when the air insists. They slowly compete for sky and as wee youngsters start seeking personal heights immediately.

Their arms hold the homes of birds – nature’s optimists. They may house innumerable species of creatures, big and small and be as full of neighborhoods as a big ol’ city!

You can count on a tree to be there.

They don’t go off to seek their fortunes in distant lands. They quietly create their lives in place – influencing the landscape with their presence, sharing their bounty with their presents:

• seeds
• shade
• sap
• shelter
• shape

There is everything to love about a tree.

Much to admire.

They don’t embarrass easily. They’re tough. Sturdy. Reliable.

They’re interesting too. Like how they can change dramatically to optimize their existence for different seasons:

Sun Gathering – leafed out.

Drought Coping – leaf dropping.

Fall Hope – seeds.

Winter Waiting – bare branched.

Spring Mayhem – flowers!

Their branches draw for us opportunistic paths found all throughout this universe: part pure randomness part perfectly predictable.

Trees are symbols of strength, hope, adaptability. Wherever they are life lived near them is more pleasant. I love trees.

Creative Consideration

Go spend some quality time in the company of trees. Document what you experience in whatever way you like best, photographs, drawings, recording, video, story, list of observations. Anything will do – do what the trees inspire!

Flying is Easy With the Right Attitude

I know a guy who recently decided to learn how to fly. Well not fly so much as glide on the wind; or hang glide. Now, he’s not a spring chicken, but you can teach an old(er) dog new tricks!

Watching him flutter down the ‘bunny’ hills at first reminded me a seeing the fledgling robins take their first tentative flight from the nest their parents would inevitably make in one of the hanging baskets at a greenhouse I once worked at. Since we knew these baby birds from eggs it felt like a real rite of passage the day they left the nest. Wing flying, as you know, is not an easy endeavor to coordinate. Good ol’ Leonardo DaVinci himself toiled with designs for flying contraptions in his spare time and couldn’t solve the physics of it – and he was a genius!

Well hang gliding isn’t so easy either. The glider acts like a kite, and if you’ve ever flown one of those and had a hard time under certain conditions then you can start to imagine what it’s like trying to fly a much bigger version of one from underneath the thing! Like the GI Joe dude you may have tied to your kite years ago. Though between flying with wings and gliding with them, gliding is by far easier. The hang glider really can’t not fly when the conditions are right.

The trick is to keep the conditions right! You do that by coordinating direction, speed and altitude – all with increasing importance the closer you get to objects (mountains, power lines, trees) or the ground. The finesse required is the same for birds and people. This activity is thick with meaningful metaphors; from appreciating the courage of tiny baby birds to likewise appreciating the available lift of the unseen, the presence and support of the invisible when you hold the right attitude — and I could go on, but you get the idea.

The simple truth here is when you have (or give yourself) wings — you can soar!

It may not look graceful at first but with experience you learn to negotiate the invisible and float harmlessly, joyfully on its updrafts and downdrafts by making simple adjustments to your relationship with these unseen forces. From this point of view both up and down are neither good nor bad but simply moments within a longer flight.

To soar you have to:

• Endure failure
• Persevere in the face of it
• Believe in yourself
• Maintain the proper attitude (relationship of your wings or support to air currents or flow)
• Make necessary adjustments to maintain flight
• Avoid crash landings!

Unlike birds, hang gliders can experience the delights of flight in a tandem set up with an experienced pilot well before they’re ready for solo flying. These paired experiences help them learn and practice high altitude (2000′ +) techniques with minimal risk. Indeed any one of us who have ever ridden in an airplane has experienced such flight to one degree or another depending on the size of the plane and the conditions of the flight.

Activity

How will you fly?

1. Write a list of Big Dream Accomplishments you’d like to tackle. Your own ‘bucket list’ (from the movie of the same name). Things you want to be, do or accomplish before you die.

2. Pick one.

3. Break it into manageable components. List what you have to do, learn and experience to make this happen. Be sure to include ways to cope with:

• failure
• frustration
• exasperation

4. And be sure to include ways to measure success!

Accomplishment may be its own reward…
but sticking with something to reach an accomplishment can be difficult to maintain.

