Art Novena for Lady of Lourdes

Art Novena 

Nine Days of Sharing Art from the Heart

That which reminds you of the Sacred in the Ordinary

and opening ourselves to the healing possibilities,

both spiritually and physically, 

that comes through love and acceptance

and opening of the heart

The infinite goodness has such wide arms that it takes whatever turns to it - Dante

I visited Lourdes last year as a pilgrim.  There, in front of the cave, I experienced something very special.  I felt a special vibration, a kind of spiritual presence there.  And then in front of the image of the Virgin Mary, I prayed, I expressed my admiration for this holy place that has long been a source of inspiration and strength, that has provided spiritual solace, comfort and healing to millions of people.  And I prayed that this might continue for a long time to come - the Dalai Lama

images

collage

poetry

stories

art works

photographs

anything

that awakens your heart

and reminds you of the Sacred in everyday living

that speaks of the love of Our Lady

Friday 3 February till 10 February

holy day of Our Lady of Lourdes

beyond religion

a tribute

to inspiration

a shining light

Please join me in this Novena.  Every day from 3 February to 10 February I will provide a link here for you to join up with me and others in this sharing of the heart.  Please share your art, or story, or words, or a prayer, or maybe a sacred circle in tribute of the gifts of Our Lady of Lourdes to the world.

blessings

Hettienne

Postcards from Paradise

For Rebecca's Postcards from Paradise I am offering my Soul Song :

Gypsy Woman.

Powerful voice of rebellion

fiery gypsy woman

creatrix of a new harmony

breaking down the ancient wall of Jericho.

Soul Songs

Today is the second Soul Songs here and I hope to see many more joining in.  Thank you to Fran aka Redonwriter for joining in last week and for sharing her incredibly beautiful collage card :  the Dancer Within.

Please visit Fran at http://redondowriter.typepad.com/sacredordinary/2012/01/hettienne-creates-a-new-soulcollage-site-.html and read all about her card.

This art form of collaging your being, is not limited to qualified SoulCollagers.  It is a simple and creative way of creating beautiful art which gives you answers to your deepest questions and thoughts;  when you allow the card and its images to 'speak' to you, you become your own therapist.  I also see these cards as a mirror of my deepest self - a self that is most often not seen by others and often not by myself.  Making a collage and seeing what it reflects back at you, you walk a little bit deeper into your own unconscious - into those hidden places where you seldom go, and all of a sudden you understand yourself or maybe a habit of yours, so much better.

Try your hand at it.

 Here http://pathofdivinelove.blogspot.com/2012/01/soul-songs.html  I blogged it in more detail and I also gave some examples of cards that I made for myself.  But it is very simple :  you gather images from magazines or books or digital images;  then you play around with them and create a collage;  the collage must please you in some way - a mindless process, completely relying on your feelings!

When the picture hits the spot of  'aaah that is what I want/like/need/love', then you write a short poem/verse/lyric  that speaks your heart and share it here with us.  Together we can form a circle of singing the song of our own souls - a circle of being seen and being heard - Soul Songs.

Here is mine for this week :

Gypsy Woman.

Powerful voice of rebellion

fiery gypsy woman

creatrix of a new harmony

breaking down the ancient wall of Jericho.

So please join in, leave a message and your link below.

Haiku my Heart

river of  health trumpetting

abundance of love

 showering on Rebecca

 we can only know ourselves 

as light because we 

pass through the veil of darkness

Please go here to join in the Vigil for Rebecca's recovery after her operation 

and here for more Haiku my Heart

and here to join in on SoulSongs.

and here to join in Art Novena for Our Lady of Lourdes
from 3 to 11 February 2011

blessings

Hettienne

Prayer Vigil

Prayers and the blessings of the Divine Mother

for Rebecca, my Heart friend.

You are in the embrace of the Mother's Sacred Heart.

May She keep you comfortable and safe throughout the operation

and recovery.

Soul Songs

Soul Songs

Songs of the Soul

Collage of feeling,

vision,

intuition.

Open the door,

make the Unseen

Seen

enter the Sacred,

sing the Soul's Song.

Please come and play along.

Through the work of Seena  B Frost's SoulCollage I have discovered a wonderful medium of playing, creating and uncovering!  SoulCollage is a structured technique with certain ground rules.  It is ideal for self-reflection and group work and it is facilitated by trained SoulCollage Facilitators (which I am not).  I started playing with soul collages, based on her book and I have become completely hooked onto collage cards.    Then they started appearing in my dreams and in my art.  Previously I would try to reproduce all my visions and insights onto canvas, but it took so long that my sketch journal just became thicker and thicker and I could not paint fast enough.  However, making collage cards are simple and quick and they are beautiful!

And now I invite you to play along with myself in Soul Songs every Sunday here on The Path of Divine Love.

I invite you to create a collage card making the invisible in yourself visible.  You create the card from the soft focus of your right brain and you set the intent that that which is hidden, be unveiled through its coming together.  I use an A5 board card to glue the images onto.  I mainly use magazine clippings and paper images from my folder of collected images. I find many old magazines at local charity stores.  Old magazines, especially the old National Geographics, have wonderful 'new' images. Digital artists probably have a digital folder filled with images - this will work wonderfully! You can continue to add to your image collection over time and allow your intuitive self to lead you.  Do not plan too much.  Maybe at times of change or insight, you may want to create a specific collage card honouring that stage in your life, or facilitating the change or transformation or to support a new resolution.  Decide on the subject only and allow your eye to guide you to the images.  Play around for a while with the images, but do not apply your art rules to the collage - there are no rules - that is the fun of it!  You will be amazed to discover how your Inner Artist puts together a powerful and evocative image;  one that gives you a deeper look into the sacred.  

Once you have collated the card, you want to find the Song of your Soul that is held in the inner chamber of this card.  We are part of the infinite and we have many many songs just waiting to be heard!

For the Soul Song I chose the lyrical style of poetry - it is simple and powerful.  I quote :  The term lyric is now used to mean any short poem expressing a poet's thoughts or feelings. Originally it referred to poems which were sung to the accompaniment of a musical instrument, the lyre. A lyric poem has been defined as "the expression by the poet of his own feelings"(John Ruskin). This definition points to the personal quality of lyrical poetry. It is characterised by the presence of emotion. The emotions and moods are directly expressed by a single speaker who wants to share them with the reader. 

So, here goes :

Passionate desire 

creation fulfilled

living a purpose filled life

such is the Law of Love

Try your hand at it, link up below and visit everyone else's Soul Songs.  

Haiku my Heart

Inner Nurturer

Sacred Inner Mother Mine

Ground of my Being

With this SoulCollage card I am joining in Haiku my Heart.  For more details and instructions on Fridays' Haku please visit www.recuerdamicorazon.blogspot.com.

SoulCollage is a wonderful technique of collaging aspects of self, archetypes, roles and more and a powerful tool for self-reflection and contemplation.  I made this card from magazine images - you cannot get much simpler than that!  On the left is a beautiful purple Milk Thistle flower, also known as Holy Thistle, St Mary's Thistle and Marian Thistle.  The ancients used to believe that the white markings on the leaves are the milk spilt by Mother Mary when nursing her son.

May you be supported and nourished by your own Inner Nurturer!

blessings

haiku my heart

vastness stretch my heart

an eternal sky canvas

both empty and full

Linking to the wonderful Recuerda mi Corazon : haiku my heart :  http://corazon.typepad.com/recuerda_mi_corazon/2012/01/haiku-my-heart.html where you will find many others offering their words of beauty, like pearls on a string.

blessings

Hettienne