The last five weeks have been a complete whirlwind for me. Emmett and I left for Tasmania on November 18 and returned on December 6 ~ one day before the Peach Tree Gallery Holiday Show. That meant I had to get ready for the show before I left and then had to dive right into things when I got back. All that on top of catching up on three weeks worth of life (emails, bills, THINGS) last week, plus special orders, plus the holidays, plus an extended show at Peach Tree Gallery this past weekend, plus, plus, plus.
But today marks the first day of three weeks of NOTHING ON THE CALENDAR until my Experience the Tank class on January 5th. Oh, don't get me wrong ~ things are starting to pop up here and there (happy hours tonight, for example, with my neighbor) ~ but I have no trips, no shows, no special events scheduled and I plan to keep it that way. I want to sit in some CALM for a moment and maybe even experience a little BOREDOM before 2013 enters my life.
I do plan on marbling some (duh), I have an eCourse I need to finish, and I have two really crazy-fun ideas for my marbling I need to start planning ~ so I don't intend to sit around doing absolutely nothing. But all this can be done in the comfort of my own home while wearing my favorite raggy sweatshirt and in the company of my adorable cat and the Norther Flicker that showed up in my elderberry tree last week.
In this space of Calm I am in, I have been able to openly receive an abundance of blessings from friends and family that have been coming my way lately: postcards in the mail just saying hi, emails with photos attached and "thought of you when I saw this" stories, invitations to gatherings small (lunch dates) and large (let's go to Turkey next year), an entire weekend of quiet time with just the girls that was full of conversation with lots and lots of tangents, voice mail messages (played over and over again) that make me smile (every time). I can't help but feel good about the effort I make to connect with people in small, intimate ways that clearly have a lasting impact on both of us. It takes a lot of time and energy to reach out to another in a non-Facebook/Twitter/Instagram way and sometimes I wonder if it's "worth" it...and I can tell you it is.
There's one more thing I want to mention with regards to Calm: fiscal cliff, school and mall shootings, stressful holiday frenzy to buy stuff, Syria...I've turned it off and tuned it out. I don't read, watch, or listen to the news. I'm not in denial about it all ~ it's just that I don't need the sensationalized media drama every second of every day. It feels like bad news is constantly be shouted at me and the screaming and yelling is not going to change things. My ears are tired. My soul is exhausted. Enough.
I have several things I want to share with you over the next few weeks ~ from Tasmania photos to an update on 41 for 41 to some great work being done by others. I hope this space can be a place of, and advocate for, Calm over the next few weeks and that together we can end the year with a deep, cleansing exhale.
