What is the Secret of artistic Success?

I heard a very inspiring talk at a church event this week, and I wanted to pass it on to you.

There was an old man, a wise man. Perhaps the wisest man in the world. He was seen by the entire world as sitting at the pinnacle of success in every aspect of his life.

A young man decided to go to the old wise man and ask what the secret to success was. Wouldn’t we all like to know that one?

“What is the secret to success?” he asked.

The old man smiled and said: “hatif tiwohut srwok seidad.”

“What?” said the younger man. “I don’t know that language.”

“Yes, you do,” the old man replied. “I’ll tell you a story, then you must go off for a year and think about it. AT the end of the year, come back and tell me what you’ve learned.

“There are two young men I know of,” the old man recited. “Both want to be doctors. One has read every book ever written about medicine, watched every film ever made, and talked to every doctor he could find. The other studied hard, and in every way he could, prepared himself for his training as a doctor thrugh learning and public service.

“Now go an ponder,” the old man said.

The next year, the young man returned, discouraged, to sit at the feet of the old wise man. “I can’t figure it out,” he sighed.

“Tell me what you’ve learned so far,” the old man said in a kind and patient voice.

“Prepare yourself in all things?”

The old man shook his head and smiled. “That is important,” he replied, “but it is not quite the secret of success. I’ll tell you another story,” he said. “Come back in a year and again, tell me what you have discovered.

“Two children were with their mothers, shopping for the holidays, when they saw a homeless family huddled in the cold under a bridge, beneath ragged blankets, with no food, and a tiny fire for warmth and light. Both children asked their parents what the family was doing sitting out in the cold.

“The mothers explained sadly that the family had no home to live in. They had no money to buy food, and no holiday gifts to look forward to.

“The first child went home, and sat before the Christmas tree in his living room. He looked at all the presents with his name on them stacked beneath that tree. He thought about what it must feel like to be a boy with no presents on Christmas, and he grew very sad. He ate his Christmas dinner, and thought about how awful it would be to have no food to eat.

“The second child finished shopping with her mother. When they got home, she went immediately to the kitchen, and began gathering things. She went to her parents and asked them to collect all the Yule gifts they had for her. With their help, she made a big pot of good wholesome stew, a loaf of dark bread, and a lovely pie. They gathered fresh fruit and nuts from their garden, and brought the food and the gifts back to the bridge, to the hungry family shivering in the cold. They covered the family in warm clothes, fed them, and sat with them sharing stories and smiles late into the night.

“Now go and ponder” the old man told the young man.

Another year passed and the young man returned. “Act with kindness and charity? Give?” he told the old man when asked what he’d learned.

“That is a key to the secret of success,” the old man said. “You come closer. But I must tell you another story.”

He told another story, and another and another, year after year. Ten years elapsed, and the young man returned for his yearly visit frustrated and still unsuccessful at figuring out the secret of success. Every year, the old man said he had found a key, or come closer, but the young man never quite found what he sought.

The old man always smiled, told a story, then said “Go and ponder.”

Then one year, the old man said something new. He asked the young man, “all the lessons you’ve learned from my stories, son, have you put them into motion in your own life?”

The young man thought long and hard before answering. “Some of them,” he said truthfully. “Not all. I could do better.”

“Then go this year, and put all the lessons into practice. Do that which you have learned. Go, and ponder.”

A year later, the young man arrived with a glowing countenance and a springing step. “I know the secret of success!” he proclaimed joyfully.

“Tell me,” said the old man.

“Faith without works is dead,” the young man said.

The old man just nodded silently and smiled. “Yes.”

Books and stories say things just happen to you. Synchronicity is wonderful, and it is very real, but don’t you think if things are lining up in your life along every step that it might just mean God is helping you out because you are helping yourself? God sent you here, he didn’t come himself. No doubt he could have accomplished with a look what it took you a lifetime to do, but he sent you. That means that no one else in all the generations of time can do what you are able to do in this moment. He Chose You!

if we depend on serendipity to propel us through all the big things in our lives, we become like a ship floating on the ocean, just waiting for the wind to catch the sail, rather than turning to find the wind. We have no captain at the helm directing our path, ensuring we get safely to the right port of call. You could pull a Christopher Collumbus, which isn’t a bad thing, but it wasn’t what you set out to accomplish.

