It was a Very Good Year: Lucia's 2014 Surprises

As I prepare to create Visioning® for 2015, I am struck by how everything on my 2014 Visioning Board (a 4-part collage) came true. What really struck me were the surprises, so I want to share those with you. In the "grab what grabs you" phase of shopping through magazines, I often have something specific in mind. Other times, I follow my intuition and select images because I want more of what I think they represent in my life. But sometimes, life throws a whole new meaning at me as the image unfolds into reality over time. 

Lucia's 4-part Vision Board 2014

A cluster of flowers blooming in the upper right hand section signified that I wanted more cut flowers around the house and was looking forward to my iris garden due to bloom in the spring.What I didn't know was that I'd take up water color painting again, after a long hiatus (inspired by seeing a Georgia O'Keeffe exhibit) and that I'd be painting mostly flowers (mixed bouquets as well as iris from my own garden). What a joy that has been! 

Other surprises had to do with Health and Balance. A woman is meditating and beneath her another woman is floating in a pool. The words Balancing Act...LIFE...well, well, well... WATER (Don't) think tank appear next to these images. While creating the collage I was thinking: "I need to meditate more to balance a lot of left-brain work I've been doing". (I am a long-time meditater.) I thought the meditating woman meant I'd be doing more sitting meditation. 

Unbeknownst to me at the time, 

the answer to "meditate more" was in the floating figure. I was already using a physical therapy current pool at my local gym on a regular basis, so the woman in the pool illustrated a conscious choice to continue pool exercise. What I didn't realize was that my exercise in the pool (which I have all to myself) has become some of the best meditation I can remember. After I've done my exercise routine for physical strengthening and flexibility, I allow my body to move in any way it wishes. Through this spontaneous dance in warm water, I often enter a trance state of "no thought" which has become a wonderful form of meditation for me.   

Another surprising outcome grew from the image of a young woman sitting on suitcase.

She spoke to me about a need for more recreational travel in my life. I wasn't sure where I'd be going, but I did notice that her luggage consisted of old vintage style suitcases like the ones we had when I was a kid. Not the canvas bags on wheels I travel with now on planes. 

It crossed my mind that this woman might be waiting for a train. Lo and behold! In the summer I found myself on a train from the central coast to visit friends in San Francisco! My first train ride in many years. Although the upper left portion of the 4 collages was dedicated to Vacation Travel that I had already planned (Cabo San Lucas in December) with pictures of pools and tropical lushness, the summer train trip was unexpected and quite a surprise.

These serendipitous happenings show how we get previews of coming attractions by following our hearts and intuition. 

2014. It was a very good year, indeed. As this photo of a theater marquis announces in a photo on my studio wall: You are the writer, director and producer of your dreams. 

Looking forward to Visioning® 2015 and watching it unfold. 

Join me in creating your 2015 at my upcoming workshop: Visioning: Ten Steps to Designing the Life of Your DreamsSunday, January 25, 10 AM - 5 PM at Ruby Dragon in Morro Bay, CA. To register, call (805) 772-1100 or email rubydragonrocks@aol.com

On Sunday February 1, 11 AM - 6 PM,  I will be conducting a workshop in Southern CaliforniaAwakening Your Intuition: BodyMind Healing and LIving from Higher GuidanceKindred Spirit, Claremont, CA  To register call (909) 626-2434

Visioning Self-Appreciation

It's the day after Thanksgiving. Last night I spent time with my ranch family. While I no longer live at the ranch the most important part of that experience remains. I am now part of a family that includes Grace and her sons Brian and Scott. Because Scott showed up with 3 friends, my friend circle just got larger.

The thing I appreciate about letting go is that it opens the way to new experiences. I've spent the past few years playing with letting go and know it is safe. That doesn't mean it isn't hard, or that it doesn't take time or care, but it does mean that it is safe to proceed without ________.

This holiday, I'm appreciating that I have let go of my 2nd job at the ranch, automatic Mommy-izing in the face of authority, an Inner Critic who runs amok, and most recently, my denial of perfectionism. 

Perfectionism? Who knew?

