the (real) practice

The following was one of the stories I shared during Week 1 of the Chickadee Road :: Studio Sessions last fall. Throughout the Studio Sessions, Kelly and I give some real glimpses into our own practices because as you know, I believe that it is okay to tell the true stories.

*****

September, 2012

As soon as Kelly and I brainstormed the Studio Sessions and came up with a start date, I began to envision how my first morning of my practice would unfold.

I would get up, get my two-year-old Ellie ready for school, Jon would take her, and then I would change into my yoga clothes and head out to my studio ready to spend about 30 minutes doing yoga. Then I would tuck into the couch and the words would just drip out of me as I would write a morning poem. And it would unfold like this each day because we were creating space for me to reconnect to the yogi within and the poet who longs to write more words each day. Reconnecting to the person I missed when every morning was filled with taking care of a little one with not much time for me.

But then Ellie woke up in such a bad mood. She wouldn't eat. She didn't want to get dressed. She was literally weeping in her bowl of oatmeal. I ended up letting her wear her pajama top to school. She cried. A lot. And then Jon bookended the experience by being in a really bad mood too and losing his patience several times. I kept breathing and focusing on what needed to happen to get them out the door so that Jon wouldn't be late to work.

When they left, I stood in the middle of our suddenly very quiet kitchen thinking that there was no way this exhausted in need of a shower to wake up and some food in her belly mama was going to head straight to her studio for poetry and yoga.

So I made breakfast and then showered and tweaked the day a bit. I let go of my vision and instead just committed to breathing and writing a few words.

When I made it to my studio, I lit a candle and then went to grab my yoga mat. It was no where to be found. Deep breath. I let it go and just got onto the floor into child's pose because my body was longing for it. 

Until I got into child's pose and found myself totally uncomfortable. 

The mind chatter was getting louder, but I pushed myself to treat myself as though I was my own student. Gently reminding my body how to stretch and how to move to get comfortable and reconnect with my breath.

Yes.

I eventually eased into child's pose and stayed there until I began to melt into the carpet.

Yes. This.

Then I chanted and sat in the quiet for a few minutes.

I ended the practice by letting my poet self write a few notes as I drank tea and ate a piece of dark chocolate.

It wasn't ideal. It didn't look like the world of the yoginis and writers I see online (or make up in my own head). But it was my practice. It was what I needed. And it was a beginning. A first day. 

*****

The Studio Sessions begin Monday! Join Kelly Barton and me for the Chickadee Road :: Studio Sessions, a four-week adventure into creative practices with a community of kindred spirits.

The premise of the sessions is that you choose a creative practice, from cooking to art journaling to yoga to writing (the possibilites are endless really). Then each day we send you little "lessons" and stories via email while you also you gather with like-minded souls for support, encouragement, and community.

Throughout the four weeks Kelly and I share glimpses into our studios and practices, a few tools we use each day, and other really good things. There will also be two live video chats (available by recording for those who can't be there) where we'll share stories and answer questions.

We'd love to have you join the incredible group of kindreds already coming along. This is really going to be good!  

Find out more and register here. And feel free to send over any questions. 

could i really paint?

Over here I'm sifting through ideas for my own creative practice to play with during the Chickadee Road :: Studio Sessions. As I mentioned in our Chickadee Road Chat last week, it seems like I'm not really in a place to do the same practice at the same time every day. It is summer and Ellie and Jon are home every single day, so I'm squeezing in bits of creative play here and there, and often in my moments alone I'm either working or trying to rest a bit. 

This is why I'm so excited about the Studio Sessions. I want to be surrounded with kindred spirits who are finding their way to make room for creative play even when the day is full, even when it seems hard. I want to practice what I know and gently push myself to make time for what I know I need.

And I keep coming back to a strong desire to paint more. 

The truth is I always want to paint but there are so many reasons I don't...I'm not very good. I don't know how. I really can only paint when Kelly is here. It makes too much of a mess. I have too much work to do and not enough time to get the supplies out. And how the list goes on.

I'm pretty good at excuses. (Can you relate?)

But still, I keep coming back to this question: Could I really paint?

We're heading to my mom's for a few days soon and I'm thinking about taking my watercolors + Moleskine and just playing. Just putting color to the page and seeing what happens. Watercolors are so easy to travel with, and Kelly's taught me some pretty fun techniques at the retreats this year. Why not?

And then just maybe I will be in a bit of a groove and can continue to play in August. Or maybe I'll decide that I want to try something else.

This is the fun thing about creative practices: You get to create your own adventure.

If you've been longing to play, just PLAY, in your corner of the world - from art journaling to cooking to taking a photo walk each day - consider coming along with Kelly and me for the August Studio Sessions. We are going to have so much fun!

An incredible group of women is already gathering and we'd love to have you come along. 

the chickadee road::studio sessions are back!

While driving home from the Oregon Coast, Kelly and I decided to bring back the Studio Sessions!!

Join us this August for a four-week adventure that will be full of inspiration, connection, peeks into our friendship and our creative worlds, laughter, and a whole lot of love as we support one another in nurturing a creative practice.

Now what does nurturing a creative practice really mean?

Many of us dream of having a week or two or even a whole month where we could travel to a beautiful corner of the world and spend that time creating a new body of work or writing a memoir or actually using the mixed media techniques we’ve learned in the workshops we’ve taken. And then, we’d love to circle in community with other creatives who would say, “How are you doing over there? How did it go?”

This is what the Chickadee Road :: Studio Sessions are about: Creating a virtual space where we can support one another as we take a few minutes or even an hour or two a day to practice and make small moves and big leaps toward the creative dreams that wait within us.

The creative practice you work with will be up to you.

You might want to:

• Journal each day
• Begin a meditation practice
• Tell your story through photography adventures
• Paint, paint, and paint some more
• Draw in your sketchbook four times a week
• Make one small self-care move every day
• Start a blog
• Create an ecourse
• Play with self-portraits
• Have fun with color in your studio/creative corner every day

And each day, Kelly and I will be here to guide you, celebrate you, and inspire you, and your circle of kindreds will be here to catch you as you play and work and find your way.

Details

Dates: August 5-August 31

Where and How: The "lessons" + inspiration will be emailed to you, and we will gather in community in a private Facebook group and in a private Flickr group. 

Four weeks of emails include:

• Videos that take you into our own creative spaces and invite you to be present to self-care and fun
• Lessons about ways to invite in ritual and sacredness to your daily creative practice
• Creativity exercises to support your practice and keep your creative juices flowing
• Writing and photography prompts to keep you grounded
• Stories of our own journeys to reconnect with our creative joy
• Opportunities to share your stories through photos, daily check-ins, and other surprises along the way
• When you sign up, you will also receive an email with information about how to prepare for Studio Sessions, suggestions about how to choose your practice, and other good things
• Note that there won't be emails on Sundays to give you a day to simply catch-up and rest

Supplies needed:
Camera (Camera phone is fine)
Journal or notebook to write in
Simple art supplies that you enjoy working with like markers, colored pencils, crayons, and so on
A Flickr account (optional)
A Facebook account (optional) 

Register:

Registration has begun!

Cost: $69

Questions? Just email us at chickadeeroad @ gmail [dot] com (or through our email form)

Read even more about the course including our FAQ over here.