It’s not enough to just dream. You must act upon your dreams, do that which can bring your goals closer to your physical hands. To live with unrealized dreams is to cheat yourself, and kill the wings of your soul and spirit.

Faith without works is dead.

We had fun figuring out the anagrams, but you could have heard a pin drop in that room when we finally got it.

It’s so easy to go through life day by day, going to work, taking care of friends and family, meeting obligations, doing life. We come up with these great ideas, and shove them in that mental closet, promising ourselves we’ll get to it someday. Last summer, I realized I might not get a someday. It’s something I’ve known all my life—people die—but facing neurosurgery kind of laid it out in black and white before me and there was nothing I could do but walk up to it and accept it. So don’t have faith that someday will happen, make your someday happen.

It’s so easy to feel selfish if we steal time for ourselves to put toward our own dreams. It’s selfish to hole up in your cave on a Friday night and write the novel you hope will get you your first publishing contract, rather than going out with your girlfriends to help get your best friend over that guy she just broke up with. But the publisher you want is now accepting manuscripts in your genre, and if you really work hard, you know you can get it in to them. But the more you put toward the art, it feels like the less you give to your friends and family.

Guess what? If they are real friends, they’ll see your dedication for what it truly is, and they’ll believe in you and your vision. They’ll be ringing your doorbell bringing you dinner so you don’t have to get up from the desk and go cook when you’re so deep in writing the climax you can’t get out. And if they’re REALLY good friends, they’ll add your favorite candy or treat to their care package, because they know you need the boost. A good friend doesn’t mind picking up the slack in your life when art calls. And yes, it’s okay for you to ask them for help! That’s why we have friends, to share, to help, to love and to rejoice with when you do finally get that publishing contract. You’re friend will feel accomplished to for having helped you, so don’t deprive them or yourself of that victory.

Before you say I’m nuts, and life doesn’t work that way, know that I’m speaking from experience. Surround yourself with friends who believe in your artwork. Sometimes other artists are best, and sometimes not, everybody is different.

And before you say it, yes, good friends are hard to find.

I’m lucky enough to have a few who have stuck by me through life, art, and all of the accompanying challenges. There are those who decided that I wasn’t worth waiting around for every time I got to a point where I had to put my art and service before my friendships. But we’re each called to something different in life, called to do different things on this earth. The truest friend will understand that, and know that I’d drop everything in a heartbeat if they need me, and vice versa. A true friend understands my phases of frenzied creation, and I don’t have to worry about giving myself completely to the art. Those true friends will be there waiting when I get back.

I love my friends and family very much, and my dedication to my callings in life never diminishes that love. It just means I have a fine line to balnce on between devoting myself to what I came to earth to do, and devoting myself to helping those I love. When the two things come into conflict, it’s very hard on me, but I know that the true friends, the ones who love me and understand me, will still be there when the storm of creation blows over.

Being an artist is not selfish. Giving time and sacrificing to create is not selfish, it is answering the call of that dream, that vision that God planted in your soul. Being an artist is not the hedonistic, starvation-ridden, fruitless lifestyle the world makes it out to be. You can be an artist and be responsible. You can be an artist and be “normal.” You are an artist, and you are still subject to the laws of humanity. :-d It is the law of nature that a healthy baby bird will spread its wings and try to fly. If it does not, it will eventually die of starvation or as prey to a predator. A healthy human baby will learn to crawl, then get to its feet and practice walking, then running, dancing, leaping. Artists have the same urge within them to exercise their talents of creation. If we do not practice creation and strengthen our fledgling wings or spread our full-grown wings regularly, they will atrophy and become crippled and unable to bear weight. Those wings are your ticket to freedom and success, so have faith that God gave the to you because you are supposed to use them. It is not enough for the hawk just to know he has wings. He must unfhurl them and fly to hunt and eat. If he does not, he dies. Feed your spirit. Have faith that God knew what he was doing in giving you this all-consuming urge to create.

