Art Project::Watercolor And Snow Themed Meetings

Winter is a game changer in Winnipeg. We complain about how cold it is but we feel proud about how we press on with our everyday lives no matter what. It is cold and we adjust, we put on boots, drink hot beverages and plug in our cars so they will start. We embrace it. I wanted to do an art project at work that reflected winter and I decided to to go with Snowflakes.this year. I started by spending two theme-related sessions leading up to the art project.

The first program involved talking about the cold weather we are experiencing and then moved on to reminiscing about what they recall about winter fun and work. I asked about, shovelling snow, going sledding, skating, riding snowmobiles! I heard several people wishing they had taken the time to build snowmen. We talked a bit about global warming and how shorter warmer winters might beof  some benefits and there also might be some problems.

My second snow themed activity involved more individual and small group visits. I looked up a lot of pictures of close-ups of snowflakes on our department laptop. Little videos showing how a snow crystal grows proved to be particularly interesting. We talked about how many arms a flake has and how awesome they are. We speculated if it was true or not that there are no two snowflakes the same. I particularly like using the information and pictures on http://www.snowcrystals.com

For Art Day I wanted to use watercolor techniques which is something we don't do very often. I like tape resist projects and used strips of painters tape over water-color paper. The paint was inexpensive paint dry disk sets. I attached the paper to the table with the tape. It kept the projects from sliding around and at the same time, it gives a nice kind of matting around the art. We used bigger brushes and I encouraged the use of lighter colors to suggest a snowy day but any color was fine.

The only really note worthy change was that I rotated the paper as the session progressed. That made it easier for people who don't have a lot of reach with their arms and to encourage people to cover that whole page with color.

The pictures dried quickly and then we had the fun of pulling off the painters tape to reveal our designs. I like to back art with poster board pieces to show off the work, make it look a little more finished and to make the paper sturdier and lie flatter.

Our Artists were quite thrilled with their final results.

When Our Goals are No Longer Right for Us

I have spent this evening fighting to input info into a database program for one of my volunteer recreation activities.  I think I played with it for over 2 hours before I came to the conclusion that it wasn't me doing something wrong.  The program is glitchy. Truly Glitchy. Why did it take me so long to give up?

I reported 2 bugs in the past few months and eventually they got fixed and I was feeling happier about how the program was operating. When I used it today I got frustrated and I kept trying, again and again, thinking "what if" I do this or remove and re-add the troubled option? Nope. I tried rebooting my computer. Nope.

It was late at night before I decided it was out of my control and nothing I did was going to change the outcome. I would need to wait until the glitch actually gets fixed.
Why did I waste so much time?

I think being stubborn and maybe a little obsessive has actually worked in my favour and gotten me through a lot of hard times. But NOT Always.

One of my blogging friends recently wrote about changing an important life goal after 9 years of frustration. She questioned her readers "Is this giving up?".   It is a hard question. She is going to keep working on the needed physical skill itself so her readers agreed that it is not giving up but simply working towards her goal in a less frustrating way.

Why are we so hard on people who are giving up, or changing their goals and dreams? Why are we so hard on ourselves?

When I was a child, I spoke like a child, thought like a child, and reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up my childish ways. 1 Corinthians 13:11

Change is continual through our lives and is not restricted to the coming of adulthood, Sometimes as adults, we need to accept that change in a necessary part of our lives and sometimes a sign of personal growth

 If something is no longer your passion, no longer useful or perhaps just not a priority anymore why do we stubbornly hang on to it?  It must be a little different for everyone. Could it be a habit that we feel secure in? Could we be afraid of humiliation and being seen as a failure? Maybe we are scared of that unknown step just beyond us into the future and fear that that step will take us into a worse place than we are in now.

What I believe is wrong is procrastinating so long that fear of that change leaves you waiting in a place that is negative and damaging. It gets in the way of your hopes and dreams and perhaps the needs of others around you.

Lately, I have been watching Marie Kondo on Netflix. She is famous for bringing her organizational strategies to people who are struggling with their physical spaces. Her approach is to take individual items and ask if they give you Joy as a way of deciding what to declutter. If an item is no longer wanted, she says to thank the item and then let it go. Watching this show I am finding that her method is much more charming, practical and hopeful than I expected.
If millions of people are benefiting from her method for decluttering their belongings how many others would benefit from taking such a kind approach to their life choices?

Set those goals and ambitions but don't forget to keep reevaluating your choices to be sure they are still right for you.  If your thoughts about what you are doing give you JOY you are on the right track.  If you decide this is no longer something that you want to do or be, let it go. Release it and be ready to make changes but don't forget to be kind to yourself and be thankful it for what you have learned along the way.

Your past choices and experiences have strengthened you and made you ready for what is yet to come.