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you get proud by practicing

2/24/2022

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Shared in Seeds of Connection BIRCH cycle on 02/24/2022

You Get Proud by Practicing

by Laura Hershey

​If you are not proud
For who you are, for what you say, for how you look;
If every time you stop
To think of yourself, you do not see yourself glowing
With golden light; do not, therefore, give up on yourself.
You can get proud.
 
You do not need
A better body, a purer spirit, or a Ph.D.
To be proud.
You do not need
A lot of money, a handsome boyfriend, or a nice car.
You do not need
To be able to walk, or see, or hear,
Or use big, complicated words,
Or do any of those things that you just can’t do
To be proud. A caseworker
Cannot make you proud,
Or a doctor.
You only need more practice.
You get proud by practicing.
 
There are many many ways to get proud.
You can try riding a horse, or skiing on one leg,
Or playing guitar,
And do well or not so well,
And be glad you tried
Either way.
You can show
Something you’ve made
To someone you respect
And be happy with it no matter
What they say.
You can say
What you think, though you know
Other people do not think the same way, and you can
keep saying it, even if they tell you
You are crazy.
 
You can add your voice
All night to the voices
Of a hundred and fifty others
In a circle
Around a jailhouse
Where your brothers and sisters are being held
For blocking buses with no lifts,
Or you can be one of the ones
Inside the jailhouse,
Knowing of the circle outside.
You can speak your love
To a friend
Without fear.
You can find someone who will listen to you
Without judging you or doubting you or being
Afraid of you
And let you hear yourself perhaps
For the very first time.
These are all ways
Of getting proud.
None of them
Are easy, but all of them
Are possible. You can do all of these things,
Or just one of them again and again.
You get proud
By practicing.
 
Power makes you proud, and power
Comes in many fine forms
Supple and rich as butterfly wings.
It is music
when you practice opening your mouth
And liking what you hear
Because it is the sound of your own
True voice.
 
It is sunlight
When you practice seeing
Strength and beauty in everyone,
Including yourself.
It is dance
when you practice knowing
That what you do
And the way you do it
Is the right way for you
And cannot be called wrong.
All these hold
More power than weapons or money
Or lies.
All these practices bring power, and power
Makes you proud.
You get proud
By practicing.
 
Remember, you weren’t the one
Who made you ashamed,
But you are the one
Who can make you proud.
Just practice,
Practice until you get proud, and once you are proud,
Keep practicing so you won’t forget.
You get proud
By practicing.
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Art Church info

2/15/2022

3 Comments

 
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Join me and other creative folks for ART CHURCH!
What is Art Church?  It's casual, chill time with other creatives and makers of all sorts.  We gather, we celebrate creativity and we create together.

Is Art Church a religious thing?  Nope.  It's time for us to intentionally create in community.  It's time where we collectively say "Creating is important! Community is important!" (Maybe even sacred.)  As Julia Cameron (author of "The Artist's Way") says, "The act of making art is both scary and healing. Art brings light to places that have remained dark.  Art brings perspective. Making art, at any level, is an act of courage and an expression of faith."
What do people work on? All. The. Things!!!  Some folks work in art journals, junk journals and gluebooks.  Some people bring fiber arts - sewing, knitting, crocheting.  Some folks write or carve stamps, or do bookbinding. Really, any creative project is welcome!  We've even had someone make soup one time.  

What else goes on at Art Church?  Sometimes I read poetry, sometimes I pull cards for us.  I often have fun questions for us to chat a little (What TV show would YOU want to be on?) and get to know each other.  We talk about what we are working on, sometimes we share artsy tips or do a little show & tell.  Some folks chat lots and some just come and quietly work with the company of other creatives.  It's up to you how much or little you participate!

A few more important details:  We meet on Sundays, typically once a month.  Dates/times vary and schedule will be posted and emailed.  We usually hang out for about 2 hours (but you can come at any point and leave whenever you need/want to).  It's FREE.  We gather on Zoom.

How do you get in on this FUN??   You'll frequently the info and registration posted in my community group on Facebook, and shared to Instagram.  I also send out email reminders.  If you'd like to be on the Art Church email list, fill out this form.

I hope to see you at the next Art Church! 
Come create in community!!

Art Church Update and info for Jan/Feb/March 2023  has been posted here.

Info in this post updated 01/13/2023
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Connect & create - valentines

2/2/2022

1 Comment

 
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Connect & Create events are one-time meet ups for the folks in our community! They happen from time to time, usually based on my whims or the needs of our virtual village.  We have gathered for a Letting Go Ritual, for Winter BigSuperFun events, and more.  In February we are gathering to create together and make simple heart themed art that can be used as Valentines or just for fun.


WHEN:  Saturday, Feb 12 @ 10:30am (PST) for approx. 2 hours
WHERE:  on Zoom
COST: $7
HOW:  Get registered here.

DETAILS:  
Join me for a morning of making some simple heart themed creations - these could be Valentines, or just fun HEART ART.  I'll demo a few fun, heart'ful ideas for you, and then we'll create together! We'll have time to check in with each other before we begin, and time to show off our creations before we say goodbye. 

I'm pretty sure there will be a few PRIZES, because that seems to be a theme with these Connect & Create events!
Join us for community, creativity, and FUN!! 

SUPPLIES:  
DO NOT WORRY if you have only the very basics. Some paper and a handful of highlighters would totally work! Bring whatcha got and we'll make it work.  The main intentions behind these gatherings are having fun and creating in community.  Everything we do is planned to be accessible with even the most basic of supplies!
​THE BASICS:
  • plain white copy or drawing paper
  • variety of paper: colored paper, origami, junk mail, wrapping paper, scrapbooking papers, pages from old books, old artwork, any kind of collageable papers (not necessarily ALL of these, just some!)
  • scissors or cutting tool
  • glue stick and/or collage medium (gel medium or ModPodge)
  • card stock or blank cards or blank tags (if you want to make cards/tags)
  • something to add color: markers, colored pencils, paint, etc. (not necessarily ALL of these)
SOME OPTIONAL EXTRAS:
  • stickers, washi tape
  • black Sharpie or paint marker
  • ribbon or yarn
  • collageable or scrapbooking elements (die cuts, quotes, etc)
  • stamps and ink
  • heart punches (or other shapes)

You can follow along with the projects I demo or you can do your own thing! I'm going to have basic ideas to show you for the first bit and then after that, we can work on those or whatever we want! The ideas I bring can be Valentine themed, or can just be heart-themed and will be appropriate for other occasions.

I don't want anyone to feel overwhelmed or that they have to have PILES of arty/crafty stuff in order to participate.

All the details for this event and others are often posted first in the Connection Seekers' Virtual Village on Facebook, come join us!
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    Author

    It's me, Crystal.  I need a place to put all my extra words.  

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  • Home
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