Category: Grandmothers

#Magic!ContemplationsGrandmothersMedicine BasketWisdom Cards

Old tune… new ears!

Posted on by sue boardman

I didn’t grow up with this one in my head. Not exactly top of the hymn list in mid-west Presbyterian churches or very Catholic neighborhoods, back in the early 1960’s.

In fact, I probably learned it in my summer camp years from Joan Baez, who might possibly have sung it for Dr. King. And, yes… that’s no doubt why it’s rumbling around my head just now. It’s called, Just a Closer Walk With Thee.

Then, there’s the news. The seemingly endless work still to be done. And, yes, it’s true…

I am tired. I am weak. I am worn…

Blessedly, there are more things which are true, as well. One of those is this…

I am determined!

Another is that…

I can’t do it all alone!

Neither, by the way, can any of us! Which is, no doubt, why the song begs…

…take my hand.

So, I let my very cranky neck choose a new pillow. The cover is in the washer as I type. It’s going to flunk all the Mom rules and nursing school rules for the right way to make a bed and I’m totally okay with that because, if I don’t take care of me, mattering is even harder!

I also had a BIG conversation about my next book and some ways to get the already-books out in the world, doing more good. (Prayers and good juju much appreciated!!)

Here’s the really cool thing, though…

The world needs what you have to share, too! The stuff that lives in the secret box labeled What you are called to do!

Paint. Write. Teach. Adopt abandoned pets. Sing. Feed people. Catch babies. Celebrate weddings. Give blankets to the local shelter. Preach. Vote… you hear me. And I want to hear you! Personally, my medicine basket is all a tingle over some about-to-begin learning in the land of Eco-Somatics and trauma release and regenerative wisdom!

In this moment, I’m looking for two brave souls ready to take a chance on claiming their own magic and putting it to work in the world. You see, that’s my magic! Naming visions and claiming next right things on the road from here to the place where we feel called. (And, frankly, “here” could use a whole lot of work just now!) So, if you’re feeling your special sign of ready – or even intrigued – let’s talk! Just click and ask the calendar elves to hook us up so we can chat. ​ No pressure. No expecting or directing. Just somebody to walk with you, with lots of possibilities and tools for your medicine basket.

And, I really only have space for 2 people!!! Short term. Manageable. Personalized. You’ll know if it’s you! Here’s a timely bit of music for musing…

ps… the first known recording of Just A Closer Walk was made by the Selah Jubilee Singers in 1941. Selah is a Hebrew word which implies intentional pauses – or lifting up – for mindfulness, praise, meditation, and connecting with faith or source!

Amen. Amen. Selah.

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All the parts of us…

Posted on by sue boardman

You’ve probably met them, before, these old friends of mine. They live on a wall near my writing chair, in a room where there is often the noise called news coming from the TV. It turns out that they want to join the conversation!

We’ll skip the swearing and crying. I’m guessing you’ve got your version of all that covered. Let’s do introductions, instead.

Aslan. Matilda. (Or Boudicca!) And a cardinal bird named Elsie. Not so much intentional as demanding. And I’ve needed their messages a whole lot, lately!

You know Aslan, I suspect, from C.S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia. Wise and powerful. Benevolent, but formidable. You can probably guess why I find him appealing in this moment!

Then, Matilda/Boudicca. (The painting hasn’t made a firm decision yet, and she could assuredly be both!) Powerful women leaders in times when women weren’t permitted to be powerful. Matilda of Tuscany was my cousin. She is often described as one of the most important governing figures of the Italian Middle Ages. She was also a spiritual leader and a huge supporter of the arts.

Boudicca, hundreds of years before Matilda, was a warrior queen in ancient Britain, also considered a symbol of the struggle for justice and independence. It’s likely that she, too, was a relative.

The bird is named Elsie after my grandmother who told me, when I was about six, that cardinals were ancestors who’d gone on, coming back to check on us and encourage us.

And, yes… they’re livid about a whole lot of the news.

Here’s the thing that I’ve realized… these stories and images are powerful #Filters through which I’m engaging the context of this moment!

For today, I am claiming their wisdom and strength… still alive in my being and spirit. I’m also claiming their #inquiry…

What can you do – what do you need to do – so that what you love to do works better???

Yep! You. Now. In the midst of this context.

And, I have a plan, though it needs to wait until Friday. Watch for a special email! In fact, if you’re not on the email list just now, use the pop-up thingy and get the elves to fix that!

ps… Fairy Tales coming soon. And more Wisdom Cards! (It pays to listen to the walls!)

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When hiding doesn’t work…

Posted on by sue boardman

Yes, hiding is totally tempting. In fact, I’ve tried it, too. There is no lack of things in our world that sane, compassionate people would love to ignore. People like us!

Sadly, it doesn’t really help!

Oh, a nap is good. Another romp through the land of Princess Diaries, even. (Try it!) Eventually, though, those of us who want our Littles to have a world to inherit have to make our way back to the actual world. Here’s a quote that helps me:

Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.

