• How Can Winter Inspire Your Creative Genius?

    The winter season is a wonderful time to immerse yourself in the creative process! It brings a rich opportunity to awaken the “creative genius within” by exploring the gifts that are found in nature’s darkness. It allows us to reflect on our personal and creative journeys, taking a closer look at who we are – underneath the layers of life. By looking for the “light” – and knowing that it’s there, somewhere, waiting to be discovered – we can reach a place where our personal reflection begins to shed its own light. It’s a time to ponder where we’ve been on our creative journey, how we got to where we are now – and where to go from here. It’s an opportunity to explore new ways of…

  • Inspiration – Signs from the Other Side

    Artists and writers are often inspired by creative muses, which come in various forms and at unexpected times. In my case, it was the moon that inspired a body of work that I didn’t realize I had within me. After moving through a difficult phase in my life, it was the moon that taught me the significance of transition – and how our life journeys are always shifting from darkness into light, and cycling around again. Inspiration comes when you’re least expecting it, even from the other side – as described by author Bill Philipps in his new book, Signs from the Other Side: Opening to the Spirit World – which was recently published by New World Library. This book offers techniques for listening to intuition and…

  • Ten Poems for Difficult Times

    Our world seems to be filled with chaos and confusion these days – with many people searching for purposeful meaning and a deep desire to find their place in the midst of it all. This is where art comes in. Whether it’s on the page, the canvas or the screen – art has a way of bringing meaning to everyday challenges and to a complicated world. It allows the darkness to be filtered through a mechanism of creative self-expression that brings light to a deeper understanding. Poetry has often served in this way, as an artistic vehicle for capturing life’s most complicated abstractions – weaving them into a symphonic language that feels meaningful and comforting. In my work with highly-creative women who are on soulful…

  • Finding Light in the Darkness

    Like the moon, we all go through phases in our lives. We have ups and downs, we go forward and backward – and sometimes we seem to circle back around. We may hide behind the clouds or peek from beneath the clouds. But in the midst of what can feel like a blackout, when we are open to making a connection with our authentic self, we can get to a point where we’re able to beam with full light. During a new moon phase, the sky is completely black, with the exception of little sparkles of light in the form of stars. It’s the point in every month when the moon takes a retreat and begins to grow again, redoubling her light and reflecting new…

  • Dancing with the Contrast of Darkness and Light

    Our lunar goddess is rich with wisdom. Through her phases, she teaches us how to move from darkness into light with the gracefulness of a ballroom dance. We step in, we step out – and we circle back around again. And with each step of this dance, we gain a new experience – a new awareness. What do we receive in darkness that we may not see in the light? And how does the light magnify what’s tucked away in darkness? This is where the gift of contrast comes in – and how the wisdom of the moon serves as a wonderful teacher. Imagine looking up at the night sky during a first quarter lunar phase – and seeing a moon that’s half lit. It…