Month: July 2018

Moments in Time!

Quotes by Kahlil Gibran:
“The timeless in you is aware of life’s timelessness; and knows that yesterday is but today’s memory and tomorrow is today’s dream.”
I am always talking about being in the “in-between”, I guess a better way to put it is living in the moment. In between yesterday and tomorrow is today, this moment which is all we really know for sure that we have. I like this quote; it really stops me in my tracks and keeps me aware of being mindful, and not getting too far ahead of myself or looking back in the wrong direction.
I do love the feeling of timelessness when I’m creating art or writing, which is the perfect experience of living in the moment. It seems our minds like to swirl about thinking about the past and the future and forgetting that now is the time that we should be focused on. 
Life is ephemeral, and it’s so important to enjoy each moment and be grateful for our lives. Writing a gratitude journal every morning is something I’ve been doing for years; it keeps me grounded, and reminds me of all the good fortune in my life. There’s always something to be grateful for even if things are not going the way you had hoped. If you stop and think about the simple daily gifts of life there’s always room for gratitude. Brightening someone’s day, laughing with a friend, doing a random act of kindness, and then the reward of seeing someone smile in gratitude! I have always said: “To Give is to Receive”.
At this exact moment in time I am looking out my window and I see a beautiful pink sky as the sun is setting here in Sedona, Arizona after a day of threatening monsoons with clouds and thunder. I like to call this time of year, “Heart Cloud Season”, since there are always so many different cloud formations every day moving at a very fast pace, sometimes causing buckets of rain and sometimes causing beautiful rainbows. I am always out there with my camera searching for rainbows and heart clouds! I shall now call it Heart Cloud and Rainbow Season, I just came up with that idea in this moment! 

This is a gift from Mother Nature and it is only momentary because the sunset will never be exactly the same again. I guess there’s a good lesson about timelessness just looking in the sky at the clouds, at a rainbow, and at a sunset! 

We must keep dreaming, enjoying every moment and always take the time to express the gratitude in each miraculous day of life we are given.

I took this photo a few years ago during monsoon season in Sedona!

Heart Cloud photo taken a few days ago in Sedona!

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Keep on Zen Dreaming!

Quote by Anais Nin:
“Throw your dreams into space like a kite, and you do not know what it will bring back, a new life, a new friend, a new love, a new country.”
With so many dreams of mine, it might be fun to take the advice of this quote and release them all into the Universe, and then wait and see what gifts they bring. 
I love this quote because it gives me a childlike sense of wonder in my heart and soul. Oh how I long for the innocent days of my youth, spending the day flying a kite! This was the age when we began to dream, and find out who we were, and what we loved to do, and who we wanted to become.

Sometimes I do get a little confused because I’m not sure which dream to focus on first, or how to prioritize my dreams there are so many of them. I feel fortunate having so many dreams, and hopefully with these odds one of them will come true! But for now, when I really think about it, there’s only one dream that I could actually envision, the others are just ideas in my imagination that I’m still developing and creating.
It seems over the years so many dreams come and go, but I guess the really important ones stick with you for a lifetime. Those are the ones we need to release, set free, and if they keep coming back, those are the ones we must pursue. 

I just read another quote by Friedrich Schiller that sums it all up: “Keep true to the dreams of your youth.” 

Keep on Zen Dreaming!


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"Imagination is more important than knowledge."

Quote by Jorge Luis Borges:
“Writing is nothing more than a guided dream.”
I love this quote, since the act of writing to me is similar to painting, or drawing, or creating music. When I’m doing any of those things I often feel as if I’m in another dimension, without distraction expressing myself authentically through my heart and soul. It really is my happy place, a place of solitude.
How often do we really get the time to just retreat into our soul and have the luxury of solitude to create? Sometimes it’s difficult when you’re at home with all the normal distractions of day-to-day life. In a way it’s sometimes easier when you take yourself on an excursion, away from your normal day-to-day routine, I know I find I can be more creative sometimes that way. At least it offers a different perspective, and a different environment that might pique my curiosity or creative intention. I do believe the creative soul needs solitude, and the more the better! 
When we’re in our dream state it’s the ultimate solitude, it’s just you and your soul communicating. When I’m daydreaming I feel a sensuous enjoyment in those moments of pure imagination. I rarely have the time to daydream, since I’m not the napping type, but I do try to take a few moments each morning to meditate and be quiet listening to my inner desires and dreams.
I love that place in time, when I have no idea what time it is, or how much time has passed, and especially when it results in something that I have created and am happy with. The creative flow is a beautiful place to spend time away from time!
I continue to listen to my dreams, dream my dreams, write about them, create lyrics and music, and artistically express them. I can’t imagine life without doing any of those activities. 
One of my favorite quotes by Albert Einstein is: “Imagination is more important than knowledge” it’s the perfect quote to begin writing or creating whatever you can dream or imagine!


