Tuesday the 28th of March is the first New Moon after the Spring Equinox, which gives a powerful start to the new Astrological cycle. At the time of this New Moon, there will be five planets in Aries – Sun, Moon, Venus, Mercury and Uranus! This really is an amazing time to start over, begin a new chapter in our lives and plant and nurture the seeds of all the ideas we have been incubating over the winter.
Aries brings fire energy, which can be used to bring power, energy, passion and enthusiasm and inspire confidence to move forward. The colours of Aries are red, orange and gold and these can assist us to find our goals and purpose. There is also an abundance of Venus energy, so it’s a perfect time for love and romance!
Full Moon in Virgo
There was a beautiful Full Moon last night and it’s energies will be felt for the next two weeks. This Moon is in Virgo and represents your true strength and inner warrior! It is ruled by Mercury and along with Virgo promotes a healthier lifestyle and a love of beauty and the arts – coincidentally?!, I was in London on Saturday buying new art materials and visiting the National Gallery – truly inspiring. Virgo is represented by the virgin, so we are all going to feel the feminine strength of this Moon, helping us to heal, love ourselves and practise self-care. The next two weeks are a time to let go of negative feelings and reactions to situations in our lives and find an inner strength and peace to resolve conflicts.
The Finished Canvas
Thought I would post an update on the the new canvas that I started, as at the time I had no idea where it was leading. After adding acrylics, inks and pens, it was time to choose a black and white photo to finish off the piece. I looked at various options and then saw the photo of my wonderful, glamorous gran, at what I think was her second wedding and thought it would be a fitting tribute to her to include this with words etc. The different layers of paint hide a lot of the background details, but after I had added the photograph, I noticed that the name standing out underneath was Edward, the name of Gran’s first husband! Not only that but Edward was my Gran’s second husband’s brother!!! (hope you’re keeping up). So this ended up being a a real family affair and it has pride of place in my workshop and I am so pleased with it. Thank-you Laly Mille for the inspiration and I look forward to what else evolves from her ‘Layers of Light’ course.
Meditation, mindfulness and photography
Just back from an amazing two days on a meditation, mindfulness and photography course. We stayed in a lovely hotel and hadn’t realised what a beautiful countryside setting it was in. The whole week-end was full of synchronicity and people that we met, even in this random hotel, were talking about spirituality and involved in various practices. I felt as though I was being given pieces of a jigsaw, that I had been asking the Universe for and it re-affirmed for me that nothing is random, but that we have to trust – something that I think we all struggle with. Taking photographs using mindfulness is a a real lesson in seeing what is really there and concentrating on a small area to explore and discover. We also experimented with various techniques and looked at who we were using ‘I am’ exercises. I struggled with that as I was trying to be positive and see me in the present moment, but today I managed two pages of who I am, who I want to be and lots of positive affirmations! It’s so easy to identify with our labels, but are we really that person?
We also looked at using music to enhance the experience, although for me, the melody of birdsong does it every time! Some shots looking at texture, colour and movement in the moment.