Category: Guardians

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I went to visit “my” tree, again!

Posted on by sue boardman

She’s still there, on the campus of Columbia Theological Seminary. We “met” last Spring, though I’d no doubt passed by her hundreds of times!

And, yes… it’s a Filters thing! You see, I was working on a new painting and engaged in a conversation about living in Creation, as part of the miracles. And, there she was!

She actually showed up in my dream last night. Reminders were in order! Back to hippo spirit animals… yet another thing I didn’t learn in 5 college degrees!

Here’s the short version… The hippo is considered a spirit animal that symbolizes strength, power, fertility, and healing.

And, there are about 3 million reasons why The Muse might be sending me such messages in the context of this moment in time!

All the ones on MSNBC, of course. And a more personal one…

The Book Launch!!! (And a mockup of the cover…)

Here’s one of the things I’m most excited about…

Many friends and colleagues have been generous with book blurbs/reviews and I am hugely honored. Some of those dear souls are children!!! Kids, grandkids… joining in the journey! My Fiercely Compassionate [Rebel] Grandmother heart is overflowing! (And, yes, my tear ducts, too!)

Not simply because it feels good! It also gives those young people a chance to see their words matter and we’re all about that around here!!!

Here’s the thing, though. The virtual book launch is happening in the context of this moment in time! And we’re going to use that for a learning experience in the launch event! A big step in the direction of that place where YOU feel called…. where your deep joy and the world’s great longing meet. Just click here for all the juicy details…

Here’s what one of those book-reviewing Littles had to say…

I love this book! The lyrics (yes, it is songworthy!) are vivid and the paintings are fun and colorful. I know people of all ages will enjoy this.

Renae Sharpe, age 13 (Pen-name, used with Renae’s permission and the concurrence of their adults!)

And here’s a bit of what Renae’s Grandmother said:

What a gift! My youngest grandchildren explored the paintings, simply transfixed, while the teens delighted in the inclusive language. The use of the plural, “They” for Creator was not lost on them, embracing as it does a Creator who welcomes all genders…

For this moment, I’ll save Renae’s Grandmother’s name, and just include her initials! MD, MDiv, PhD

Here’s another peek… this photo is of a painting that was created intentionally for A Creation Poem… The Cardinal, toward your right in the dogwood tree, is a reminder of my Gramma Elsie who taught the 6 year-old me that Cardinals are our ancestors, coming back to check on us. (Just – you know – in case!)

ps.. here’s that link, again. We’re not goin’ back!!!

pps…tomorrow is Grandparents’ Day! Check out that link and get the coolest gift ever, for yourself or someone you love. Helping empowered women weave dreams into being! Love to have you at the launch, with comes with a hand-autographed book!

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“Just tell the story!”

Posted on by sue boardman

I suspect I’ll always hear that voice thundering in my ears. I was about 30 years old, and Walter Brueggemann was exhorting a room full of wannabe preachers!

I felt like I was being handed a terrifying thing I’d been seeking all my life! And, I feel even more like that now!

Maya Angelou put it this way:

There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.

Thus, the glimpse of a painting, above. She was a total surprise. Literally. And she didn’t begin to appear until I set reason aside and followed my heart. Months of under-layers disappeared under the biggest, scariest glaze of my life.

Well, almost disappeared!

Once everything got purple, I began to see things I had not noticed before! And, rather than putting new things in all that space, I brought forward what I saw.

Their name is Choice, Voice, and Sovereignty!

Frankly, it was terrifying. Especially for one who is only beginning to have access to visual processing!

It’s the Voice thing that brings them here, today, because this moment is feeling a whole lot like time for speaking out. For showing up with all of ourselves. For finding our authentic voices. And, if you’re at all like me, that may not be what you learned as a kid!

I had a chance to practice, yesterday. Yep, Social media! Somebody who thought I should say things the way they would, instead of the way I did. I imagine you can relate! And the whole inner debate about leave it up/take it down/walk away from disagreement, etc., etc.