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Pursue Your Dreams!

 Quote by Barbara Sher:

“As soon as you start to pursue a dream, your life wakes up and everything has meaning.”
Yes! It’s all about getting over that fear and finding the courage to make that decision, then momentum kicks in and watch out! I’ve seen it happen in my life on a few occasions and it’s quite amazing to witness! It seems everything starts falling into place and all the things you were worried about never come to be! You feel alive and ready and free to pursue and make your dream come true! 
I will be thrilled once I make my decisions on what road to take and which dream to pursue and then I will let the magic happen!
In the meantime I just have to keep on dreaming and wait for that ping, that inner voice of knowing; all is well and watch as the path is laid in divine order in front of me. I know my dreams will come true if I have faith, courage, determination, and the resilience to overcome any obstacles that may be in my way. I don’t want to force anything, it has to feel right and then I will move forward in my pursuit. I will let the momentum move me as it has done in the past.
Today I made these beautiful heart-shaped signs with my 11 affirmations and I have placed them in my home so I can read them throughout my waking hours. 
I’m reading an excellent book right now entitled the 90-day Life by Dr. Jenn Faber, and I was inspired to make a list of all the things that I want to happen in my life, and read it for at least five minutes per day. Keeping these positive goals and affirmations flowing will quiet any self-sabotage or inner critic negativity.This daily practice has been proven to miraculously change your mindset utilizing the plasticity of our brain to rewire our thoughts. Quite fascinating reading, I’m about three-quarters of the way through, and I really enjoy her writing style, very easy and authentic. I bought the book several weeks ago when I saw her on Facebook, it was a Project Happiness interview and she was sharing her inspiring life story. The book was patiently waiting for me to pick it up when the time was right to start reading!
I shall continue to pursue my dreams and look forward to sharing them with everyone one day soon! In the meantime I hope everyone continues to pursue their dreams, let the momentum take you where you need to go, and enjoy life wide awake one ZEN Moment at a time!


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Dreams of Courage & FAITH!

Quote by Walt Disney:
“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.”
I’m not sure when Walt Disney wrote this quote but I imagine it was after he was successful with his business endeavors! Courage is the key to so many aspects of life. Again, it reminds me of my acronym for the word FAITH, because you can’t really have courage without having a Fearless Attitude in Thy Heart. It takes courage to escape from our comfort zones, and attempt new ways of doing things and embarking on new adventures. I have always been very independent and self-sufficient starting out at a very young age due to family circumstances. Those traits built character in me and created a sense of courage in my heart and soul. All these years later, I do consider myself very courageous, as I have moved out of my comfort zone to relocate to two new cities on my own in the past 12 years. It definitely was out of my comfort zone, and I felt vulnerable and at times even somewhat fearful since I was all alone. But in no time I was able to make new friends and find my way, and it was always a wonderful adventure and new chapter in my life.
I am at that similar crossroads in my life right now, pondering a decision on whether or not I should take the leap of FAITH out of my comfort zone! It has to feel right in my heart and soul since it’s a major move and costly endeavor at a crucial time in my life. I will continue to work out the details, and soon make a courageous decision to pursue my next dream! As we all know, Walt Disney sure was successful in his courageous pursuits!

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Reach For The Stars!

