ART JOURNALING

 

Art journaling has become quite a fad among journalers. If you search it on social media there are an array of different places to look for ideas and scraps and "junk" to journal. Mine? Simple. So simple compared to others. I started in 1991 while I was going through a faze of not being sure if I was still myself. Magazines, scissors, tape or glue became a way for me to keep tuning in whilst quieting enough to do so. 

My last day of corporate work was on Thursday, and since then, I've been ......busy-brained. Family stuff. Physical stuff. Busy and stressful stuff. Busy and exciting stuff. Just stuff. 

And so for a couple of hours this morning, I art journaled. Not my art. The art of others published in places where I can tear and cut and glue and find myself in a calm and happy space that looks much like a 3rd grade collage of what I want to be when I grow up.

We are heading into winter months soon. I hear there was snow on the mountains this morning. I love the outdoors. SO VERY MUCH! The past five years have been hard on my body. Hikes are shorter. Walks seem to take a toll. I am no longer a gym rat, which was something I was really loving until a few years ago when I really messed my shoulder and bicep up. My dad passed away. I moved to Wyoming. I felt broken without my kids. But I had a really cute apartment. Made a best friend. Found Native roots in my past that helped me find who I always knew I was. I worked in a museum. I did really successful things there. But dang I wore out. 

In the year since moving home to Colorado, I have struggled to bring the me I found in Wyoming into this place. And so, my art journals? They let me see what I love and know and want to stay connected to. 

This morning, simple as it is, I found creating pages helped me set goals and see myself.  It slowed my brain. I made just two decisions for myself. Just two goals for the year that don't seem quite as overwhelming as any I may have set in the past. They are doable things. Real things. Real me doing real me things. 

One. Get my snowshoes dirty. I am NOT a bear. I will not hibernate. I will go find snow. My dog, Belle, LOVES snow. If there is a drift, she will go what I refer to as snow-swimming. She dives into it as though it is water and charges through it like it is ocean waves. She only has three legs. Not a perfect four-legged body, but she doesn't care. She does it. I will too. And we will play in the snow together. 

Two. Purchase a 100-600mm lens for my camera. I can't always get close to those critters and have to crop a LOT to see their fabulous faces. The right tool for the job. Because photography is part of "my job" now. 

Not a goal for the next year, but perhaps in my near-ish future is being in my studio. What studio, you ask? The one I will acquire in my near-ish future. :-) The place I am most comfortable? Behind a camera. Writing blogs as though they are letters to my friends. Sitting on my bed mapping my future through magazines as I glue together all the broken pieces of my so-far-lived-life. 

Art journaling. Its like a vision board, but you can change it and add to it and be your own self on every single page. Silly hobby? Nah. Quite lovely a hobby for my well-being. Maybe you can try it?  My pages are boring compared to most, but I have a cluttered mind so I try to keep it quiet in my art journal. But there are some fun and elaborate ones. Try searching social if you want great ideas! 

Love you all. Have a great day. God bless your souls on this beautiful Monday morning.