It is easy to get caught up in the holiday rush and focus on what we do not have: time and other resources being at the top of the list. In fact, I  have often found myself making a vision board in a desperate attempt to have, have, have. But the more I focus on what I don't have, the more I don't have it. This can only lead to frustration and hopelessness.

I have written many blog posts describing why Visioning(R) works. But the only point that I need remember is that Visioning(R) is FUN!!! Collage-making shifts the focus from the mind to the heart. Who hasn't talked a child into cleaning their room or eating their veggies by making it a game? 

This season, I appreciate my willingness to let go. The things that I have let go of are markers of how far I have come. They brought me to a great new home in Paso Robles and this lovely week-long pet sit in my old stomping grounds. Hey, I've let go of my fear of giant guinea pigs!




What are you appreciating about yourself this season???


Lucia Capacchione knows how to throw-down a super-fun workshop experience. Give yourself the gift of you by showing up at her latest event: 

Visioning®: The new year with Lucia Capacchione

Sun. Jan 25, 10 AM - 5 PM. $100 (materials included)

Ruby Dragon, 875 Main St.,Morro Bay, CA 93442

Advance registration required. To register: (805) 772-1100

CEUs are available for therapists, mental health professionals, etc. 

Contact Lucia directly about CEUs and additonal cost for 6 hour credits.

Reach her at: cjea@charter.net

or by purchasing Visioning: Ten Steps to Designing the Life of Your Dreams.

Dorothy Segovia is a certified Vision Coach who loves blogging and writing and writing and blogging. Read MORE  about it by visiting her groovy website.

The Business of Visioning(R)

Lately I have felt as if I am living the manifestation of one of my past collage images. The image depicts an empty room with an expansive wood floor, a fireplace and a bank of windows. It wasn't until I set my new handwoven orange basket on the fireplace that I remembered the image. So I reviewed my collages until I found it. Turns out the orange color was in the overall warm tones of the picture. (Top image in collage below)

Vision Board 2004/2005

I know as a writer it is important to review the daily journaling I've done over the past few months. Doing so helps me know what is important to my life right now. It helps me decide if I want to continue in a particular direction or not. It tells me if there was a resolution to a problem, or if  I need to take an action step.

Reviewing my collages was an emotional journey through my Visioning(R) life. When I found the image I was looking for, it initially made me sad. I still had images of an office worker receiving recognition from her colleagues, yet that hasn't manifested in my own working life. This led to a review of inner child work 101:

Have I been giving myself the recognition I crave or am I still seeking approval from others?

On the other hand, reading the heading of my business card on that same collage made me smile. The business card phrase "move right through life's little obstacles" was the idea for the title of my book: My Body, My Car: How to Coach Your Self Through Life's little Accidents.

Here is what Lucia has to say about the business of Visioning(R).

We can talk about the magnetic power of one's heart's desire, about the nonlinear nature of the pathways of the heart, yet we must be prepared to use the left-brain process of putting one foot in front of the other. There's a place for the slow, decidedly un-magical side of life: filling out forms, scheduling the calendar, and keeping track of things in a personal day planner or computer database. If you can't handle the mundane, the chances of your dealing with the magic of creativity are going to be pretty slim. You may get your dream, but if you aren't grounded in the procedural part of things, you may not have a vessel to contain it. Before the master musician can surrender and let the creative self play its divine music through her, she has studied and practiced for years and years.

 -- Lucia Capacchione, page 152, Visioning: Ten Steps to Designing the Life of Your Dreams.

Prior to becoming a certified Creative Journal Expressive Arts facilitator, I was a highly creative person, but I was a kite without a string. After graduating in 2004, I began my new  relationship with accounting. Step 1 before step 2. Don't analyze the process, trust the process.
Yes, the nine-to-five sometimes makes me crazy , but I am able to finance my creative projects.

So, if you find yourself stuck at the manifestation waiting station, maybe it's time to shake up your future dreams by visiting your Visioning(R) past.

Awaken Your Intuition using Structural Constellations at Lucia's next workshop, October 11, Morro Bay, Ca. 

Dorothy Segovia is a writer, certified Visioning(R) coach and author.  Her website is www.writeinside.com. 