I pray you have people inyour life who understand your calling to create, and who support you in that. I pray that this aspect of art is not a struggle for you, and that you can accomplish that high-wire balancing act with grace, agility and joy.

Namaste,

-Sassy

PS. Thanks go to cam Walker for the secret of success story and the anagrams. I paraphrased, and I hope I didn’t kill it. :-d Thanks, Bishop Walker!

Taking the Plunge: No media this week

And you're thinking... what as she, nuts?

No, just a procrastinator. In the Artist's way, Cameron directs you to spend one week without the influence or distraction of media of any kind... no books, TV, or anything else you use to distract yourself from your artwork. The goal is to use this time to focus on internal home improvement if you will. It's time you should spend getting to know yourself without the world outside tainting what you see in the mirror.

Okay,, so this is my--um--sixth or maybe eighth week of the Artist's Way, and she urges you to do this in the third or fourth week, but hey, I put out the warning before that me and time management around these sorts of things just don't make good bed fellows. So here I go, better late than never. No facebook or myspace for a week, no TV (I usually only watch it for news or documentaries anyway, but no means no.) No books (this will be by far the hardest for me. No internet browsing to catch up on the latest blog posts from friends or reading newsletters and articles. I will be checking emails and work-related things out of necessity, but that is it.

It's Springtime, and I have spring-cleaning goals for this medialess week, if that is a word, which it's not--but I'm claiming creative license. :-d

First goal: Spring clean and home improvement on the outside. I'll be re-decorating... on a budget. Much as I love snuggling with Kodak, it's getting hot, and the fur is driving me nuts. I know, I know, the dog rules the house and it's called "Fur-niture" for a reason, but, well, we need to compromise a little here. I allow myself one "splurge" per month in this Artist's Way journey. Last month, it was an IPod. This month, it will be a beautiful new ensemble for my bed--mint green, purple and gold with beautiful designs you can run your fingers over, and soft mint green sheets and embroidered pillows. And no dog fur!!! Kodak gets a new bed, too; and I'm actually going to put effort into making him sleep in it!

Hey, cut that out... I hear you snickering as you read this. I'll still spoil the Bear rotten, but he's going to have to find somewhere else to leave his fur, because I'm done sleeping with it! :-d

Right. We'll see how long this lasts. It better last until Kodak makes money of his own... dog claws and fur and nice coverlet for the bed do not go together well.

But I have wanted to decorate since I moved in, and I just have put it off to concentrate on other things, and because my money was going to other more pressing issues. I'm trusting my intuition that this is something I need to do; so I'm going to bribe friends to help me put pictures on the walls, and I'm going thrift shopping... combing through the second-hand Holly wood shops to find those one-of-a-kind treasures that will take this place from a house to a homemade masterpiece. Greens, purples, warm golden and blue tones, and the bathroom in purple, silver and lavender ... plus everything will have exquisite texture. A feast for the senses. I love making my home a place where you can smell good things when you walk in, see beauty, taste wonderful food, touch soft, unique fabrics and elegant artwork, and hear laughter, love, music and godliness. I do love color, even though I can't see it. It's hard to explain. I still have very vivid mental pictures of color, and love mixing and matching shades in my head.

My second goal for this week of no media is to give my internal neighborhood a good clean-up. Intense Yoga, and starting a ten day fasting cleanse will get my body back on track. I have appointments for acupuncture, crystal-therapy, and herbal consulting this week. I'll go spend time serving in the temple, and the only material I'll read this week aside from work-related things will be Scriptures. All that extra time I spend catching up on the news and browsing the internet will be much better spent in Scripture study, and doing Yoga.

i'll post this week and let you know how it's going, but I won't read comments or anything until next week... Who knows what will emerge along the way? I've attained the goals I started the Artist's Way with (a few very big ones), so now it's time to set the bar even higher, and keep moving forward. Hopefully this is the next big step.

