Gaian Tarot Artist's Journal

Moments of Happiness

I haven't been blogging much lately because I'm focused on making art.  (You'd rather I finish up the Gaian Tarot art than write blog posts, right? ;-)

I'm currently working on the 9 of Water, based on this photo taken by my friend Kat, on our mythic Journey to Avalon three years ago.  (More on the story behind the photo when I post the final artwork.)

I may not be blogging, but I am tweeting a few times a day.  Most days I remember to post a HMOTD (Happiest Moment of the Day).  Today I woke up feeling a bit grumpy (our houses have yet to sell), so I pulled out my arsenal of anti-grumpy tools.  First, count your blessings (make a gratitude list). Check. Second, spend some quiet time outside.  Check.  Third?  Well I chose to review all the HMTOD's that I posted on Twitter since starting a couple of months ago.   And a few themes emerged.

What makes me happy most often (not necessarily in order)?

• Making art.
• Skyping with my baby granddaughter Grace.
• Community. Spending time with friends and juicy acquaintances, especially when bound by a common interest. Having scintillating conversations!
• Spending time with nature (aka Mama Gaia), and noticing what's going on with the plants and wildlife day by day, season by season.  As well as Mama Ocean and La Luna Bella, mais oui!
• Eating great food, especially when it's fresh and local and vegan and gluten-free. 
• Spending quality time with my honey.

Relationships, nature, creativity, food.  These are the elements that bring me happiness.  

How about you? 

Celebrating Lammas, the First Harvest

(Photo:  the head and hair of the Bread Goddess)

I'm home from the third annual Northwest Lammas Festival, a homegrown affair started and sustained by some of my mermaid sisters and brothers. (We thank you deeply for your hard work throughout the year!)  My mind and heart are filled with images and sensations of heat and cold, mist and sweat, intricate drum rhythms and laughing babies. The first fruits of the harvest:  the gathering of the tribe and the sharing of the fruits of our hands, hearts and minds.  Waverly said it so much more eloquently than I can on her blog this morning.

But I have photos to share!  (Last year's photos are here.)

Last Night's Full Moonrise

We sat on the beach for three hours or more, watching in awe as the huge orange orb rose in the southeastern sky.   She shimmered and danced for us as the tide went out in ripples and waves.  Her reflection on the water sometimes looked like an undulating snake and sometimes like a bellydancer,   We sang to Her, and in response Sister Heron came flying out of the darkness to circle round between Her in the sky and us on the beach.  Later we were graced by the presence of Owl and Bat and Mouse.  We lifted our stones nestled in a clamshell up to Her and asked for boons to be granted.  We thanked Her for the blessings of our lives.  We giggled and laughed and played in the warm water.   We left before midnight with our hearts very full.

It all comes down to Gratitude.

I'm honing in here on the idea of gratitude.  I'm beginning to think that all the spiritual practices in the world and all the strategies we devise to get us through rough times all come down to this one: gratitude.

Gratitude changes the way we view the world.  We see the same events through a different lens, a rainbow-colored lens, as it were.  Not "rose-tinted glasses" in the sense of being in denial or ignoring the ugliness in the world.  But choosing, every moment, where to put our focus.  Do I focus on the things that make me scared or anxious or bring me pain?  Because if I do that, I'm going to miss out on all the beauty, joy, kindness and generosity that surround me.

Gratitude brings us into the present moment.  We can't be brooding over the past or fretting over the future if we're noticing what's around us right now, right here.  What else do we have but the present moment?

Gratitude attracts more things to be grateful for.  Not to get all Law of Attraction on you — but it is true: when you are looking for things to be grateful for, you will find them.  And then you'll find more. And more.  And more.