Whimsy Back in My Life
Originally Published on my Patreon Page…
July 28, 2024
I created special bookmarks just for this post, to start us off on a whimsical journey! The illustration is special to me, it represents the kind of work I’m interested in, the work that is inspired by my loves (my family, my nieces) and my friend “imagination.” I hope that you enjoy using this gift as much as I enjoyed making it!
Note: Gifts were specially created for Patreon members only.
I’ve been on a long journey to get to a day like today. A day when I wake up and my first thought is: what will I create today? the question brings me to my center and focuses my creative energy. It wasn’t always like this. I have many responsibilities, like everyone else, most times those responsibilities were not conducive to actually creating anything tangible. It can be said that I misfired and misused my creative energy. Lucky for me that misfire and misuse of energy led me to discover the whimsical side of life and get on the path of a self-learner, discovering and devoting the same energy and time to many different topics. That same misfire and misuse of energy would later send me on another path, one full of work, and no play. Until life changed for everyone in 2020. Destiny took away my false sense of security and kept me so occupied that I didn't realize or see the mindset changes that I was making and the transition or transformation that I was going through. Almost a year ago to this day, I discovered Cal Newport, by accident. In my rush, I thought I was ordering a book by the author of Essentialism and got Cal Newport’s book instead. His book, Deep Work, is on my shelf as TBR, but he has a YouTube channel and I’ve been listening to his weekly podcast since. What a happy mistake! He is mainly known for his concepts on slow living, but what grabbed me was his approach to life. I got from him the understanding that I could start off by asking myself, getting clear for myself, the life I envision, and start building from there, build towards that life. This is how I got to a day like today, after many years of wondering why with being such a hard worker I didn’t feel or see progress. By aligning each day (or each today) to my vision, I now wake up looking forward to the day. This took hard work and I’m still working just as hard, if not harder than before, the difference is that now I feel and see progress, my energy is focused.
October 12, 2011, Full Harvest Moon. The Full Harvest Moon according to google is “connected to themes of abundance, appreciation, and the completion of a cycle. Some astrologers believe that the harvest moon serves as a reminder to express gratitude for what you currently have and celebrate the end of a journey.” October is my birthday month, in numerology 2011 would have been a personal year 8 of a 9 year cycle for me. Around that time, I started receiving glimpses of a different career path, maybe even a different way of life. But I had no idea how to leave a very well paid career to pursue something new. I was always taking my night art classes, wishing to do something with it. But what? This is when I came across *Jamie Ridler Studio’s* Full Moon Dreamboard Practice. I would have to dig through many past journals to remember how I came across her website. If I recall, the practice entailed Jamie conducting live sessions before the full moon to do vision boarding. All I had to do was gather magazines, scissors, a poster board and show up or rather join on zoom or some version of it. Jamie would then play some background music and ask guiding questions to which we would answer by vision boarding or collaging. The main question, that I wrote on the back of this board was: What would I love an abundance of? I’ve read somewhere that our souls send us messages through images. As you can see from my picture, it was crystal clear at that time what my soul was itching to experience. Oh my beautiful soul! I’m sorry for just getting the message, please forgive me, thank you, I love you! (Ho’oponopono).
In 2011, I also came across many other artist websites, Willowing Arts is one of them. I tagged the website as a reminder for my future self to take one of Tamara LaPorte’s online-classes when time permitted. I never got around to taking any of her classes, but recently I found out she published a book, called “Ever After.” She explains that the book addresses the question of “How do I develop my own creative style? I feel I’ve developed my style over the years of practice, but the book also offers a collection of step by step mixed media art lessons. I like how the many layers of paint she uses to produce an end result that is vibrant, full of life and not muddied by the many materials used. At the moment I’m working through a set of 28 self-exploration questions that are a must before moving to the books' first art lesson. I’m only on question #6, but that is because I just like to write and I’m having fun re-discovering how long art has been part of my life, since I was 3! have vivid memories of standing in front of an easel, with my brushes and the smell of paint (tempera in Spanish which I think translates to gouache but now gouache doesn’t have a particular smell) and also memories of kneeling (too little to sit and reach) at our dining room table with paper and pastels in front of me…not beginner art materials at all. It turns out my parents had enrolled me in fine arts classes at an early age. I write re-discovering because if it wasn’t for the questions on Tamara’s book, I would have continued hiding inside of me the fact that my dad told me I went to art school when I was little, my mom later confirmed this. I guess I didn’t believe either of them, because I tucked those conversations away along with the memories. I incorrectly thought that my first encounter with art was in High School. Already, the book is such a joy!
I used to think explorations, maybe personal research and need to learn about so many different subjects were normal. But I found in a sad way this made me different, odd even, not everyone embarked on them, or at least not on a whim. The learning was never directed or as a means to an end for me. In my circle of friends and family, I was the one into Astrology, the one into Numerology, the one spending hours in a Barnes & Noble sifting through books, the one reading Metaphysical and Spiritual books, the one loving Tarot, the one taking so many art classes, the one that felt heaviness with television and started only watching light hearted Hallmark Movies, the first to embrace Apple computers because I didn’t understand cords (before Apple became what it is today), the first to cut cable and start streaming. Dare I say the one that believed in magic? and possibility? But yey! many years later, social media has shown me there are many people with so many, many different interests like mine. I’m not in favor of spending countless hours on social media, but used as a tool, it is a great one. I read some time ago that an important skill in the future would be curating, and now we are in that future. As a self-learner I developed a muscle for curating input of information and sources, in order not to short-circuit my brain.
One whimsical view of Tarot, it fits within the idea that the language of the soul is images… I like to think that a tarot reading is my souls way of offering me guidance; and I can take the guidance or not take the guidance, my choice. Most recently many artists have chosen to illustrate Tarot decks, so many beautifully illustrated ones are now available. One artist I follow, Lee White is one example. Also, I don’t pay for Tarot readings at all, by chance I came across this YouTube channel and I loved the light hearted readings (meant for entertainment), but who said my soul had to find a serious heavy way to offer me guidance.
One last thought, to wrap up this post. I had somewhat let go of being whimsical. I actually became this serious, only logical thoughts allowed, must have this and that done person with deadlines, not enough time, rushing, other priorities, etc. I’ve spent a year of aligning and re-aligning my daily schedule, testing and re-aligning it again so I could naturally fit in all my personal projects and responsibilities. I finished the Whimsy illustration (I called it Bloom Girl 2), early in the year, but put it aside because serious me could find so many imperfections with it. My niece who is now 16, said she liked it, she has been my biggest cheerleader since she was a baby (her eyes would light up, her arms and legs would jump up and down as if she wanted to jump into my drawings). Stubborn me, said, I will try again in a different medium. So the illustration sat in my drawer until exactly two week ago, when I could clearly see it in my mind as wall art. I opened my drawer, now 7 months after finishing it, and surprise! the magical fairies made it beautiful, because all I could see was the beauty and vibrancy with which I imagined the illustration as I was creating it. What changed? My point of view which was ready to welcome Whimsy back into my life.
It's time to make dinner. See you next time!
PS - just took a quick look at Jamie Ridlers’s website, to find the exact name of the Full Moon Practice course, I could not find it, but I see she has added so much more since 2011. I haven’t taken any more of her courses since, but I’m getting the itch to go explore. I will share here if I do.