Sunday, June 20, 2010

Week Six in Review:
Never mind that we just completed week seven

The Guest Post for the week was The Muse’s Secret Address by Meredith Wickham.


This post is amazing... all you blog stalkers that never leave comment should seriously consider following the link to read Meredith's post. (I know you are out there, my stat counters assure me I do have readers. ☺)

After reading this post you may also want to visit Merediths garden blog: 
The Enchanted Earth.  It's one of my favorites!


Meredith's words from her guest post invited me to ponder the value of paying attention to the “here and now”.

"I trained myself to note the minutiae of the present moment, to become aware, bit by bit, of this particular here and now. Paying renewed attention to my reality might be as simple as noticing the sunset outside the kitchen window as I do the dishes, or actually feeling the flow of the hot water over my hands."

I'm afraid that as a mother of so many children, my life has been more of a “hurry up” mode. The reality of my "here and now" was more like: "Come here... (insert a child's name) and I mean right now, " said with a sweet and loving voice to the mischievous stinker boy hiding under his bed after... (insert any act that a little stinker boy might do.) With so much to do and so many wonderful little beings to do for, not much time was spent in slow mode.


Now, for the most part, my children are all grown up and I’m in the process of discovering how to let my Muse out of the closet. She is a bit timid and frightened that I may include her in my “hurry up” list of to do’s. My husband shared with me the visual image of someone cracking the door slightly and peering out with large and sensitive eyes to see if it were safe to come out yet. Yes, it's safe.


I am discovering that as I learn to slow my pace and allow myself to really see the “here and nows” of my life, I can experience moments where wonderful ideas flow.  And then, my Muse is free to dance about my mind and enrich my soul, giving breath to my own creative thoughts.  And then I can write... and I do, fettered only by my poor typing skills.  (I never did learn the "home keys" during my college typing class as I was madly in love with my honey and only had eyes for him.)


One more thought from Meredith that caputured my attention:


"The tiniest detail is the gateway to story."

To harness the power of that statement, the answer is again, to slow down and train my eye to see and my heart to listen to the tiniest of details.  I'm actually enjoying experimenting with this concept through my camera lens.  There is a beautiful world out there that most of us are far too busy to see.  



That's all for now... 
 this new week my goal is to keep my head above water, and find moments to slow my pace... enough to allow my Muse to dance!


5 comments:

Unknown said...

Meredith's post was amazing. I'm glad you have found inspiration from it!

It is hard to slow down. I find myself caught up in the whirlwind too often, and I only have one small man :)

AuroraLee said...

This is so very true. I think it's very hard to 'stop and smell the roses', no matter hard much you want to, when you've been so busy for so long, whether it's because of family/children or, in my case, keeping myself busy with work/school/volunteer/projects.

Photography is key for me, just as in your photo. I love to take photos all over the place, and people think I'm crazy for the things I shoot. It's often afterwards, when I take the time to look at the photos to find the details in life.

Sheila said...

I found your blog through your comment on "Garden of Threads". I will look forward t checking in on your journey to becoming a writer. Sunshine Always...

Carolyn ♥ said...

Thank you for your kind comments.

Merrilee, I've learned that no matter how many little ones you have, your hands are always full. :)

AuroraLee, I loved yout thoughts, and agree with your sweet sentiments. Thank you for sharing!

Sheila,
I'm so glad you found me, and I would love for you to check in with me. I'm also a retired school teacher, however, I only taught in the schools for one year, and then became a professional mother.

Diana Studer said...

See it was one of the Merediths, at Enchanted Earth, that makes me see your blog name as a twist on Meredith. Do YOU say Meredehuit, as if it starts like MEREDith?

Oh and a PS the lurkers don't leave comments, because that needs a moment from your muse too ;>)