Plan token rewards for yourself to acknowledge your successes along the way. For example after 5 or 10 repeated tries give yourself a “Good Job” gift, make it something you’ll need when you’ve reached a higher level in your pursuit of this goal, some little piece of equipment, a training manual or book, a membership — whatever; just something that supports your process and anticipates your continued success!

As you proceed on your path with this goal you’ll carry on with your pushing through the tougher times with the learning or achievement process by taking a moment to recognize your building achievements. Even when those achievements are maybe stalled at being continued tries.

By the time you’ve accomplished an apex moment you’ll probably have amassed enough of the things or equipment necessary to support your Quest to even higher goals!

A Word To The Wise

Always get yourself the very best quality version of whatever it is you need — even if you have to get a pre-owned version. You are worth it! Your goals are worth it! And these are prizes you’re awarding yourself, high quality speaks volumes to your subconscious.

Creative Consideration

1. In your journal or blog keep track of your progress in achieving a goal.
2. As you level up in your own game here photograph or take short videos of your progress and/or pivotal moments as you can.
3. Post those on Facebook or tweet them or otherwise publicly put it out there what you’re doing. You’ll:
   •  Inspire others with your progress and
   •  You’ll inspire yourself to keep going!

The Art of the Try

Arrive ready

I’m not a big fan of horse racing, but I am a big fan of horses. I have a friend who runs some horses and she does right by them. When their running careers are over she gives them a try in a new job, usually as brood mares, and a permanent home. She’s pretty unusual in the field.

Recently I went with her to the track with one of her currently employed athletes. She’s been running well and is due for a win. Her condition is great. She’s a seasoned professional. She gets a little keyed up before a race so she gets the equivalent of soothing herbal tea and quiet time before tacking up. She knows her jockey. She knows her job. The race went off well — she broke clean from the gate and ran swiftly.

I can relate to this horse whose barn name is Buttercup, incidentally. She’s not young (for a race horse) but she’s not finished either. She doesn’t give up. She does her work. My friend says she doesn’t get a lot of respect from the race handicappers – so her odds of winning are usually set to be pretty long. Fourteen to one the night I was there. Not good but not horrible.

It took me a couple of days to see the parallels. My work is in top form. I’m not young but I’m also not finished. I, too don’t give up. And if there were odds posted for the self employed mine too probably wouldn’t look too great these days. I’m in the middle of a pretty bad run of luck when it comes down to it – financially that is. Like Buttercup I’ve been training well. I show up ready. I don’t give up. I’m also due for a win, or at least ready to finish in the money.

That night she ran a mile in the rain with six other horses. The conditions of the race were such that the horses were all well matched by the numbers. They tore around the track in a fairly tight group until the home stretch when one horse pulled ahead. It wasn’t Buttercup. She came in fifth. Out of the money. A portion of the purse goes to win, place, show and fourth. She did beat two other horses though.

Usually there are a whole bunch of reasons why a horse doesn’t win. Too muddy. Too dry. Got boxed in. Stumbled. Got caught in traffic. You name it. So I asked my friend. She gave a very rare answer in horse racing. She said “The other horses were faster.”. Yep. I guess so.

And Buttercup. Her reaction? Nonplussed she did not act at all defeated. She was satisfied with her work and was ready to go home. Wow. Now that’s an attitude to embrace! That’s the great thing about most horses — such poise. So balanced. Such equipoise.

Now, my friend may choose a different set of conditions for her next race (slower horses, lol?). Or she may try a different track surface (dirt instead of poly). Reasonable moves. And when Buttercup is done running she’ll try her in a whole different career. I think she’s proven she will do well in that.

The Lesson

So there it is, delineated clearly how one might handle one’s career, its defeats and eminent change with equanimity. For me, a hard worker who has been feeling particularly defeated lately for a whole variety of reasons, the reality is I’m probably just running in the wrong races. Time for some changes.

Things to Remember

• Not winning shouldn’t change you
• nor should winning
• Not winning might change what you do next, that’s all
• Conditions don’t define you they just outline the job at hand
• Your work doesn’t define you – how you do it does
• You are not less for not winning
• A horse who tries is a good horse and a good horse has other options

My friend is in charge of her horse’s career moves. You and I are in charge of ours.

