Category: Guardians

#Magic!Art JourneyContemplationsGuardiansRed Madonna

My Name is Sue & I am a Perfectionist!

Posted on by sue boardman

Well, not about everything… just about more things than I can manage these days! And, I’ve made a big decision… I’ve decided that the whole perfectionism thing doesn’t have to be all-or-nothing. Instead, I can choose!

Yep… when and where are my perfectionist tendencies actually helpful? And when might they (gasp!) be holding me back???

Here’s a mini- glimpse of the #wip painting, above. In case you missed this bit of news, Madam #Threshold announced recently that she is me! A self-portrait of sorts. We’re still working, she and I, and I keep noticing the “yeah, but” vibes!

Progress! Yeah, but… her eyebrows and lashes don’t match. (And, they don’t!) Here’s something else that’s true, though…

She’s going to have a whole lot of hair hanging in her face, soon. So I’m intentionally choosing to be okay with the mismatched eyebrows because they won’t show and nobody who gets it would care, anyway! This choice, by the way, gives my cranky right thumb, wrist, and shoulder lots more painting time for things that will show! More writing/typing time! Even more very soothing cacao cup holding time!

And, no… that’s not the way I first learned it!

In many ways, I grew up in Leave It to Beaver land! Suburbs. Stay at home mom. Dog buddies. Good teachers – except third grade! And the message I absorbed was that my being as close as possible to perfect helped Mom feel like she was doing it right.

There was also some very un-Leave It to Beaver stuff but we didn’t talk about that!

By the time my own son came along, Leave It to Beaver was pretty much out of the picture. Literally and figuratively! Those were really hard years and there were many days when I felt like we weren’t going to make it. But, we did!

I kept learning. Greek and Hebrew pretty much cured me of thinking academic perfection was possible, but the old shoulds and oughts remained.

One of the best things I’ve learned in the land of Intentional Creativity® is that layers are helpful! In fact, instead of just covering up mistakes, they make the eventual outcome feel deeper and richer! How totally cool is that???

For this moment, I am choosing to let my inner Perfectionist show up to vote, understanding that we can’t control outcomes, but we can make sure we get heard. (Well, mostly sure!) She also gets to absolutely forbid toxic crud in the garden. We are team pollinators, all the way! And, yes, I checked to be sure that got spelled right, which reminds me that my voice counts more around here than the auto-grammar police, even when I miss one now and then.

And, I’d love to hear what examples are bubbling in you as you read along! You can leave a comment, below. Or email me… suesvoice@gmail.com

We have had the magic all along! We just need to claim it and set it free!!! One way to do that is to check out our upcoming journey with #Red Madonna! I am so honored and thrilled to be among this amazing team of open-hearted, paint-spattered women asking huge questions!

New? Curious??? First, we have a free way to dip your toes in –  Come Home to the Waters: A Mini-Retreat to Connect With the Living Waters of Your Life. This adventure is offered by the Red Madonna team for each of us to touch into our sacred flow and experience a taste of our year-long Red Madonna 2026. It’s happening Friday July 3, 2026. Enroll in Come Home to the Waters Now!

Then, the deep dive! Just click the link to read all about Red Madonna Sisterhood: Womb of Living Waters… a 13 Moon Painting & Initiation Journey into the Primordial Waters of the Divine Feminine. REGISTRATION IS OPEN!!!  https://musea.org/red-madonna-womb-of-living-waters

ps… it is, indeed, entirely possible to do both!!! In fact, we’d be delighted!!!

pps… It’s me, Glinda. Sue wanted me to tell you that she got two new stories for our upcoming book done today. Stay tuned!!!

#Magic!ContemplationsGuardiansMedicine BasketPhoebe and Luther

A new volunteer for the book!

Posted on by sue boardman

His name is Luther. He came to us on MLK weekend about 8 years or so ago. A Newfoundland rescue from a despicable, intentionally cruel puppy mill. Terrified. Hungry. Not at all sure love existed… but hopeful.

I love him, still. And, yes… he’s still helping, years after he crossed the Rainbow Bridge.