Quote by Harriet Tubman:
“Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.”
Wow! I absolutely love this quote and it is very inspiring to know that one simple dream could change the world. Resilience, patience, and passion are all it takes to make your dreams come true. For me I would add focus, determination, courage and faith! I remember coming up with a song title and lyrics which became an acronym for the word FAITH: Fearless attitude in thy heart. It takes courage to be fearless. I have heard of Harriet Tubman and googled her background to learn more about her. She was an amazing woman and has gone down in history for all that she has done for people less fortunate and enslaved in this world. We need someone like Harriet Tubman today to help correct all these atrocities that are going on in America right now.
Ironically in my little dream book Harriet Tubman’s quote is right next to a Donald Trump quote!! I couldn’t believe it when I saw that a few years ago, and recently when I turned to the page I just couldn’t even look at his quote so I put a big X through his words! See the picture below. His quote sounds exactly like his presidency and his twitter rantings: “I like thinking big, if you’re going to be thinking anything you might as well think big.”! He has no vocabulary, he speaks from his a******! I just can’t take the fact that he is the president of these United States, and how half of the country voted for him I will never understand. It’ll be over soon I hope and we can start once again being proud to be  Americans.
Getting back to this inspiring quote by Harriet Tubman, I will continue to dream.  I’ve always been a dreamer; a daydreamer and night dreamer and I will trust in my heart and soul that if I dream it I can accomplish it! I will continue to read these dream quotes and search my soul for what my dream is to accomplish. I have so many dreams, I need to focus on one and make it reality, make it my way forward to help my fellow Americans. I believe: “What goes around comes around” and “To Give is to Receive”. Thank you Harriet Tubman for all you’ve done for this country. I honor your empathy, determination, and passion to help those in need. Namaste



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Beauty of your dreams……

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” ~Eleanor Roosevelt

I was so delighted when I turned to this page in my dream book this morning! This is another one of my most favorite quotes by a brilliant and well respected woman – Eleanor Roosevelt. I remember reading this quote several years ago and it touched something in my heart.  At that time I was dreaming and searching for a new path, and it was one of the catalysts that inspired a new sense of direction and momentum in my life. At the time when I read this quote I was living in Portland Oregon, and dreaming about my future and the possibility of opening up my own art gallery and gift store. When I read this quote it helped me to focus and find the strength to believe that one day my dream would come true. 

I got very close to having my dream happen in 2014.

In late 2013 I began a new chapter in my life and moved to Sedona Arizona. My goal and intention was to find the perfect space to rent for my dream gallery which I planned to name: Heartifacts Gallery. I followed in the path and created business plans, found amazing Heart Artists and Sculptors that I planned to represent in my gallery. I even found what I thought was the perfect space. Being a newbie in town I had a few lessons to learn in that regard. The space would have been perfect for my concept of making it a gallery and sculpture garden with a feeling of home. The saying: “Home is where the Heart is” was how I wanted my customers to feel in the space. The building had a lot of charm and there was an area in the back for my envisioned Sculpture Garden. As a bonus there was a connecting path to the one of the nicest Galleries & Sculpture Gardens in all of Sedona!

I moved forward and got very close to signing the lease when I feel the Universe divinely stepped in to save me from possible misfortunes down the line. The lease agent made a lot of promises, and my attorney advised me if they weren’t written in the lease that they probably weren’t going to happen. So I changed my mind and did not sign off on the lease and I closed that chapter on that location. 

I’m glad I did because as it turns out, that favorite Sedona Gallery moved away, and so did another possible customer connection, the Spa that was next door. As I came to realize there were not many tourists walking in that area, so it would have been extremely expensive for advertising. The lease price was right but that’s because it wasn’t in Uptown or another popular area where the tourists mostly congregate. 

So for now I have to say that the quote: “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams”; was a motivating factor for my moving to Sedona, and continues to be inspiring me to follow in the dreams I have now. 

In the meantime I do have an art space in a local Artists Gallery where I hang my own art and sell it to the tourists in Sedona. That makes me very happy and it’s a lot less stressful than having my own gallery and overhead expenses. I still have the dream of opening my Heartifacts Gallery in some way shape or form in my future. I do have my Zen Heart Creations online gallery, and for now I will keep my focus on that.

I continue to cherish my dream that one day I will be sitting in my heart shaped iron chair, behind a beautiful heart sculpted desk, surrounded by gorgeous original heart paintings, sculptures and gifts, with my beautiful smiling Samoyed furry friend at my feet, as we welcome visitors and customers into our “home is where the heart is space” and seeing their awesome smiles as they look around and feel the love.

I will keep my beautiful dream alive and trust one day it shall be created in my future.

 
 

 

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Dream is Destiny!

