Womandala Journey to the Centre: May 2011

Thursday, 19 May 2011

On Reflection

It's been several weeks since I've been back from Bali and in reflection I can see that this wasn't just a trip to do an art retreat. Having never been there before and other travelers I spoke to not mentioning it, I had not thought about the people and the land being so connected, quietly and sometimes not so quietly sacred and powerful. Bali is a walking ritual - from the time I awoke in the early morning till the time I fell in to bed late at night, I witnessed so many examples of thoughtful placement, beauty, order and sweet offerings. At the same time I experienced a very real sense of how tenuous life is, that I needed to be ever present with all I was doing, seeing or experiencing. Stepping out of a Holy Temple onto a road full of chaotic traffic and heckling stall holders, residing among multiple types of insects, barking ghecko's and other unidentified critters, walking on narrow,slippery, mountainous paths with a drop into a valley on one side of me or learning salsa dance steps in a Balinese Jazz club with a group of people I had just met, all seemed to require an equal amount of attentiveness. I can now see that in the last 10-12 years I had lost a lot of confidence from being in a body that was quite often ill or immobile. Facing so many fears and daily challenges in Bali and at the same time enjoying myself immensely, I was able to build a new understanding of my inner resources. Celebrating life in all it's many guises ( including some time each day devoted to exploring painting , colour, creativity and our inner journey ) was a nurturing and joyous thing to do for myself. This was facilitated by Dawn Meader and the planning and flexibility that went into the activities of the art retreat was visible daily. Being in Bali I could feel my heart opening to new awareness and possibilities. It is taking some time to integrate all that took place and I am glad that I had time either side of the actual workshop to acclimatise and adjust to both entering that space and leaving it. It added to the richness of my experience and allowed me some breathing time. I feel so grateful on so many levels.

I wrote this after being in hospital in Chicago. Keith took me to Fox River and then to an orchard

You come a long way on an aeroplane
You see alot o' things in the slip stream
And when you get to the place your goin'
It's like a dream more than a knowin'

But when you lay back among the flowers on the grass
You see the frogs hoppin' and
the water dancin' past
A little ladybird jitter buggin' to the
rhythm of the crickets tune

Oh, the Fox River is the place to be
After all that concrete in the city
Birds flyin' overhead
Sun shining down on me

All the medicine I need
To bring my spirit back to sanity
A ukulele strummin' a sweet melody
River boats thrummin' in their bellies

It's a good life here for me
Pickin' fresh apples and rasberries
Watchin' the bees swing lazily
Under the leaves of the fruit trees

Oh the Woodstock Orchard is the place to be
After all that concrete in the city
Birds flyin' overhead
Sun shinin' down on me

Oh the sun shinin' down on me
Yeh the sun shinin down on me
The sun shinin' down on me

A song I wrote in Nov 2008

That pinging splash
That tinkling laugh
That shower bath
They're all the same

That rushing creek
That book crit-ic
That hydrant leak
They're all the same

And I can hear it running through
I feel the thread
just weaving through
Can you all hear it running through
The whole of life?

Hear that hammer smash
hear that drummers crash
Hear that rustling cash
They're all the same

Hear that thud of hooves
Hear those party grooves
Hear that singers' blues
They're all the same

Theres just one Universal sound
Expressed and heard so differently
Just like a tapestry in time
I hear it all through everything
Can you just hear it running through
The whole of Life
The whole of Life
Can you just feel it weaving through
the whole of Life

Three sisters Mandala

Last week, I went to sit under a huge Mulberry tree in Subiaco. To my suprise and delight there was a kookaburra sitting on a branch just a little more than an arms length away from me. We sat together for maybe 10 minutes and were then joined by two more kookaburra's. It was one of those special moments in time. Inspired, I painted this mandala originally with a gradation of white through to black, experimenting with light and then decided in the end to add the green leaves of the tree. It is framed in an old plastic clock face which I got at an op shop.