“You’re scared, you’re angry, you are overwhelmed by what’s going on in the world, or at the dining room table. So you fill a bag with food, and don’t forget Oreos for the little ones and the old people and the moms and everyone, and you take to the food pantry, you know? And it changes your whole day because now you’ve created love and hope in Oreo cookies.” -Anne Lamott
Braveheart, I loved listening to [this* podcast] with Anne Lamott and Kate Bowler. It was enjoyable and funny, comforting and inspiring—and it made me feel so affirmed and held by Grace. ❤️
*This is a YouTube link, you may also listen to it [here].
“I do think hope is a radical act. It’s a decision.” -Anne Lamott
A “decision” as simple as a micro-choice, a teeny tiny step forward, a whisper or nod … to be in this moment, breath-by-breath. To be in this moment despite our weariness, questions, overwhelm and righteous anger.
Isolation (hiding away because we are feeling all the feelings, or like we are “too much”) as we wait for “someone” to [fill-in-the-blank] diminishes our peace ☮️ as well as our overall well-being. ♻️
- Yes, sometimes we need to cocoon and rest and recover. 💯
- But we must also remember: Together we are stronger. 💞
- Showing up and being here in this moment is an act of resistance. 🙌
Braveheart, one of my ways through overwhelm is 💃🏻🎧🎶📓📝 [music + slow-journaling]—while reminding myself that rest is always the first step to recovery.
- When I am weary and discouraged, I remind myself art heals and that “courage is fear that has said its prayers” (Anne Lamott).
- My right brain planning practice is major part of how I pray.
Braveheart, our emotions are messengers. It is both healing and empowering to recognize their value without becoming ruled by them.
- ➡️➡️➡️ To be grounded + mindful—to feel—and to hold space with whatever we are experiencing without telling (retelling) ourselves faulty stories based only on what we feel.
I hold space (and “edit for accuracy”) by being on the pages of my journal-planners; adding handwritten entries (and collage) for clarity and as a prayer, as a way of making my living tangible as I cycle like the 🌙 moon.
What does this have to do with right brain planning?
Every day is a gift. 🎁 Simple chronicles of the details (thoughts, events and emotions) of our days is a way to cope + know ourselves + map our desires.
Tracking (and reviewing) our thoughts and routine activities [along with whatever has our attention] reveals our beliefs and values—and helps us to discover meaning and the details of our rhythms.
Showing up for ourselves on the page—along with setting aside time and space on a regular basis for both tangible and intangible processing is how we come to identify our desires + get clarity.
- Everything is an opportunity. Everything we have experienced, lived and loved, questioned and lost is a part of our wholeness.
And, Braveheart, there is enough time and space and energy for our dreams and desires, wishes and want-to’s, and our ❤️🩹 healing (even when we doubt all of that).
Our dreams take time. Without some type of visual chronicle to serve as a “map”—as well as a reminder and directive—the timelines of our desires and experiences become jumbled. What matters most becomes ignored and forgotten.
Thank you kindly for your presence here, Braveheart. 💗
I appreciate your interest and support.
~love & good wishes~
⭐️ I am an artist and curator; I am one who communicates with color, found words and collage, inky marks and doodles as I cycle like the moon (as my calendar), chronicling oracles and abiding with the sky as a meditation.
⭐️ I host creative communities, safe spaces for gathering and sharing. I choose love and creativity for coping with the ongoing challenges of this world and I go to work—not because everything is fine but because I believe art heals.
❤️ Braveheart, as the Creator/Artist of Right Brain Planner I am ever-grateful to have the opportunity to share my creative work online + support other creators! 🎉 For almost 20 years I have had the privilege of sharing my art and writing about right brain planning while also hosting kindred 👭🏽💞👭 communities. ✨ I consider it an absolute 🤸 delight to continue this portion of my creative 📝🖌️✂️🫧 work (even as I retire from full-time work).
- This is possible, in part, by {you} and your presence here. But also because of the support of my Ko-fi patrons and the other member/subscriber communities I host (via their presence, input and paid subscriptions). 🫶
- 💁🏻♀️ Other ways to support my work: ❤️ continue to read this blog + follow me on Instagram. 📲
If you already have your own system of creative journal-planning, but are interested in financially supporting my creative work, you may do so by making a donation:
- Make a one-time contribution in any amount via [this link]. (Thank you!) ❤️