Then, I walked down the hall, past the place where this 48×60 inch canvas hangs, waiting patiently to be noticed again. To be helpful!

And I left my post the way I wrote it. Not because I wanted to win… but because it grew out of the top part of the painting. The part that looks like a huge moon. The part that carries some of my deepest chosen beliefs. Here’s the whole deal…

The teal blue place, above their heart, is their voice. And their hands are part of my code for power. And, perhaps most urgently, in this moment, their heart is painted in the chakra-green of compassion.

And all of this – as you’ve realized – is happening in the context of this world, now. A context that perhaps even Walter hadn’t anticipated when he was helping so many of us claim our calling to tell the story.

Then there’s the other story I’m telling. The one for our Littles. All of them. The one of belonging and mattering. It’s very, very, very nearly done!

And that, dear heart, means book launch! Which feels like a whole lot of voice! Mark your calendar, please, for September 22. And stay tuned! It’s time to cause some Good Trouble, and you’re invited!!!

For now, though… grace, peace, and blessings!

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Meet Dr. E’s cousin, Fern!

Posted on by sue boardman

You know how sometimes you learn something new… realize one new thing… let go of one limiting belief… and everything feels different???

Well, that happened in me, this week!

But, before I tell you that story, I need to introduce you to a neighbor of ours, way back when I would have been a pre-K kid, if we’d known about such things in those days. Fern lived across the street from us in Pittsburgh. I liked her. And, she had a fashion thing going on that drove my mom nuts! Let’s just say that Fern hadn’t learned the same rules about what goes as my mom had!

In fact, Fern became code, in our family, for You’re wearing too many colors. Or, flowers don’t go with plaid. As in, Go try it again, Fern!

My recovery began gradually when I discovered Blue Fish brand clothing, much to my mom’s dismay. And made quilts with too many colors!

These days, I wander the world covered in paint. Intentionally! Today, a lot of it’s pink after some work with my #CuraArchetype painting!

Recently, I began to notice some new things. You see, there’s a whole lot of new going on! (Like the new book I’m about to launch and the two I’m already writing to follow it!)

And, I’ve been hanging out with my teacher/sister, Julie Steelman, and a whole bunch of women working on getting out there.

As you’ve probably noticed, I have this thing about context. And there’s been a whole lot of that coming from Chicago this week. And, in places I hang out, like the land of Intentional Creativity® there’s a whole lot of conversation about the rising archetypal feminine. We might even go so far as to say, She’s Risen! And, if we did, we might think that has a whole lot to do with context in this moment!

You do you!

Here’s the thing… in the midst of all that, I realized…

I am ready to be seen!

In fact, this particular Dangerous Old Woman is ready to be more dangerous than ever!

And I mean that in the way Dr. Estes did, when she talked about sheltering under the danger of a tree. A place where those gathered were safe. Honored, even. And, as far as I’m concerned, we need as much of that as we can get!

I am, inherently, an introvert. Between the challenges of 6 knee surgeries in 9 years and the pandemic, I got pretty comfortable at home. Nobody calling me Fern. You get the drift…

Except, I have things to say. Things to help change. People to support as they look for ways to set their SuperPowers free in the world. And a future to help protect for all our Littles.

Besides, I like bright colors! And patterns!

You, clever soul, have already realized why chartreuse ferns have just appeared in the #fleursavage #innerwilderness painting with which we began…

So, today I weeded the closet. Donated a bunch of things I thought I should have, but never enjoyed, to a church that operates a clothes closet. And ordered myself another bright denim jacket, which will also be delighted to become a vest/accessible purse. One with flowers and swirls and something that just might turn out to be a mandala! All of which should make it easier for Daphne & me to share!

Then, I hatched up an idea for a reading in a local bookstore, and asked some dear souls for book reviews. And I made a list of more exciting ideas! All of which – as you might imagine – involve some sense of being seen.