A Need to Serve: Public service and art

I love volunteering, fundraising and serving in the community; it's one of my life's passions. I think it's one of the foundations of life--not just charity, but service. Giving of your money is very important, yes, but giving of yourself and your time is a completely different feeling. I've served in a wide variety of settings, from children's cancer organizations to homeless shelters, Yoga and wellness centers, hospitals, art classes for the disabled, animal welfare programs, blindness advocacy organizations, etc. If I have one regret in my life, it's that I haven't done more. The more I serve, the more I want to do. I'd love to travel overseas someday and do what I can for third-world countries. Whether I'm spending time with animals or people at shelters, offering a shoulder for moms when they just need to break down and cry about the latest chemo treatment or surgery, or if I'm singing to spread hope and raise money, I find so much joy and inner peace in serving. It empowers me--helps me understand that I can do a lot in this world; but it also reminds me that no matter how hard my life gets, it could always be worse. It makes me so grateful. I can cultivate empathy, joy, love, forgiveness, hope, courage, strength, humility, and fearlessness in myself and in those I serve. Service isn't just something to put on your tax deduction list, brag to your friends about, or feel good inside about (those are not good reasons to serve, and they'll get you about as far as the first time you put your fingers into a rotten grapefruit at the food bank.) I serve to learn, teach, grow, understand, give, receive and overcome. Serve because there is work to be done and you can do it.

You learn so much. There's a depth to giving of your time and talent that reaches into every part of your life. You hear homeless people tell their stories, the old folks at the nursing home love to reminisce about scenes from their lives that go along with the song you are playing... The feeling you get knowing that you've brought hope and new resolve to a family whose child is stricken with cancer--all of these things are proof that there is so much good in this world.

Once in a while I have to bow my head alone and cry when the things I've witnessed are just too heart-breaking, but if I can make some small difference, then I can keep picking at the lock until the door opens wide. Sometimes the work is back-breaking, frustrating, I feel like I'm getting nowhere, but I've always found in the end that the work was well worth doing. I've never once regretted serving, never found a better way to spend my time. I'm really busy, and making time to serve is often hard, but I've never regretted foregoing a few other activities in my life to go down to the center and teach a Yoga class for senior citizens. They can use the things we do in Yoga to help themselves get up if they fall, and Yoga will minimize injury when they fall. It may be hard to teach them in the class, but what I'm doing will help them and their families for a long time to come. Taking a few minutes out of my day to give a free singing lesson to a homeless child means that I'll get a little less of my own work done, maybe, but it's so worth it to hear her starting to believe in herself and leave her fear behind. I can't put a roof over her head single-handedly, but I can bring her some joy, and show her that she's loved, and she has wonderful gifts to give the world even though she may be penniless.

So why am I blogging about public service on my Artist's Way blog? Because the work that I do directly affects my art. The stories of people I meet form the basis for the songs I write; the experiences I have change my viewpoint, as I survey a finished piece. Everything you do in your life affects your artwork, I'm learning. Life is a circle, a balancing game--everything affects everything else. (Hey, I wasn't going for the Circle of Life song from the Lion King, but cliche... touche.)

I've given money to charities, and I will continue to do so as long as God graces me with the means, but for my own benefit, and for the benefit of those lives I can touch, I'll always give of my time and talents. When I was working my way through school, that's often all I had to give, but in the end, it was enough to accomplish what needed to be done. Sometimes I never thought I could do the things that came my way that needed to be done. I struggled, not believing that I could do anything to help, but knowing that I could not just sit still and do nothing. Ultimately, I learned the essence of the phrase "Where there's a will there's a way." But I learned a much more valuable lesson in the process. I learned that each and every one of us has something the world needs.

I've also been the recipient of service. More than once I've had to swallow my pride and reach out a hand to the world for help in one way or another. The world is full of angels and kind souls, who have reached out to me, and given me so much. When I was younger, I often felt very helpless. I received so much, but felt I had this huge debt I could never pay back. What could a blind woman do? What could I do? I didn't have money to give, or much of anything, I felt. As I began to accept the gifts God placed in my life, and as I learned to heed my artistic voice and God's role in my life, I began to understand that I did have a debt, and I did have the means to repay it. I had a voice; I had faith; I had wisdom and insight and courage; and I had love. What more did I need?

Life is give and take. We each give, so that in our time of need, we may take. I have taken, now I'm giving, and I'm sure things will circle around again. Be sure that when you are able, you give, so that when you are in need, others will do the same for you.

