Embracing Lull With All My Heart

I post this in-between a lull-filled week in Santa Fe and a lull-filled Thanksgiving weekend with family.

I've been embracing Lull with all my  heart and it's done my heart (and soul) so much good!

So far, my restful time of rejuvenation has included:

*  lots of reading in front of a roaring fire

*the delight of being snowed in for an entire day (which meant mimosas, more roaring fires, hot chocolate, more reading, naps, staring out the window at the gorgeous white-tipped landscape in a blissed out state, languid conversations, etc…) 

*an incredible massage and private hot tub/sauna experience at Ten Thousand Waves

* meandering through Santa Fe with no particular plan being led by serendipity and my nose

* heemeesheemees galore (my word for serendipitous experiences) 

* and probably the most relaxing time my husband and I have shared in eons 

Now I'm off to spend more lull time with my family, catching up, seeing photos from far-flung adventures, enjoying magical time with my three-year old niece, and dipping my toes into the holidays with my enthusiastic teenage daughter – we would have put a tree up two weeks ago if it had been up to her!

My intention is to remain resting in the lovely state of lull for a few more days. 

I am so grateful for this time…for my family…for my friends…and for you!

Wishing you some lovely lull time of your own this Thanksgiving weekend even if it's something as simple as closing your eyes right now and enjoy three deep breaths and a stretch to the heavens!

From my restful Creative Oasis to yours,

Jill

www.creativeoasiscoaching.com

Why Am I Traveling To Bhutan?

This seems to be the question people want answered when they learn of my impending excursion to the other side of the world. “Why Bhutan?”

Tang Valley, Bumthang, Bhutan

While I find “Why not Bhutan?” a perfectly acceptable response, the true answer is a bit more woo-woo. In fact, I'd say serendipity danced smack dab into my intuition resulting in my upcoming two-week trip to a tiny country nestled between India and China in the shadow of the Himalayas that boasts the measure of success as “Gross National Happiness.”

I’ve been drawn to Buddhism and Asian cultures for some time now. A trip to Tibet seemed like an impossible, but lovely dream. When my dad revealed that the same folks he’d climbed Kilimanjaro with a decade ago had contacted him about a possible trip to Bhutan, I experienced a feeling of instant knowing throughout my entire being that he and my mom would indeed make the journey and further more (inexplicably at this point) that I would go with them. This was based purely on my intuition and seemed highly unlikely and illogical at the time.

photo by Bob Munro of Sacred Pause

Believe me, it’s not like this is a run-of-the-mill trip for us. Although my parents have traveled to some pretty fabulous places around the world, our family trips had been more along the lines of Disneyworld. Also, my parents had never expressed any interest in visiting any part of South Asia.

Serendipity showed up in the following ways:

* I wore a Love Hope Strength – Kilimanjaro Rocks t-shirt the day may parents told me about their possible trip. (Dad had climbed Mount Kilimanjaro with the people who were inviting them to Bhutan.)

* The day my dad told my mom about the trip, she opened a book that I’d lent her (Roll Around Heaven by Jessica Maxwell) only to find the narrator on a plane to Bhutan (a place my mom had never even heard of until that day!)

* The week after I learned about my parents’ possible plans (they didn’t decide to go right away) I received an email with “Bhutan: a play by Daisy Foote” in the subject line as there was a Horton Foote retrospective taking place in Dallas and his daughter had written a play entitled “Bhutan” which was being produced by a local theater.

* I kept hearing Bhutan mentioned in interviews and stories on the radio and in the news.

Because the trip would take place in November and that would entail my being away during the school year (complete with a full schedule of my daughter’s dance classes, piano practice and homework) – the prospect of actually being able to go seemed highly unlikely. Especially when combined with the not so small matter of airfare and the price of the trip. (In order to preserve their unique culture and control tourism, only a small amount of tourists may visit Bhutan each year and they must hire rather expensive tour guides to do so.)

Tiger's Nest Monastery

Still…something in me stubbornly insisted that I would indeed be going, although I had no idea how that could possibly happen. I had accumulated enough airline miles to cover the airfare – if it were even possible to get a seat using miles, but that was the only hopeful part of the equation.

My parents decided they would accept their friends’ offer to join the group. I continued to daydream about the possibility. Then, one day while driving to teach my group Creative Oasis class last spring, I received a phone call from my dad telling me that if I could cover the airfare and work out the logistics for my family while I was away, he and my mom wanted to take me with them. The gift of a lifetime! It really was going to happen. I still had no idea why – but for some reason I was destined to take this trip with my parents.

I was still shedding a few tears of joy when I arrived at Pigment School of the Arts and began setting out materials for the day’s class including stacks of magazines for a collage project. The ultimate serendipity occurred when I pulled an old National Geographic magazine out of my bag (one of several copies that I’d carried with me to various classes, workshops and retreats for years) and noticed there was an article about Bhutan including a map inside. I felt an absolute electric current of synchronicity ripple from the tips of my toes to the top of my head! Message received – “I get to go to Bhutan!”

A few weeks later, while looking for something to read, I ran across a stack of books that my dear friend, Krys Boyd, the host of THINK on KERA 90.1 had given me months earlier and found “Radio Shangri-La: What I Learned in Bhutan, the Happiest Kingdom on Earth” by Lisa Napoli.

So…there’s your answer…this is why I’m going to Bhutan. It seems that the universe (in cahoots with my generous parents and my supportive husband and daughter) has deemed it so! I’m going with an open heart and an open mind. I’m going with a feeling that this is absolutely meant to be, though I have no idea why. And I’m going in ten days…so I’d better get packing!

I hope to post mini-blogs as I am able along the way, so be sure to subscribe to Creative Oasis™ if you’d like to see how this whole experience unfolds.