And, drum roll, please… I had fun!!!

ps… all that pink, above, is a path of sorts. A 6-petal rose. Wonder where it will lead???

pps… are you ready to learn something new… realize one new thing… let go of one limiting belief??? Or more??? Let’s talk! Just click here and the calendar elves will be delighted to hook you up with 30 minutes, my gift!

ppps… curious about Intentional Creativity®? Got dreams? Check this out… Abracadabra! I can’t wait to begin!

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When the way-back machine helps shape the future!

Posted on by sue boardman

True confession… I’ve been spending a whole bunch of time in (virtual) Chicago! Back when I was 10 years old, I was spending actual time there! Now I know more…

In August of 1968, the Democratic National Convention was in Chicago. My dad was traveling, as he was every week back in those days. I, as the oldest child, was in charge of watching the news with my anxious (Republican) Mom.

Dr. King had been murdered in April. Chicago experienced massive riots and protests which we, in the suburbs, experienced as cancelled school field trips, when the National Guard was camped on the grounds of The Museum of Science & Industry, and school buses were being turned over in the streets.

Bobby Kennedy was shot and killed in June.

Richard J. Daley, who was the very Republican mayor of Chicago from 1955 – 1976, was NOT amused. And he ranted a whole lot on TV. And sent more National Guard forces. VP Hubert Humphrey became the nominee for President, in a divided Democratic party, and lost the election to Richard Nixon.

What I remember most is being scared. Scared of the shootings and riots. Scared by my mom’s tears of anxiety.

I’m scared this time, too.

Not of what’s happening. The hope in this convention is palpable!

I’m scared because, this time, I know how much is at stake! Like the future of our Democratic Republic. The far too real threat of Pr0ject 2O25. And, the world all our Littles will inherit.

The neurological flip side of fear, though, is excitement! And I’m consciously choosing to go with excitement!!!

So, I put extra Good Trouble buttons in the pocket of my rainbow denim vest and went off to Physical Therapy yesterday, wearing my Chucks and pearls. And I made some new friends in the elevator and gave away all the buttons, including the one I was wearing.

I came home and took a nap. Then, I went back to the final steps of laying out my children’s book.

A Creation Poem… is my version of hope in the context of this moment. Of inclusion. Of mattering.

An antidote, if you will, to the poison of Pr0ject 2O25.

Complete with some really intentional art!

Here’s a peek you probably haven’t seen before… as our lonely Creator decides to create a human.

Here’s the thing… this world needs all of us using our SuperPowers for good. NOW! Much to my amazement, this book is one of mine. Another is helping people just like you claim YOUR SuperPowers and set them loose in the world!

I’m going to launch a group opportunity for just that – complete with paint! – in September. And, if you’re ready NOW, let’s talk about working together individually. Just click here and ask the calendar elves to hook you up… my gift!

Also, if you’re interested in reviewing an early pdf copy of A Creation Poem… please email me. I’d love your help in getting the word out, into this waiting world! suesvoice@gmail.com

ps… you guessed it! The power of a hand has appeared in my #fleursavage lotus pond! As above… so below!

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When really good hearing gets better!

Posted on by sue boardman

Do you remember standing in a line in the school gym, with an index card over one eye, trying to read the chart with the big E on top?

I do! And I did pretty well on the test. What I had no way of knowing was that I wasn’t actually seeing the letters. I was memorizing what the kids in front of me said! And it helped that I could hear really, really well.

My 4th or 5th grade teacher ratted me out. And I discovered that, with a pair of sturdy (read that ugly) glasses, I could see individual leaves on trees! And I could still hear really, really well!

What I didn’t know back then was how much our brains have to do with what we think of as seeing and hearing. Also, feeling… as in touch and movement and emotion.

Now, as the old story goes, I know more!

It was pretty strange for me, at first, to begin to hear the paintings whispering in my sleep, but I’ve gotten really comfortable with that by now. (Which, as you’ve probably guessed, is just as well since the walls are covered with a whole choir of whispering images!)

Another thing just shifted for me, though. I realized that all those voices – each in their own way – are actually my voice, filtered through various experiences and wounds and dreams. And I wouldn’t blame you if you might be thinking that I sound a wee bit like I’m headed for the place known as round the bend.

