Jan 30-Mar 2: "Nothing exists except ..." On Display

Almost two years ago, this doodle came out.  Who would have guessed that it would be accepted in a juried exhibition? 

What if G-d was pure ecstasy? Yearning and love? #doodlesacrednames #wouldprinceapprove

A post shared by Conie Borchardt (@pointsoflight_mu) on Apr 25, 2016 at 10:27am PDT

It looks pretty sharp in this frame, a little timeshare loan from a friend's painting from my living room.  And I was worried about finding a frame to complement some of the idiosyncratic colors ...

I've titled this drawing "Nothing exists except ..."

Here is the Artist's Statement: 

"I am interested in vibration in sound and movement, in light and color. Repeating words, either spoken or on the page, is a meditation, inviting a deeper relationship to unfold new understanding, to rewrite old patterns. Through my experiences of Dances of Universal Peace, I have chanted and connected to the words of many religious and spiritual traditions. Here I dive into Allah, the 0 of 99 Names of God that Sufis like Rumi study."

You can find "Nothing exists except ..." on display at St. Paul's Monastery as part of their "Seeing God" exhibit until Friday, March 2, 2018. 

Here's a small portion of the art in the "Seeing God" exhibition.
"Nothing exists exception..." is on the far left of this photo.

What:  "Seeing God" exhibition
When:  now until Friday, March 2, 2018
Where:  St. Paul's Monastery, 2675 Benet Rd, St. Paul

Word of the Year, 2015: Grace

A few years ago, a friend told me about her Word of the Year (WOTY) where you consider what you want to focus on in the new year, find a good word to capsulate it, and then live with it. I liked the concept and adopted it myself. 

What I like is that it's like a long-term meditation practice. Unlike resolutions which seem to loose steam quickly and get forgotten, WOTY is intended to be long term remembering and forgetting. Without the guilt of having been forgotten. It expects to be forgotten and distracted. But if it was a good word that seems ripe for you during this period of time, it will revisit you as well.

My word this year is Grace. Being more graceful with myself, for others.  It will be challenging, but aren't all growth areas?

I first ran into grace in a Rumi poem in Nov 2014. It kicked me in the pants so I decided to memorize it. The doodle above is inspired by it. I'll share it and other grace poems that have crossed my path soon. (I'm up to 3 poems now) 

I've shared the concept with others and they seem to love it. If you had a WOTY what would it be? Why?

Blessings on your year. -C