Three Panel Vision Boards: Part Two

Last month we learned how about a new vision board technique of 3-panel collages.

(Click here to catch up on Part One.)

Turns out my symptoms were telling me that I was worried about time and growing older. Where I wanted to be was to have downtime to sleep, sleep, sleep. The Solution image of the two horses symbolized embodied freedom. Non-dominant hand journaling with the images yielded these nuggets:

Left side, Panel 1: Where I am at:

Image of the woman carrying the pot.

“ I feel uncomfortable. I'd like to set this pot of stuff down and just deal with one thing at a time.”

Right side, Panel 2: Where I want to be.

Image of the woman lying down.

“I feel talented. I can experience my dead past all day long, and have it direct me home where it continues to dominate in TV watching and extreme reading and overeating.

(Auggghhhh!!!)

Middle, Panel 3: the Solution.

Phrase Soulbringer.

“Stand still with yourself and straddle the duality of being truly alive and present in this magical and temporary moment.”

I worked with the collage and insights for 2 weeks on my own before taking a Mat Work session with Lucia. In her handout for the certified coaching training classes Lucia describes the Mat Work technique.

“Mat work can be used in conjunction with Visioning®, because the method is based on structural constellations. Structural constellations involves making intuitive selections of mats and colors, choosing images from collages, identifying issues, places, people, things and also elements in dreams.

After selection the mats are placed in relation to each other in the area representing the Knowing Field, the basis of Bert Hellinger's work. This method states that we draw information not normally accessible to the left brain by using colored mats. When we place mats in the knowing field, then stand on them, the mats allow body wisdom to flow through us.”

A synopsis of my mat session with Lucia

Lucia had me select mats to represent:

Myself, the obstacle, the solution I wanted (not necessarily the solution on the collage), the bridge to the solution, resources, an image from the collage itself. I chose the larger horse from the middle panel.

I placed the mats in relation to each other in the knowing field. At Lucia's direction, I stepped onto the mat that represented myself. (I had placed the obstacle mat first, then covered it with the mat that represented me.)

I realized that when I was standing on the obstacle, my body was pulled down and it was all I could see. My head was dangling. My body was all crunched. I couldn't see my resources, and couldn't see the horse, which symbolized my outcome. I also couldn't see the bridge to the outcome.

I slowly moved through the mats at Lucia's suggestion, breathing and reporting to her how my body felt. At one point, Lucia began doing voice-dialogue with me as I stood on each of the different mats.

On the bridge mat, my body felt like crying and allowing myself to be sad. When Lucia interviewed me in this position, I said that I was sad that I was a finite human being with limitations. That the world isn't really magic. That I still had to do the work, which brings manifestation into reality.

When I was interviewed from the resources mat, I had an impatient, almost eye-rolling energy. I explained to Lucia that if “Dorothy” would just accept the obstacle she could move forward with her dreams. The obstacle itself had led her to her current 12-step support group, but now Dorothy was worried about needing a 12-step group. This energy was big, and kept waving it's arms repeating “enough with the drama about BEING in a 12-step program.”

Once I removed this obstacle, the mats re-aligned. I placed the resources mat below my Self mat. In front of me I placed the horse mat, who was pulling me to the Bridge that was next to my outcome. Now I felt as if I was being pulled naturally towards my goal, and could enjoy the ride instead of struggling and fighting for my dream.

It has been 2 weeks since my mat session. I continue to journal with the images as I am guided. At this writing, many of the images are pointing to insights that were brought up during my mat session.

As a Visioning® coach, the biggest mistake I've seen clients make is not taking the time to explore and understand their vision boards. They get bored, or become afraid of what an image may symbolize. They want to get to the dream without doing the work. If you find this happening, the added element of mat work allows complete embodiment of the images in a much deeper way.

To find out how you can get a mat work session, 

or to contact Lucia about her certified training programs visit: www.luciac.com. 

Lucia often works remotely or can direct you to a facilitator near you.

Dorothy Segovia is a certified Visioning coach, musician and author of My Body, My Car: How to Coach Yourself through Life's little Obstacles workbook and music CD. Read more of her blogs at www.writeinside.com.