Your homework: Go serve. Find an organization in your area that needs your time. there's tons of them, so don't say "I don't know any." Then, make the time!!! Work, school, family--hello! Serving is a priority item on your to-do list. Sit down with your planner, and really look at your jam-packed week. If you really squeeze, I promise you'll find an hour or two in there somewhere--is everything on your priority list Really a priority or is there a little give hiding in there somewhere you just can't admit to? :-d

Serving your community is serving God. Get the family involved! Take a day away from soccer practice or school and go help teach art classes at the battered women's shelter, or go play with the animals at the local Humane Society. Go to the food bank and sort vegetables or pack boxes for them (they always need extra hands.) Serve dinner for the homeless; they don't just need you at Christmas. Don't just whine at dinner about a sad news story you saw... find a way to help! (A few of you reading this may want to pinch me for that last statement.)

These things may seem transient, short-lived to you, but if you can take a homeless child's mind off the fear and the pain for a few minutes by helping him color a picture, or you can sit with an aged woman and squeeze her hand when she talks about her days as a young girl overseas... You're helping. You'll know it deepin your soul, you will feel it when the work you are doing is helping. Putting food on a plate at the soup kitchen, cutting your hair for Locks of Love... you don't see the end result of the work you do, but do what you can in the moment, and put the rest in God's hands.

Then, apply that principle to your artwork. Do what you can in the moment, and put the rest in God's hadns. His hands are much bigger than mine, and can hold so much more. When my art enters His hands, I feel this incredible weight come off my shoulders, and I know it will flourish and be more than I could ever make it alone. When I give my art to him, which can sometimes be very hard and frightening, it always turns out for the best.

How do you let go and "give it to God?" What public service have you done that inspires your creativity and your art? What makes you feel God's presence in your life? Share, so others can grow from you.

doing the dream--God's footprints in the sand

It's past midnight on a Sunday night. I just got home from watching chick flicks (Jane Austen bookclub namely), at a friend's house. I've had a busy week, but that's no excuse for not keeping up with my Artist's Way stuff.

Time to check in after a little over two weeks of Artist's Way work: how am I doing?

I have to say, this stuff works! Have you ever read The Secret, by Rhonda Byrne? It is one of those trendy self-help books that claims it can solve all your problems by teaching you "the law of attraction." What you put out comes back to you, basically. A friend introduced me to it a couple years ago. since I'm into the Tao and Yoga, I read it for purely amusement... or that's what I thought. Then, as I pondered what I read, and started really researching and thinking on the Tao, and upon lessons offered in my Yoga journeying, I began to see the truth and the wisdom in the words. Put a thought or a wish out there, and you don't need a gini to make it happen. What you need is positive thinking, courage to believe, and conscious work toward your goals. IT doesn't make every dream come true on your time table. (You are not in charge. God is.) But it does happen. If you pray, it is the veritable answered prayer. If you call it the law of attraction, it's your change manefesting itself. Whatever you call it, karma, reflections of thought... It works. .

Before you write it off, try it and just watch what happens. Don't expect the universe to bow to your every whim (nothing about life would be a surprise then, and things would get really boring). But the things that have happened since I started the Artist's Way are just too coincidential to be all chance. Or, as Skif reminds us in Mercedes Lackey's Arrows of the
Queen (great read by the way), "Once is chance, twice is coincidence, three times is conspiracy." For me, these prayers have far exceeded the conspiracy stage, and it's just on to plain miraculous. Only God could dream up this stuff, and make it happen like this.

A good friend called me this week, and told me about an Irish fair happening this weekend. I went online to check out the band list and see if there was anyone going I could network with, new or old. Just by chance, a band I used to sing with was going to be there. I was excited to catch up with them, but I really wanted to meet some new musicians--(drop a few demo CDs and cards... make nice...). It was just chance that I walked in to the LA Irish Fair, and there they were. We literally ran into one another! We haven't seen each other in well over a year. They invited me to reunite with them for a couple songs, and i was a bit unsure of it, since I haven't done their music since the autumn of '07, but once we got onstage together and got the vocal blend going, it felt like I had never left. All the old music came back with just a little memory jog, thankfully. Our voices sounded great together in spite of the time and the sound system, and even though there were carnival rides and bagpipers nearby, you could have heard a pin drop in our pavillion during the last verse of each of the acappella songs we did.