In the meantime, all the best from my creative oasis to yours,

Jill

Less Stuff – More Experiences!

http://www.caitlinkeegan.com/

Although I’m not one for making a long list of New Year’s resolutions, I am excited by the fresh start that a new year presents.  Some people choose a few key words or a phrase to serve as a guiding light for the coming twelve months, and now feels like the perfect time to give that a try. Diving into 2011 is particularly exciting for me because I’m finally setting into motion a plan that’s been percolating in my brain for many months now. I’ve even whittled it down into four words: 

Less Stuff – 

More Experiences!

What will this look like? My vision includes me letting go of lots and lots of stuff.  Letting go of old ideas and outdated ways of thinking, letting go of mountains of material belongings that I don’t need, want or use anymore, letting go of old habits that don’t serve me well, and perhaps even a few relationships and commitments that I’ve outgrown.

This notion of “letting go” absolutely thrills me because in the process of releasing all of the previously mentioned stuff, I believe that I’ll gain 

FREEDOM, SPACE, ENERGY, TIME, CREATIVITY, EXPERIENCES, JOY & LOVE.  

I actually feel lighter and a little tingly just thinking about having less and doing more.

This isn’t some plan I hatched while drinking copious amounts of bubbly on New Year’s Eve.  As I said, I’ve been contemplating making a few radical changes in my life for some time now. I’ve been discussing the idea with family and friends, reading books, blogs and articles, watching movies, listening to lectures and journaling the “what ifs” like crazy. Serendipity keeps flashing me two big thumbs up and a Cheshire cat grin the more I move in this new direction. A few examples:

While orchestrating my CD release/fundraiser last March, a serendipitous reconnection with Debbie Stinson of MakeMyLifeSimplified (Thanks

Facebook!) introduced me to the wonderful world of professional organizing and helped me tame the beast that was my office closet while learning valuable decluttering techniques.  I attended a teleconference offered by the wise and witty Jennifer Louden and  the topic turned out to be “Enough.” My dear friend, fellow certified Kaizen-Muse Creativity Coach, inspiring writer, photographer, (and so much more) Laura Hegfield shared a beautiful blog entry entitled, “Taming The Desire Dragon” discussing the desire we sometimes have to “do it all,” even when we know this isn’t possible. In different ways, the same message keeps showing up again and again – 

Less Stuff – More Experiences! 

Less “I Have To” – More “I Get To!”

I’m currently gaining even more inspiration by reading two great books:  

http://doingless.net/

Elizabeth Cogswell Baskin

I realize the idea of simplifying life and letting go of things is not a totally original idea. Real Simple has been on the stands for more than a decade. (Though I’ve always found the title ironic. I mean, does Martha Stewart ever do anything that doesn’t take at least a dozen steps and one utensil or tool that you’re sure not to own to complete?) Hell, even Oprah is giving up her wildly famous TV show after 25 years. (Though it doesn’t seem that starting up your very own behemoth TV channel (OWN) would necessarily simplify things.) Founder of Facebook and TIME Magazine’s person of the year, Mark Zuckerberg, lists “Eliminating Desire” as one of his interests on his own Facebook page.  Although he’s made billions with his game-changing social media platform, he drives an Acura and rents a modest house a few blocks from work. But enough of famous people I don’t know personally.

For me less stuff means less to pay for, less to store, less to take care of and less to keep up with – which all adds up to more time.  Less things on my calendar means more time to read, to make music, to bake, to meditate, to create, to write, to entertain, to walk by the lake, to be with friends and family, to think, to just simply be.

Singing & Having Fun at the Double J Hacienda
photo by John Parrish

2011 is just beginning. I feel as if I’m embarking on a journey to some new exotic destination.  Although I don’t know exactly what this year holds, I do know that it will involve Less Stuff – More Experiences and a whole new way of creatively living life that I’m thrilled to begin!

All the best from 2011 creative oasis to yours,

Jill

Following My Heart into Infinite Possibility

What is Infinite Possibility? It's a theory that in each and every moment there exist an infinite number of possible choices and outcomes in life. It's also a song on my upcoming solo CD, "Dancing in Limbo." And, it's the name of the event I'm hosting here in Dallas on Saturday, March the 27th to celebrate the release of said CD in collaboration with 13 talented female artists who have each created and donated an original piece of artwork inspired by the songs on my CD. These beautiful pieces will be sold in a silent auction and I will perform the songs live at the celebration thus creating the event "Infinite Possibility – A Night of Music, Art & Women Helping Women" with all profits benefiting Women for Women International.

In the short video below, I share my journey into Infinite Possibility and invite you to join me.

In the beginning, I was searching for a creative way to celebrate the release of my CD - something outside the box and preferably not inside a smoky bar. I had no experience creating an event of this magnitude, fundraiser or otherwise. I was simply so inspired by the idea of combining music and art and finally having the opportunity to collaborate with some of my many talented artist friends and raising awareness and money for Women for Women International while I was at it - that I employed the "ready-fire-aim" strategy. I more or less just followed my heart and went for it. Luckily, I've had help and support from many, many wonderful people along the way including generous sponsors, raffle prize donators (now worth more than $1,000!) and, of course, the 13 gifted artists.

My good friend, Kim Hammond, was the ideal artist to pair with my song "Infinite Possibility." She and I share a long history of serendipitous moments, as well as psychic connections and experiences. I think she does an excellent job of describing her take on Infinite Possibility in her short video below.

If you're interested in attending and/or supporting "Infinite Possibility – A Night of Music, Art & Women Helping Women" please visit the website link above. It's been truly gratifying to hear from people in other countries and states who are sending in donations and buying tickets to lend their support though they won't be able to join us for the actual event. Their reaching out has proven to me that the ripple effect is real and the possibilities are indeed infinite for us to do good in the world. What a joy!