Instead, I’m headed for more fully me! And, as I move my fingers to make these words appear in the land of WordPress, I keep glancing up at a sign hanging above the door to the hall, across the room from my chair.

And our stories – yours, mine, all of ours – do matter. They are some of the filters through which we experience the world. Through which we form questions and create things.

I had a really big experience of that today! The first pdf layout of my new book appeared in my email! And, even though I chose all the words and created all the art, it was still a surprise in its externalized form! A whole, if you will, instead of a bunch of individual pieces. (And, yes… there’s more work to do!)

My dear friend, and first reader, Natalie, put language on what I was feeling!

It feels like holding a newborn infant!

And, it does!!! A whole, separate, unique individual with multitudes of ancestors and traditions, complete with a whole batch of needs… and, frankly, what feels a lot like expectations!

Final choices on fonts, and re-sizing some art, and rounding up reviews and all the things that we book-parents do…

And, no… it’s not To Kill a Mockingbird. (Though it might grow up to be!)

What it is, in this moment, is the very most I have to offer to all the Metamodern Littles growing up in our world, now… and to the adults who love them.

Complete with some invitations to listen deep and imagine!

My dearest hope is that it will help us all travel the mountains and valleys of this world, and to make space for more and more of us to feel at home and to hear our own voices in the midst of the din!

ps… the painting at the top is a glimpse of the cover art for the book-baby!

pps… this glimpse of a painting is shorthand for the absolute best thing I know. I’m ready to share… and we have to start with ourselves!!! Just ask the calendar elves to hook you up!

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When the Muse speaks in another voice…

Posted on by sue boardman

Yep! You guessed it… she’s doing her Critic imitation, just to see if I’m listening! And, frankly, it took me a bit to remember that, when it really matters, the Muse will use all the medicine in her basket to help! Now seems to be one of those times!

This glimpse of the painting on my easel will give us a place to start.

My heart is over the moon thrilled.

The Muse, who always has my back, knows that there is more thrilled to come, if I just keep going… and do the scary things.

Which, frankly, feels a whole lot like life!

I woke, this morning, resolved. And quaking! All the puzzle pieces are there. And, more truth than I’ve been able to claim before. And, still, we need more paint.

Not different. Just deeper. You see, she and I want others to hear the message of the Cura Archetype and claim their own inner healing healer! And that, dear heart, seems to mean my picking up the brush again and taking the risk of more paint. More clarity.

The thing you glimpse just a wee bit of, off to your right, that looks something like a rainbow, was the game-changer! It’s her stole. A symbol, in the land where I was raised right, of being willing to show up, intentionally, with stories of healing and hope. And, it’s a familiar symbol around here, borrowed from an old quilt pattern.

The triangles form what’s known as the Flying Geese blocks. These are Liberated Flying Geese, in the worldview of Gwen Marston, whose Liberated Quiltmaking convinced me I could be a quilter! And, just in case you haven’t heard, wild geese are a Celtic symbol for the Holy Spirit who, in my heart, is utterly liberated!!!

There are lots of other symbols on this canvas. Things that my heart-eye discovered in the intentionally swirly, messy, random space of the under-layers. Symbols for the most cherished things I’ve learned – and use – on my own intentional path of helping hearts, and families, and the world in which my grand-teens are growing up, to heal.

Much of that healing work involves three things…

Choice. Voice. Sovereignty.

Owning our ability to choose.

Using our voices in service of our choices.

Claiming our sovereignty in our lives. Sovereignty over our chosen journeys.

And – fair warning – sometimes that means doing new things. Some not-the-way-we’ve-always-done-it things! This, for me, is a moment like that! You see, this is where my painting is at right now. A place that could reasonably be labeled farther from done than before! And, frankly, my inner good student is a bit anxious about it!

Here’s why… there’s a thing, Friday. A big event kind of thing. And in an ideal world, my painting would be finished before it begins. Frankly, that’s somewhere between really optimistic and not very likely!

