Apr25
Posted on Apr 25 by Ruth Davis
I’m participating in Patti Digh’s online writing class, VERBTRIBE:MASTER CLASS. Since February 1 when the first class began, I’ve been writing every day. Not a novel or short stories. Just writing. Every day. Patti gives us prompts, and then more prompts that take us deeper. We only have two days to write and polish and post a piece. This has been the best part for me: writing and letting go of the need to edit it to perfection. Just posting it as it is in that finished moment. Lately we’ve been focusing our attention and our writing on the world within a quarter mile of where we live. As I am packing and finalizing my moving to California plans, the writing has been an opportunity for me to honor and reflect on my time here in this house. Here’s one of the pieces I wrote: Like African Daises I’ve walked this sidewalk every day for three and a half years. Not counting days off when I didn’t have the dogs. Or I put my back out. Or it was...
Apr11
Posted on Apr 11 by Ruth Davis
One of my favorite toys as a kid was the Magic Eight Ball. It was a black plastic ball that looked like an eight ball pool cue. You asked it a YES or NO question, gave it a good shake while you concentrated on the question and magically, an answer appeared in the glass window on the bottom. Sometimes the answer was Yes, Definitely. Sometimes it said My Sources Say No. Sometimes it answered Ask Again Later. Of course, I always re-asked and re-shook the ball until I got the answer I wanted. We use many kinds of oracle-like tools for guidance. We throw the I-Ching coins, pick Runes, read Tarot cards. We are looking for answers, confirmation, proof that we are on the right path. And yet, often when we get an answer, we keep asking again, just to be sure. In a recent coaching group, we were using Deborah Koff-Chapin’s Soul Cards to tap into our subconscious insights. One woman chose a card and laughed out loud. “This is just so perfect,” she said. It was an image...
Mar21
Posted on Mar 21 by Ruth Davis
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we’re powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?’ Actually, who are you NOT to be? Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightening about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” ~Marianne Williamson Spring is a time of birth and renewal. Things that were dormant all winter are budding and blooming and, with each day, there is more light. On the surface, this means longer, brighter days. Deeper, it can be an opportunity for our own selves to shine brighter. Does that idea scare you? Does the thought of standing in the light push you further into your own...
Mar14
Posted on Mar 14 by Ruth Davis
I absolutely LOVE teaching art classes for kids. The kids are so open. Willing. They are happy to dive into whatever we are making, often without even knowing what the final product will look like. Sometimes I show the kids samples so they can see different interpretations of the process. But not always. Because often the kids will think theirs has to look exactly like the sample. I recently taught a Changing Story book making class. I intentionally didn’t show them what the finished book would look like. Instead, we began by brainstorming nouns and verbs and adjectives. The dry erase board was filled with words like hot dogs, zebra, flowers, puppies and run, play, sweat, dance and smelly, tall, fat, purple. Together, we combined some of the words into silly sentences. Then the kids wrote their own sentences. Once the kids had their content we began on the construction of the actual book. One twelve year old girl kept asking why are we doing this step? What are the lines for? Why do I have to measure this?...
Feb29
Posted on Feb 29 by Ruth Davis
It’s leap year, leap month and, today, February 29th is Leap Day. And so it seems so fitting to talk about leaping. Taking the plunge. Taking a deep breath and just going for it. It’s such a wonderful concept, this leaping. It’s all about risk and faith and letting go and pushing aside all of the monkey voices in your head that talk you out of doing some big, scary thing and just going for what you really want. Although the phrase “Leap and the net will appear” is sometimes attributed to an unknown Zen source, it is, in fact, a quote by American naturalist John Burroughs. I first heard the phrase in the song, “Right Outta Nowhere” by Christine Kane. “Right outta nowhere You open your heart And let go of everything You’re going somewhere And all you need to know Is that you’re free to go Dream and the way will be clear Pray and the angels will hear Leap and the net will appear” The song encourages us that all we have to do is...
Feb21
Posted on Feb 21 by Ruth Davis
Have you ever been called to do something that pushed you to the edge of your comfort zone? This soft edge is where we can learn so much about ourselves. We can observe how we respond to the challenge. We can hear the stories we tell ourselves. At this uncomfortable edge we can choose to step back from the fear and stay safe and small. Or we can choose to move toward the discomfort and uncertainty and say YES to this thing that excites us and scares us, knowing that something big and beautiful is bound to happen when we do. I had never considered going on a retreat. In fact, I really didn’t even know what it entailed. At this uncomfortable edge we can choose to step back from the fear and stay safe and small.
Or we can choose to move toward the discomfort and uncertainty and say YES to this thing that excites us and scares us, knowing that something big and beautiful is bound to happen when we do. I had never considered going on...