-James Baldwin

I’ve been experimenting with a way to make going forward, despite current events, feel a bit more encouraging than traumatic. And, yes… creating is involved!

One of my IC® sisters, Amber Kuileimailani Bonnici, led a workshop for the New Year with a way to do just that. I’ve done it before, and enjoyed it. I’ve taught it. Sometimes, though, context does, indeed, shift things and this was one of those times for me.

This particular adventure has to do with folding heavy watercolor paper into an accordian-like book and, for me at least, imagining old things in new ways.

I suspect everyone who tries this experiences it differently. In my mind, it’s a lot like quilting. The scrappy kind. Bits of old treasures and new hopes brought into a relationship intended to create a path forward.

My first challenge, in this moment, was folding the paper. The second was sending the inherited perfectionist who still lurks within me on a play date, elsewhere! (Waiting for something that could be perfect, in the context of this moment, feels a whole lot like giving up!)

I began, as you probably guessed, with a bit of practice in the art of book illumination. (It’s big fun!) And, yes… the Winged Eye Wisdom reference is utterly intentional!

Then, I dreamed a map. A map of next right things!

There is, indeed, more to go. More dreaming. More claiming. The claiming part feels really important just now! And, I’ve decided not to force it faster than I’m ready. You see, I LOVE that there’s more!

ps… If you could actually read the page with the orange writing, way down near the bottom, you might notice a quote from Leo McGarry on The West Wing. “I’ve been down here before, and I know the way out!” Stay tuned… I have, and I do!

pps… now would be a great time to engage the pop-up thingy at the beginning and sign up for the mailing list. Big things, soon!!!

#Magic!ContemplationsGrandmothersMedicine BasketWisdom Cards

’twas the night before 2026

Posted on by sue boardman

…and all through the house, the people were waiting for news and pondering choices! You know…

If this, then ________________…

If that, then ________________…

And, yes, the multitude of elipses are this writer’s way of expressing, “What next?”

The challenge, of course, is that we don’t know, even when we think we do! And, it’s hard!

There are, however, some things we CAN know. Some things we CAN choose. And, yes… I like those! So, I chose a card! One of Grammy’s MetaMod Wisdom Cards, to be exact. Sometimes I just mix all of them together in a big heap, close my eyes, and pull one.

In this moment, though, I needed to narrow things down a bit. That meant the category known as Meta-what??? These have to do with big questions on the road to the place where you feel called. And, you know what? I got a very good fit for this moment! Here it is:

And, yes… a Tardis, like the one you see, above, is on the front. The magical door that opens to a whole new world! (It helps to love a sci-fi guy!)

So… time for meddlin’!

What could YOU set free???

Literal objects. Limiting beliefs. We always/We never…

Personally, I’m setting It’s too complicated free, and claiming Let’s see what happens, instead! Chances are, as the old story goes, I’ll learn something and you know how I love that!

And, there’s a bunch of stuff in my closet that’s eagerly awaiting an excursion to a local Clothes Closet!

Here’s the bottom line, though… what I’m really setting free is…

ME

And, no, I’m not at all sure what that will look like. I just know that it’s time! Me, and the Fire Horse who brings intense energy, innovation, and bold action to this year, now. I’ll figure the rest of it out!

ps… start your New Year with much love and a great new tool! Order 2 sets of MetaMod Wisdom Cards, shipped to the same address, and save 20%. Offer limited to in-stock supply. Just click here and the elves will do the magic! And wander… there’s lots of inspiring stuff!

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One foot in awe, and one in wonder…

Posted on by sue boardman

That’s what I feel in this moment. And I’m struck by how conscious I am of it! A house full of my dearest ones. Sun setting outside the window. Seasonal bush enjoying decorations. Busy people everywhere!

The grandteens, having constructed a gingerbread house, are busy sketching and painting. The grownups mostly doing work-like things, having conquered the major grocery expedition earlier.

I am noticing and wondering. Waaaayyyy deep!!! You see, I’ve been wandering in the land of the way-back folks. The multitude of humans, each with their own dreams and needs, their awe – and regrets – and wonder back clear to the time when King David walked the Earth.

(I know… there were more before that, but it’s as far as my searching has gotten me, thus far!)

Bits of all those lives and stories, gathered here. New dreams in a context that would probably look unimaginable to many of them and yet, I suspect, there are things that would feel familiar, too. Chaos. Power struggles. Danger.

Not too long after that, as the story goes, a babe was born.

Here’s the part that feels so wild to me…

The message that babe brought is still waiting for us to hear. To claim the awe and wonder of love!

And, perhaps, it’s time for some intentional walking the talk. Not simply in ceremonial ways, but in ways that help others. Those we know and those we don’t. Even if it feels like banging our heads against the wall!

Our Littles are watching! And making meaning!!! Also, joy!!!