What is true, though, is that I’m claiming what this painting was meant to teach me. I’m more ready than ever to share that learning in the world! And, it isn’t just my head that’s learned. It’s my heart and soul and my inner Fiercely Compassionate Grandmother. (She, by the way, is the one who has tears rolling down her cheeks, even as we’re typing!)

And the Muse just gave me a high-five!

For now, though, rest. Then, food. And Joan Baez, because freedom helps get the Good Trouble done!

ps… ready to claim yourself as your medicine basket??? Let’s talk! Just click here and the calendar elves will hook you up with 45 minutes, as my gift. You’ll want a cuppa, paper and markers, if they’re handy. (Hell, eyebrow pencils will work!) Oh, and a bit of red thread… real or imaginary!

pps… the book launch is even closer! Stay tuned!!!

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Cleaning Closets… real & metaphorical!

Posted on by sue boardman

There’s a room in our house known as The Dressing Room. The builder, in 1962, would have told you it’s a bedroom. And it is, in the sense of a place for welcome guests to sleep. Mostly, though, it’s my closet. And, no… I’m not taking a picture. (Yet!)

It’s also a metaphor. A power-full one in this moment! You see, I’m sorting. Intentionally!

And, yes… Daphne is modeling part of the change. Let’s talk denim vests. Or, in my world, purses! You see, most days I need at least one hand for walking. Sometimes, two. And that makes purses complicated. Also, my shoulders are not fans of the backpack option. So, for a while now, it’s been denim vests.

They have lots of pockets. And they’re happy to hold my omnipresent Good Trouble buttons! And blue or black denim goes with all the internalized rules I’m only beginning to be conscious of.

Here are a few…

  • Don’t call attention to yourself. It isn’t safe.
  • Don’t wear too many colors at once. You’ll look crazy.
  • Everything should match your shoes.
  • Blending in is more important than being comfortable.
  • And, my personal fav, Preachers don’t…

You, clever soul, have already realized that I’ve been editing the rules for a while. And, in the context of this moment, I am making very conscious, intentional choices about nearly everything.

So, I went hunting for a statement denim vest/purse for this moment. (Tye dyed jacket from Etsy. And about an hour to cut the sleeves off and fray the edges.)

And, when you get right down to it, it kinda does go with everything!

It also starts conversations! Conversations which often conclude with me reaching into one of the handy pockets and giving away a spare Good Trouble button. I suspect John Lewis is smiling, too!

And, yes… my magical new vest goes great with Chucks and pearls!!!

I only get one vote. (Well, hopefully. That’s far from a sure thing in Georgia just now!)

I also have choices. And one of them, introverted as I truly am, is to wander around my ‘hood looking like an openminded, engaged Fiercely Compassionate Grandmother, often spattered with paint!

And, I’m planning for an actual guest in a couple weeks, which means that I’m going to need to find the bed that’s in there somewhere, under spare weighted blankets and things to give away. I’ll never be a minimalist, but I am trying on the notion of being an Intentionalist!

Don’t you just love words???

My relationship with a current #wip painting is a lot like this. Less deciding what I want to have appear on the canvas. More seeing what I see and allowing viewers to see, too! Here’s a peek…

Officially, this one is becoming my #CuraArchetype painting. Which feels a whole lot like noticing that…

I AM my medicine basket!!!

Which is a bit like walking through the door in the back of C. S. Lewis’s famous wardrobe! And this, my friend, feels like a really good time for that! (Chronicles of Narnia…. The Silver Chair )

If you decide to head out on a similar path, wave at Puddleglum for me! We really are living his story in this moment!

ps… don’t know Puddleglum yet? Click here for the punchline!

pps… ready to claim yourself as your medicine basket??? Let’s talk! Just click here and the calendar elves will hook you up with 45 minutes, as my gift. You’ll want a cuppa, paper and markers, if they’re handy. (Hell, eyebrow pencils will work!) Oh, and a bit of red thread… real or imaginary!

ppps… there’s a book launch coming up! Stay tuned!!!

Sue Boardman, Certified Intentional Creativity®
Color of Woman Teacher & Coach