True Confessions

This post was originally begun as a rant from a depleted trier about how unfair the handicappers (in my case clients, readers, network users, visitors to my online stores and blogs) have been towards my work lately. Now it’s true, I have been turning out some of the best most top-notch work of my life in every quarter and though I have moved people significantly ironically the inflow of cash towards my efforts has never been so anemic! Humbling stuff for one who still sees herself as a Derby contender. But clearly its time for some changes. Conditions or career, not entirely sure, that’s what I have yet to work out.

Questions

Have the handicappers got your odds right? If not it might be time for some hard questions:

• Are you in the right line of work?
• Are you bearing down on a breakdown?
• Are you training well?
• What else can you do?
• What are your positive traits handicappers don’t evaluate?
• Are you willing to try?
• If your best isn’t good enough to win under certain conditions what conditions can you change?
• What else are you willing to learn?

Ex-race horses go on to have successful careers in many other areas and disciplines:

• dressage dancers
• eventers
• hunter jumpers
• trail buddies
• therapy horses
• breeding stock
• etc

What happens next depends on the choices the steward makes. We, you and I, are our own stewards.

Creative Consideration 

My favorite race horse of all time - 100 starts - no wins - forever beloved.

Give yourself a race horse name. Then choose your barn name. (A barn name is more like a nickname).

Choose a horse in the upcoming Kentucky Derby and follow his (or her) career path as we get closer to the race. Here’s a handy reference to the Derby prep race. Let that horse be your stand in for your race career. Keep track of how you feel about your namesake’s career moves, accomplishments and defeats. Think about how you would do things differently. Find the parallels between this wonderful beautiful athlete and yourself. Know that no race defines you. It is a major win to come in first in the ‘run for the roses’ that is true. But even some of those former champions have fallen on hard times. Remember – you are your own steward. Its up to you to make good choices.

Giddyup!

Pink Trees and Buzzing Bees

You know how we tend to think of trees as being green? There is a tree near me that every spring is very definitely not green. Without one leaf unfurled, the entire thing is covered in the prettiest pale pink flowers winter weary eyes ever did see.

So, point number one, trees can be pink! And shrubs can be yellow (forsythia) and other trees can be white (pear, apple) other-worldly carmine (certain dogwoods), etc. You get the idea. Pop art depictions of wildly colored natural scenes may not be so fanciful, eh?

Here’s another thing: pink trees can be abuzz with lively beings enjoying their first fresh harvest of delectables in almost half a year. Bees have been sending sacrificial scouts out all winter to check on the progress of the season (often they fall to the ground doomed to die as their tiny bodies freeze solid too quickly for them to make it back to the hive). But nothing lasts forever, not even the worst winter and finally one day the scouts do return because it’s warmed up. It’s very easy for me to imagine the instant joy that flows through the swarm when they receive the news about spring from the location dance the scouts do to instruct everyone where to go collect this fabulous rejuvenating nourishment of the blooming pink tree.

Instead of blossoms or leaves the artist has depicted the movement throughout the tree made by happy bees feasting on the spring nectar

Point number two: feasting bees can redefine how we experience the shape of a tree with their activities. They can add a visible fourth dimension. The sketch depicts the branches of a tree and what might first appear to be blossoms is actually meant to be the delineated movements of the bees.’All too soon the blooms will fade and a wind will blow their petals away and this pink tree will become the more usual green. But we’re left with the knowledge that trees can be pink and can dance for days with the help of their partner bees.

Discussion

• Driveways can be pink. How?
• What color is grass?
• Bonus – What shape is grass?
• Orange, yellow and red trees? Really?
• White fields?
• What color is a body of water?
• The sky?

Activity

Artists and photographers delight in depicting the less usual states of natural objects. Most of us also love these extremes in color too – ever notice ow many people are apt to comment when a sunset gets going? Spend some time today observing the natural world around you. Look for example of what might be atypical in form, color or texture. If you’re in an urban setting you might think this is a bit of a challenge until you remember the sky and bring into focus those small inevitable bits of the natural world that always seem to find a way to exude themselves in the most unlikeliest of places. Rock doves’ (pigeons) plumage, the intrepid plants that find minuscule bits of earth in between cracks, beside buildings, and so on.