Early this morning, he appeared in my dreams, offering comfort. Reminding me of the power of courage and love over evil. He even offered to tell his story in the book that’s finding form around here these days. In his own voice. Hope, if you will, for some of our Littles living in the midst of the chaos, now.

He also made me promise not to tell everything before the book is ready!

That’s Luther on your left, with his “blind dog” collar, curled up with his chosen sister, Phoebe. I have some two-handed journaling to do. Dominant hand, my questions. Non-dominant hand, his musings. Tissues will no doubt be involved!

Here’s the thing, though… somehow he knew, even before I did, that what we learned together in those years holds a way to make our way through these days. And our Litttles need to hear that hope! (Even the ones headed for college!!!)

For this moment… another reminder of holding hope:

May we have ears to hear!

ps… I have ears to hear the magic you feel calling you! And a medicine basket full of ways to help you get there! Want to chat? 45 min. My gift. Just click here and the calendar elves will find you a time! You’ll want a cuppa, some Red Thread if it’s handy, and something for notes. Glinda can’t wait to meet you!

#Magic!ContemplationsFairy GrandmothersGuardians

Listening Deep…

Posted on by sue boardman

I’ve been working on this painting for almost a year. She’s Mother Nature from the Red Madonna journey I help lead, which began in 2025.

It took us a while to begin to get to know each other. Actually, it took me making space to notice and wonder, even in the midst of – you know – this world, now.

Something big shifted yesterday. I was writing about Red Thread Circles. Well, one circle in particular. My first, at Summer Camp, when I was about 12 years old. Our inquiry was all about how the different beings around us – plant and animal – were related to, and dependent on, each other.

It was like a big window opening in my awareness. How were ‘possum and Manatee connected? Alligator and poison ivy? You hear me… That day changed my world view. And it changed it again, today, when it dawned on me that a huge part of the chaos we’re living through is being intentionally created by powerful people who don’t get it. Or, don’t care to get it.

Blessedly, the paint did what the paint does. Small changes. Layer after layer. Bringing this forward. Adding light. And depth.

And, you know, none of it was really about the image, itself. It was about being along for the journey! It still is… lots and lots more journey.

It’s about trusting myself to notice and wonder. To wander, even, off the path and toward something not yet known.

There’s part of me that wants to pitch a tent and live there, in that forest which is emerging from me. Frankly, my literal neighborhood has felt scarier these days. More shootings in the news. More sirens in the night. Close. And voting coming close, as well.

There’s a John Lewis Good Trouble sign in my front yard. A woman I didn’t know was walking by with her dog and, as I rubbed the dog’s ears, she asked if I was afraid to have that sign out there, in what used to be Congressman Lewis’ district.

My intuitive answer surprised me.

Having it makes me feel less scared than I would feel if I didn’t put it out there just because it could be scary!

I suspect, if Mother Nature was the blog reading type, she might agree! She’d also suggest that the painting needs some grape vines!

All of which feels like it boils down to taking care of ourselves so that we can keep being part of the circle that connects all life. I suspect she’s been chatting with the owls, again!

And, I’m supposed to remind you that her hand – crooked and crunchy as it seems – is a symbol of power. Power FOR!

ps… Red Madonna is gearing up for 2026! Stay tuned!!!

pps… ready for some help claiming YOUR Magic and setting it loose in the world, NOW??? Let’s talk… Just click here and the calendar elves will hook you up with 45 min. My gift. You tell me your dream and I’ll tell you about some accessible paths to next right things!

#Magic!ContemplationsGrandmothersGuardiansMedicine Basket

Of history and perspective…

Posted on by sue boardman

Yesterday was a challenging and intense day. Strength work for terrified muscles in physical therapy. It helped… and it wasn’t fun!

My chair was calling when I got home. Comfort food. Weighted blankets. Kind of like hibernating!

Then, news.

Witnesses and family members from Minneapolis testifying before Senate and House Democrats. Hard stories to hear. Harder, still, to tell. Renee Good’s brothers speaking, tears in their eyes. Aliya Rahman struggling to express her experience as a differently able person with communication and mobility challenges, detained by ICE without reason, except – presumably – her skin color. And elected leaders, with tears in their eyes. (MS NOW reports that, though invited, no Republicans attended the forum.)