Quote from Waking Life:
“Dream is Destiny”
I’ve read this quote many times and it touches me deeply in my soul. Recently I started writing lyrics for a new piano song with the same concept in mind. Here are some of my lyrics so far:
“When you’re dreaming 
And it feels so real
Trust in your heart and soul 
It is your Destiny.
Dreams are the flowers that bloom in your soul 
Never let them go 
It’s all we ever really know.” 
There is another quote that I love about dreams by Marsha Norman: “Dreams are the illustrations from the book your soul is writing about you.”
I love reading inspirational quotes; they are usually short and easy to find your own personal soul meaning, and I love being inspired to write my own lyrics and quotes. 
I sometimes have an issue with the word destiny, I’m not sure if it refers to fate, as if we don’t have free will or a choice on how our life turns out? I just looked up the definition of Destiny: the hidden power believed to control what will happen in the future; fate the events that will necessarily happen to a particular person or thing in the future.
At the same time, I actually love the word destiny; it has a deeper more mysterious meaning in the overall picture of one’s life. Almost like a legacy, and the steps one takes to meet their destiny and create their legacy that they leave behind. I love this quote about leaving a legacy by Patti Davis: “That is your legacy on this Earth when you leave this Earth: how many hearts you touched.”  
I do like the concept of divine order which I also think is similar to destiny. While we’re in the midst of finding our destiny in our dreams, or trusting the universe in divine order, we are continually making choices and using our free will to live our life as best we know how. I hope when my time is done and I’ve reached my destiny that my life was filled with meaning and purpose, and loving-kindness and compassion for all. That will be the legacy I choose to leave in my name as my Divine Purpose.
I am grateful for my dream time and look forward to reaching my soul’s destiny in this incarnation. I shall continue to Dream and Become my Destiny and diligently work on creating my Legacy!


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Dreams, Reality and The "In-Between"!

Quote by Belva Davis:
“Don’t be afraid of the space between your dreams and reality. If you can dream it, you can make it so.”
This is another one of my favorite quotes about dreaming. Often times I have this feeling of being in the “in-between”! This is when I am unsure of which path, which direction to take, which road to go down next, in my life quest for new adventures. Sometimes I like being in the “in-between”, it causes me to dream even more and ponder what might be the next chapter in my life. Sometimes I don’t like being in the “in-between”, it can cause me stress and feelings of vulnerability not knowing which way I should turn. When I’m daydreaming or when I’m in my sleeping dream dimension, that’s hopefully where I will figure out which way to go. When I wake up I can move through the “in-between” state of mind turning my dreams into reality.
I’ve always liked the saying: “If you can dream it, you can do it!”, or “Do what you love and the money will follow!” That’s exactly where I happen to be in my life journey right now. I am trying to figure out what it is I love to do! I know the Universe provides for me abundance and prosperity. I know there are many things that I enjoy doing, such as my creative outlets of art, music, photography, and writing. So far the money has not come in big enough quantities to support my practical needs and comfortable lifestyle! I am hoping in some format of the things that I love, I will be able to earn a comfortable living.  I hope to have enough so that I can give back to those in need. If I can feel financially secure, then any excess I’d be more than happy to contribute to worthy causes, or to those that I love and may need assistance.
I do hope in the remaining years of my life I am able to give back, because I feel as if I’ve been very fortunate in my life and have so much gratitude in my heart. After all, here in Sedona, AZ I am known as: “The HEART Lady! It’s one of my favorite images to create and photograph and of course it is the Universal Symbol of Love. I’m happy to be contributing to the multitude of heart creations in our world, in my opinion there’s never enough hearts and love to go around. It still excites me to know that complete strangers have purchased my heart art and have it hanging in their homes! I hope many more people get to feel the love from my heart through my Zen Heart Creations, may it be in my art, music, photography or writings.
In summation, I won’t be afraid to continue to be in the “space between the dreams and reality”, or as I call it being in the “in-between”, because that’s where I will hopefully come up with some brilliant ideas to earn a living doing what I love. While I am at this pivotal point in my life, reaching out to my soul and figuring out who I shall become, I always remember this excerpt from my favorite quote by James Allen: “For As You Dream So Shall You Become”, it is my daily affirmation and life motto!  
Thanks for taking the time to read my personal essay and always sharing my ZEN LOVE to one and all!


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