With many blessings for you and yours,

ps… there’s still time to join us for the Feminine Frequency Festival! Just click the link and ask to join the Facebook group, which might take a day or so. There are incredible speakers and lots of really cool art. Join me, 12/31/25 for Claiming YOUR Feminine Good Trouble Magic! (Paper & pen, handy. Cuppa, of course, and just enough courage to turn the knob on the door to the future!

#Magic!ContemplationsFeminine Frequency FestivalGrandmothersMedicine BasketWisdom Cards

She Takes Her Place Among the Matriarchs…

Posted on by sue boardman

You know how, sometimes, things that were familiar in the past seem to carry new meaning when the context changes???

This is just such a thing. My #Insight painting from 2021. And, yes, she appeared, in a dream early this morning, ready to meddle again!

#Insight is one of those painting adventures that’s supposed to mess with your mind! (In a good way!!!) Different strokes and shapes and positions. Symbols everywhere. A way to externalize and claim some of what matters on the road we call life. And, in my case, lots of prayer dots!

Turns out that hearing them in a dream can be just as influential as creating them in the first place!

I want to say this next bit as gently as possible… a bit of intentional vagueness, if you will…

There’s a whole lot of wild stuff going on in this world… in this moment… and it’s pretty much bound to shift some of our internal notions of always and never! And that, dear heart, takes some adapting to. Preferably of the conscious choice sort, rather than the frantic, reactive sort.

Part of my deeply personal adapting is practicing for my upcoming Feminine Frequency offering on December 21. If you’ve been hanging out a while you’ve probably heard me mention that there were some things we didn’t cover in nursing school or seminary. Solstice was, indeed, one of those things!

A literal – and symbolic – turning from dark to light. From death to rebirth, renewal, and hope. And I’m claiming it!!!

In fact, I’m calling you to join me! Let’s turn fear into courage, scraps into wonder, and calling into a path you can actually walk!

And, yes… I have a medicine basket overflowing with tools to do just that! Here’s the thing, though – I can’t do it for you. YOU have to show up for yourself. And for the world. And, yes… it can feel scary to claim our truth!

That’s why I put some blank cards in Grammy’s MetaMod Wisdom Cards! They look like this:

And, yes, the flip side is intentional space for you to claim you! In fact, we’ll make a draft of your first card in our Feminine Frequency circle! You’ll want a cuppa, and something to write on and with.

Where do you long to take YOUR place???

YOUR first Next Right Thing is to click here! Go ask to join the Facebook Group, which might take a day or two. And mark your calendar! Sunday, December 21 at 4:40pm ET. Think of it as claiming light, wherever you might be. And carrying the light forward!

We’ve got this!!! And, it’s free!!!

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Let’s get real! (And it’s NOT easy!)

Posted on by sue boardman

So, 6pm ET on Saturday night. The Legendary Husband and I had enjoyed a lovely lunch date and a busy afternoon. Having received the inspiration I was counting on, I was busy telling folks about the upcoming Feminine Frequency Festival. I’m really excited to be presenting. Excited enough to – you know – post actual photos of me!!! (Gulp! And, read on…)

Then, I turned on the news. The MS NOW folks were ready to spend the next few hours on likely protests at the Army-Navy football game. Instead, there was a shooting at Brown University, in Rhode Island. I am, intentionally, skipping the still scarce details. It is enough to say, here, that not everyone will make it home for the holidays.

I am livid! Also terrified. Our older grandteen received her first college acceptance this week. (Yes, that is totally a #Filters thing!) And it’s so utterly NOT supposed to be this way!!!

For this moment, though, I am taking really deep breaths and intentionally shifting my attention to the glimpse at the first layer of my (very!) new Intentional Creativity® painting. It is, officially, #Alchemist. Or, will be. Yep… that’s it, above!

In my heart, though, it’s already begun to dance in my dreams with memories of this painting…

There I was, leading my 13-step Workshop in 2018, the first time I did #ColorofWoman. The title of our adventure was Who Put the Honey in Your Heart? My dream-travels took me to a place where old learning meets new learning, in a radically new context, and I woke this morning in a whole different world!

And, yes, in this moment, there are 12 more layers to go. I’m trying to let go of expectations and be open to even more surprises. I can tell you that magic will be involved!

The surprising thing is realizing that – even in the midst of all the unknown – I’ve totally got this!

I’ve also totally got the Feminine Frequency Festival thing and I’d love to have you join us. (Actually, there are lots and lots of us who would love to have you join us… and it’s free!!!)

I’ll be sharing on YOUR Feminine Good Trouble Magic!

The first step for you is to click this link and ask to join the group, which may take a day or so. Then, put December 21 at 4:40pm ET on your calendar! Think of it – in fact the whole Festival – as a Solstice Practice, if you like. We’ll be taking it easy… journal, markers or colored pencils, a cuppa…

This world NEEDS many, many, many of us… on the road of Light!

ps… prayers, also, for victims and loved ones of the anti-Semitic mass shooting in Australia, at a Chanukah gathering.

pps… I’m with Gabby Giffords!