Creative Consideration

Using a nice new box of crayons and colored paper draw the same scene several times on differently hued sheets selecting a variety of colors for the main features. Green one time….purple another. Be sure to include anything from the natural world you like the best and think about the different ways those things can look throughout the year. The goal isn’t necessarily to be realistic for every drawing though capturing some of the more unusual states of an item may well be illuminating!

Bonus

Roses are red,
Violets are blue
Sugar is sweet
and so are you…

Can become….

Bushes are mauve
Trees are quite yellow
I love a landscape
that’s colorfully mellow!

Turning Ideas Into Action!

Ideas Like to Flutter Off

Many of us have tons of ideas. For some, ideas are the lifeblood that flows through our very souls connecting our hopes and dreams. But how do we get these esoteric beauties out of their glittery realms and into the harder world around us?

When we pick up a pencil, like dreams often do before we can give them our wakeful attention, ideas may floof coyly away. What are we to do? The solution is wonderfully and maddeningly easy: Just get started!

But start how? Where? And with what?

Consider the hummingbird. One fine day in spring her tiny self — along with her many wee cohorts — gets a bee in her bonnet and off she zips on a thousands + kilometer odyssey up to her summer haven. That impulse to go — to up and leave — and head somewhere on inspiration alone: that’s you and your ideas!

You fly and fly and replenish enough to keep flying. Maybe you don’t know exactly why you’re flying nor where you’re going, but you fly on and on. You keep going until you eventually arrive somewhere. Maybe just because you’re pooped or maybe because you get a right feeling a place; whatever the reason, you stop flying and switch gears.

That’s you with your unexpressed ideas. You’ve flown for miles and miles and now you’re perfectly poised to do what’s next!

And what is next?

Nest building!

This is the crux of the whole thing. To give foundation to ideas you have to build a safe place to nurture them.

The Start

For our hummer this means finding an out of the way space where she can start to build her home, where it won’t be molested by marauding crows, voracious squirrels or vagabond jays. What do you need to support the growth of your ideas?

• sketch or idea pad
• (sacred) daily time within your schedule (they say the muses attend to those who keep regular hours)
• an open mind (no need to self censor in these stages – let it flow!)
• potential outlets (ideas prefer arriving to places where they can grow)
• supportive resources

The Process

So now the place is found. Our tiny companion now transitions into nest building mode. She seeks items that will somehow fit and stick together to become something whole. Something that accommodates the goals inherent in the ideas. Which brings us to my favorite part of the whole process! The tipping point that transitions conceptual idea formation into dynamic attainment of the aspirations they’re meant to address.

Not everything sticks at first - or even ever...

This is where you ‘put one foot in front of the other’ and proceed. What I love about this part is this is the phase where false starts, little booboos and other mistakes (mis-takes) can be fairly easily absorbed by the process itself as long as the process continues. That’s the important point here: As long as the process continues!

For many of us after a series of little failures we may give up. That’s not cool. That’s where we abandon our nest because a few clumps of moss didn’t stick right.

What does the hummingbird do? She carries on with her work even though not everything she brings back works. She goes with the law of averages instead.

Let me personalize this. This blog you’re reading is a nest. I build it post by post, sketch by sketch. Not all of my efforts ‘stick’ with every reader. Some fall flat onto the hard ground. But some do stick and eventually because I don’t give up it’s coming together into a cohesive whole. It is inevitable that this will happen. As I keep at it I can not fail.

Here’s the other thing. The eggs all this nest building is for may not hatch. It may be conditions external to my efforts won’t allow it. But that doesn’t mean my nest isn’t perfect! We nest builder have to remember that what we create may not accomplish the goals we sought through our building endeavors. I may compile the posts on this blog into a beautiful book no one wants to buy. But that doesn’t mean I haven’t created a beautiful book!

Let’s say the hummingbird’s nest contains unhatchable eggs gets plucked out of the tree by a birder who sends it to a natural history museum that puts it in a glass case where generation after generation of inquisitive human eyes come to witness this miniature piece of beak-built architecture. Maybe one of them gets the idea to create a whole new way of assembling materials based on the experience of seeing this wonderfully adapted work.

The original intention remains unattained but crazy larger accomplishments because of those original efforts is!

That is Storybook Ending C.

Storybook Ending B is: great nest, no hatchlings — second even better nest is built!

Storybook Ending A? C + B.