I, too, had tears in my eyes, so I turned off the news coverage and reached for my Medicine Basket. A bit of musing about paintings. Lots of journal notes. Slightly delayed Morning Pages. Anxiety about some unclear questions.

And a tidal wave of memories!

Hungary. Just about now, in 1989. A group of seminary students on an adventure known as Alternative Context. Before the Eastern Block fell.

Russian tanks playing target practice games in farmers’ fields. Being treated like unwelcome radical foreigners in airports. Especially the women among us. Touring a rabbinic seminary where women were “not permitted”. Where frost covered the walls inside the buildings, and adding new books to the library had been illegal since before the World War.

And, for this kinesthetic processor, perhaps the biggest memory of all… of literally throwing our luggage from a moving train and leaping into a snow bank to avoid a border crossing, where we Americans could have been immediately arrested.

Add to all this, the fact that my son was home with neighbors in the Village at Columbia Theological Seminary, postponing his ninth birthday party until my return.

And, yes… these memories show up about this time, every year. (Perhaps it’s the weather!) Today, though, the trigger was the voices of human beings, in the United States of America, trying desperately to talk some sense into the nation, because what was happening, then, in Hungary, is feeling way too close to home, now.

Then I heard it, deep inside my heart.

It’s ALL-IN time!

Frankly, I’d kind of assumed I was already there. Now, I know more!

And, yes… there’s a new book coming. First, though, I need to start over on my #Alchemist painting. And #Mother Nature’s friends, the Manatees, need some more attention.

It really is all part of the journey, if only we have the courage to notice!

Which brings us to questions… what are YOU noticing? And, how can I help???

If you have big questions, too… if you’re ALL IN… let’s talk! I have space for ONE new 1:1 dreamer/client looking for some new tools and guidance along the way. Click here and the calendar elves will hook you up with 45 minutes, on me, to explore possible roads ahead!

#Magic!ContemplationsFiltersGrandmothersGuardiansWisdom Cards

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!)

#Magic!ContemplationsFeminine Frequency FestivalGardenGuardiansWisdom Cards

Of signs and wonders… and hope, even now!!!

Posted on by sue boardman

The awesome dude who helps wrangle the lawn/garden/downed tree limbs, etc. was here on Thursday, with his sweet puppy-buddy, Lily. We did a good bit of plotting and planning and made space for Charlie Brown and his friends because – you know – it wouldn’t be Christmas without them!

Rule #1 for this kind of magic is, support the environment! No chemicals. Leaves blown off the driveway and down the hill where they can happily compost without causing mobility challenges. More prep for new rose bushes. You hear me!

Similar tasks are in progress in the studio. Canvases stashed safely. Paint put away. Brushes cleaned. And 4 dining chairs reclaimed from the basement. Yep! Our kids are coming!!!

Let’s be real… there were already lots of things on our lists and this is – well – more. My shoulder dislocated, again. (It’s back, now!) And, then, there’s the news, which is decidedly less than jolly. Here’s the Red Thread that connects it all…

It’s all about the world our Littles are inheriting!!! And letting those leaves compost, etc. is a holiday gift, even without wrapping paper and bows!

Then there’s another sort of gift… the honeycomb you saw as we began. I found it, just at the base of the grape arbor, about 10 minutes after the garden guy left. Just laying there, face up, right by the driveway.

Now, I’m desperately allergic to bee stings and I’ve had enough practice to be really cautious, but that bit of nature was calling my name. I watched it for several minutes and saw no movement. I nudged it gently with my boot and nothing happened. And I longed to hear its message.

So, I brought it gently inside and searched on my phone for something along the lines of “preserving dry honeycomb”. It now resides, as directed, in a (re-used) plastic bag in the freezer, lest there be mites! (A couple days, according to the directions.)

I shared the photo with some wise on-line friends and one dear heart was curious, too. Here’s a glimpse of what she sent me, after a bit of research… (Yes, AI does have a few uses!)