I've been offered a small business opportunity that's a once-in-a-lifetime chance. I can't talk more about it yet, but this is the chance I've been waiting for, and I'm going for it.

So many other things have happened recently that have just brought my mind to bear on how much things change for the better when you stop the mad rush of chaos and actually pay attention to your life and what you want out of it. I wasn't necessarily thinking of performing again with The Muses, but I have been wishing there was a bigger Celtic presence in Southern California, and thinking a lot about how much I miss playing the music I love so dearly. Low and behold, the Celtic Arts Center has a jam session every week just a couple miles from my house! They have a Gaelic choir, and tons of other opportunities I've been missing. Just goes to show what happens when you leave yourself open to possibility.

We let ourselves get so caught up in what I like to call the "what-the-world-wants" insanity. We rarely stop, turn in, and listen or respond when we do hear something. Those things we want, those conversations we feel we should have... we become so good at putting them off for a better time.

If surviving cancer three times has taught me anything, it's that there will never be a better time. That old proverb of don't put off tomorrow what you can do today! You'd better believe it, and heed it, and please, act upon it! When I was told this past summer that I'd have to have neurosurgery to remove three brain tumors, I felt like the world had come to a screeching halt. I was shattered inside--scared, angry, sad... I didn't know if I'd get another chance to do all the things I still wanted to do. I put those feelings aside, and just did what I had to do in that moment. I just fought the cancer, loved my family, lived for nothing but the moment I was in, and treasured that moment, good or bad. I've never been one to take life for granted, but I'll never forget the lessons I learned this summer, or the things I learned about the people in my life. IT took living in the moment to a whole new level for me, and made me see some things about myself and those I love I hadn't wanted to face. I find that when I live like that--open to possibility, reaching for the things I want--life goes into full bloom. I'm not the greatest at this; I lose sight of what's important quite often, but when I do things right, I'm always amazed to watch what happens.

I've always had my mind on what's ahead, what could be, what I could have done better. They call this vriti in Yoga. Our mind is like a two-year-old, or a colt in the field. Mind likes to run everywhere and get into everything, but it rarely likes to sit and stay in the moment. It's planning or remembering, never just doing the dream. I finally reached a point where I grabbed the little hellion and said: "Si'down, mind, and shut up! Live right here, right now!"

So, what would happen if you took that dream of speaking another language fluently, and acted upon it, instead of sitting on it. What about that portrait you've always wanted to paint, or that instrument you've always liked but never tried to play? I bet it looks and sounds a whole lot better when your butt isn't smothering it. We all have these things we want to do, but there's always some reason to keep using them as mental cushions instead of making them realities. Don't you think those dreams are there for a reason? Is it so hard to believe that those dreams you have held for so long might be things God plantedin you and expected you to nurture and grow?

Hello!

He would not have put them there if he didn't want you to take care of them! Dreams are like flowers, or fields of wheat. You sit on the seed, it's dark under there! It's not going to do anything but wither and die under your backside! Give it water, room to grow, and light, and you can feed yourself for months on the fruits of the field, or walk in your garden for hours with the smell of God's plans for you in the air. How cool would that be? Just a suggestion! Get up off your dream, and do it! Today I was sitting in Church, and a missionary got up to speak. He reminded us that living life is like going up a down escalator; if you stop, you go backward, and you watch the things you want drawing farther and farther away from you. You have to work twice as hard to get to where you want to go.

He read us the footprints poem. A man is standing on a beach, looking back at the footprints he made in the sand throughout his life. For most of his life, there are two sets of footprints in the sand--his and God's. Then the man points to the places where there is only one set of prints in the sand. He turns to God and says: "During the times when I was lowest in my life, there are only one set of footprints in the sand. Why, when I needed you most, would you abandon me and not walk with me?"

God says: "I did not abandon you, my child. I love you. Those are the times when I lifted you in my arms and carried you."

Amen.