Using Today As A Catch -Up Day

| Sheree
Amber Royal Serena Estelle Musgrove Mason Melgram, Nana Amber, circa 1955

It’s what I do right. When I’ve been absent from the blogs, websites and zines, absent from the public realm, then I take a day out of my schedule to catch -up with them all. To post something, to let my readers know that I’m still here. Still alive and kicking. When I get my bum in the seat and force myself to write, something comes along to fill in the blank spaces. And today is no exception.

I’ve been dancing around cyberspace, updating my spaces with words and reflections and memories.

So for now I’d just like to point you in the direction of Studio Notes over on Substack where I’ve just posted about my nana Amber. For some reason, she’s been on my mind this week, and there at the smell of brown bread from the kitchen she comes back fully to life. Check it out and if you feel inclined, add a comment or even become a subscriber, free or paid.

All is welcome.

Summer Summer Summer

| Sheree

Mid July has come and gone and the summer holidays are nearly upon us, and my life do I need a rest. So rest I will be doing. Well resting from the public eye. It might seem as if nothing is happening here because I might not be posting as often as I’d like. But let me tell you, behind the scenes I’m still beavering away. But I’m fixing now to rest. Rest into my practice that hold me at times of upheaval and trouble.

So I’ll be walking, dog walking, writing, journaling, dreaming on paper, yoga, mindfulness, good food and drink and catching up with friends. What I’ll be sharing here are images. Images of the good stuff and living. As I have to remind myself (and you maybe also) that it’s all about the joy. Or it should be and if you’re not feeling it then make plans to get yourself some. JOY.

End of June Reflections

| Sheree

How do you practice self-care?

Visual Journal May/June 2023

As we near the end of June, I near the end of my current visual journal. This beauty has seen me through some ups and downs these past two months, as I’ve navigated major life changes and shifts.

Being able to keep coming back to the page in order to work out my shit, my internal shit, before I meet all the external shit is a gift. Is a massive gift I take for myself in the name of self-care.

Before visual journaling came along, I did keep a journal but it was maybe a lined notebook sometimes plain paper and pen. Simple and effective and got me through a lot of life’s changes.

But when 2015 came along and my life changed forever, words on the plain page would never be enough again. Could never be enough to express all the turbulence and upheavals within my life. I needed more and I also needed to feel safe.

So paints and images and quotes and collage and photography and text came together, merged and played off of one another to provide the time and space and safety I needed to have an ongoing, developing and becoming conversation with myself.

I feel blessed now to know I get to do this / {BE} this daily. I give myself the opportunity to get off this merry-go-round of life and take deeper breaths, while being in communion with myself, checking in on myself, making sure I’m okay and if not what I need to do in order to get back to being okay. But all in good time and a few visual journal spreads later.

This is one of my self-care practices which I am truly grateful for.

I’ll be sharing some more spreads, images and reflections on this process over the summer as this practice is multifaceted in terms of all the goodness of offers me. I gain insight, clarity and love in the present moment of the practice. But I also gain a lot of joy in the looking back over pages, reliving the feelings within my body of the practice. I also gain pleasure from sharing this practice with others.

Check out further posts to come.