Finding a dry or empty honeycomb often symbolizes a period of transition, the completion of a cycle, or a call to seek new sources of spiritual nourishment and wisdom. Here are some spiritual meanings associated with a dry honeycomb:

  • A Call for New Growth/Nourishment: The honeycomb typically represents spiritual nourishment and the “sweetness” of divine wisdom or pleasant words. A dry or empty comb might suggest a spiritual emptiness or a lack of fulfillment in your current circumstances, encouraging you to seek out new sources of guidance and enrichment.
  • Renewal and Rebirth: In nature, abandoned combs are often cleaned out by other creatures, leaving an empty cavity for a new colony to inhabit. Spiritually, this can symbolize the potential for renewal and the opportunity to build a new life or pursue a different path, free from past burdens.
  • Diligent Effort and its Rewards: The honeycomb is a powerful symbol of diligence, cooperation, and the rewards of hard work. A dry comb may serve as a reminder to reflect on your efforts; perhaps the rewards of a past endeavor have been fully harvested, or it’s a message to direct your diligence toward a new, fruitful pursuit.
  • Completion and Release: The absence of bees and honey can signify that a phase of life or a project, which once involved collective effort and abundance, has reached its natural conclusion. It may be a sign that it is time to let go and prepare for a new beginning.
  • A Search for Essence: The original honeycomb holds the essence of the bees’ labor and the sweetness of the honey. Finding an empty one might prompt you to look beyond the material or surface-level aspects of life and search for deeper, spiritual meanings or hidden truths (just as honey is “extracted” from the comb). 

Now, I don’t know about you, but I’ll take a boatload of that, just now! In fact, I’ve spent the last few days exploring just such an opportunity which happens to have a whole lot to do with wonders of the natural world!

And, yes… there’s more to come!

For this moment, my unhappy shoulder and I re-scheduled our Feminine Frequency Festival offering to December 31, at 1:20pm ET. Think of it as Magical New Year Prep!!! YOUR first step, still, is joining the Facebook group where the wonder is beginning on the Solstice. Just click here! And, stay tuned! And, spread the word! Love for you to share this post with friends and family…

ps… maybe she brought the beginning of this unfolding wonder! May we have ears to hear!

#Magic!Art JourneyContemplationsGuardiansMedicine BasketWisdom Cards

Setting aside the fear of fear!

Posted on by sue boardman

Tuesday is often a rough day in my world. You see, Tuesday is usually physical therapy day. You know… the not so much fun stuff that keeps my body on the road, around the next curve. Blessedly, I’ve found my people!

My hands, arms, and shoulders have been greatly unamused lately. This does not help with the art making! (It doesn’t actually help with much of anything…) But, there’s much art to make and a new book in its figurative second trimester! So… we made a deal, my PT and I.

I figured I could probably sit still for like three dry needles. She agreed to wander and pick three really relevant spots. (Don’t you just love healing folks who listen???)

I’ll skip the gory details. Let’s just say we persisted! And, it helped!

It also helped, metaphorically, later… when my inner child got just a bit overwhelmed with the magnitude of what’s coming next! Planning for a Feminine Frequency speaking gig. (Stay tuned!) Juggling techy things that make me want to give up. You hear me.

So, after I’d painted as far as my wrist would go, and asked for strategy/tech help, I decided I needed a break. Feel free to laugh… it was time for Princess Diaries!!! Like, as in, Alexa… please play…

Let’s just say that, for me, it’s a really good reminder that scary things can get less scary when we face them!

It’s a lot like claiming that what we need to stay on the road is okay. Kind of a becoming our own grandmothers kind of thing, even!

For this moment, my hand has spent enough time cupped around a cacao mug that painting is an actual option and I’m off to take advantage of that!

Then, a very welcome #RedMadonna sister circle. Some more tech help. And a promise to keep capturing and treasuring all the bits of encouraging stuff in my awareness! (It likes to be noticed!!!)

ps… it’s Wisdom Wednesday in the shop! Put 2 sets of Grammy’s MetaMod Wisdom Cards in your basket and the elves will gladly award you a 20% discount on them! Just click here! (Hurry! Quantity limited to in-stock supply!) And wander a bit… From original art to awesome gifts, good deals abound, and it’s way more fun than MartMart shopping!