We got our first family dog when I was two years old. His name was Charley Brown the Beagle Dog and what I remember most about him is that he was soft.
My mom remembered that trying to potty train a puppy and a two year old child at the same time was, shall we say, not quite sane.
I’ve been watching dogs, and learning from them, pretty much ever since.
One of the conclusions I’ve reached is that a big difference between dogs and people is that dogs don’t spend a lot of time fussing and fuming about the way things “ought to be”.
I have, occasionally, been known to do a bit of that fussing and fuming.
We’ve had more than a bit of a drought going on in the Southeast U.S. (I say this with compassion for all the folks in the middle of the U.S. who have been having quite the opposite experience.)
My baby collard greens have been crispy around the edges and there has been much wrestling with stubborn garden hoses involved. And a bit of playing drinking fountain for tiny green dragons.
Yesterday, however, it rained. Stormed, actually. A lot. And I was out picking up art.
I did a bit of muttering about what might have been more convenient for me. The dogs just got wet which, being Newfoundlands, worked fine for them.
Lunch, on the other hand, was delightful, if more than a bit damp.
Then, the painting known as the Muse was apparently off duty last night as my dreams were way more nightmares than inspiration. (There are reasons for this but they’re not all that relevant just yet.)
Our internet and cable service have been out almost all day, presumably having something to do with yesterday’s monsoon.
Still, I had things to do.
I started with the next layer on a painting, which may become known as Our Lady of Flowering Earth (Visits Italy!).
Then I sorted buttons for the finishing steps of my first mixed media work.
All of which was useful, but left me restless and wishing I was napped out with the dogs.
Then I decided a bit of Feng shui was in order.
To the best of my understanding, Feng shui is the ancient Asian art in which energy and intention come together. (Which sounds rather like Intentional Creativity!)
In a very simplistic sense, the practitioner decides what she is trying to accomplish, generally in the areas like health, relationships, and abundance.
A compass and a dust rag generally come next.
Then, following a whole lot more tradition than I quite grasp yet, it’s time for rearranging art and accessories and so forth to make space for the desired outcomes.
Here’s what I do understand. It’s all about energy. And my favorite part of all the Feng shui I’ve learned is that it takes more energy to ignore things that aren’t working than it does to adjust things to get them to work better!
Today, lots of sketching of things I couldn’t quite manage alone. Serious re-arranging of books so that they’re now in parts of the den reinforced by their topics.
All with frequent breaks for gluing buttons.
It’s hard to say what will happen next. I just know that I’m spending less time muttering about what’s wrong and actually moving toward where I’d like to be.
I imagine the dogs are proud. Especially since I gave them wild salmon trim for dinner! I suspect I’m going to be clinging hard to this way of being for the next couple of weeks.
In the meantime… more dog brushing. It’s good Feng shui, too!
As for me, I’m tending. The garden this morning. Paint drips a bit later. Me, as often as possible. A combination of intention and attention. Which is, when you think about it, not a bad way to deal with change. (Just in case you might have some, too!)
I’m way beyond grateful that my inner Observer is also whispering in my ear.