Visioning Step 10: Celebrate the Dream Come True

"There's no way to know when it's the right time to do this step. You'll have to decide. It depends upon how your dream unfolds and at what point you feel the need to start celebrating. It may take a few weeks, months or more, depending upon the complexity of your heart's desire. The creative self has its own internal rhythm that gives us what we need when the time is right. Dream your dreams, do your work, but have patience and faith as well. Turn the results over to your creative self and trust the process. And remember that it is a process; there's no end point. Celebration occurs when you feel like acknowledging yourself, your creative self, and others who have helped you in your journey." -- page 161, Visioning: Ten Steps to Designing the Life of Your Dreams.

These are the concepts in the above paragraph that catch my attention: "feel the need to start celebrating," and "celebration occurs when you feel like acknowledging yourself."

Photo from ladieslotto.com

I generally thought of celebrating as "the cookies are done, now we can enjoy." But throughout the Visioning(R) process, I have found all sorts of reasons to celebrate. 

1. I dared to name what I want in my life.
2. I committed my dream to collage.
3. Following the journal steps in each chapter gave me the feeling that I am moving towards my dream. 
4. Turning my dream over to my creative self allows me to reach my dream in ways I never imagined.

Finally, when a dream manifests I know I'm going to collage another. And another after that.
Yes, achieving a goal is fantastic, but celebrating the steps make the journey even sweeter.

Dorothy Segovia is a certified Visioning(R) Coach who dreams big. She is the author of My Body, My Car: How to Coach Yourself Through Life's little Accidents book with music CD. She can be reached at www.writeinside.com.

Visioning Step 8: Reinforcing the Dream

This phase of Visioning invites you to simply contemplate your collage. You do this by looking at it as well as picturing it in your mind's eye. This is how you reprogram your mind to believe in the reality of what you truly want. You are undoing the programming we've all received that says: believe only in what you see, feel, hear, taste, and touch in the present moment or what you experienced in the past. page 138, Visioning: Ten Steps to Designing the Life of Your Dreams

The key idea in Step 8 is the great undoing. That is, you are taking a stand for your heart's desire that flies in the face of outdated beliefs of where you think you should be in your life. The undoing is releasing self-judgment, outer criticism or comparing yourself to anyone. Colorado life coach Tama Kieves has this to say about the importance of undoing in her July Mojo message newsletter. ..A life of vision means you are following what you cannot see– but know. Following your heart is radical. It’s the commitment to follow a juice not of this world. Your life may look like less than you imagined, but do not be deceived. You do not yet know how to imagine. If you want to live a singular life, you cannot compare yourself to other. I suggest you take back your freedom. Take back your focus. Take back where you place your attention...

Reinforcing the dream by spending time with the completed collage seems deceptively easy. Yet, this is where many dreams fall by the wayside. Because the work phase of actually creating the collage is done, it is easy to look at the collage for a few days, then jump over to the next collage.

But contemplating and burning your dream's images is an act of creation. Activating the feeling of living your dream is serious play. Allowing yourself to become immersed in the collage images sets the stage for the images to come true. By spending time with your dream a minimum of 3x a day, you are telling the powers that be: yes, I'm ready for my dream to become reality.

Dorothy Segovia is a long-time dreamer, and author of My Body, My Car: How to Coach Yourself Through Life's little Accidents. www.writeinside.com.

Visioning Step 4: Composing the Design

When I am facilitating a Visioning (R) workshop, this is the step where I end up taking someone's glue away.

After all the photos are collected, after the words are in place, now it's time to place the images together on the page. This is designing the composition—and because we are the designers, there is no wrong answer!!! But designing and gluing are two different steps. Here's what Lucia has to say,

In putting your Vision collage together, you'll let your creative conscience lead the way. You'll mix and match individual elements, fitting pictures with words to find meaning. Like Alice in Wonderland, things will mean what you want them to mean. The significance you assign to the pictures will be personal and specific to your heart's desire. When you have the right match, your heart will say, yes. When the pieces of your dream find each other, you will feel it in your body. - page 91, Visioning: Ten Steps to Designing the Life of Your Dreams.

Ann Beazer explained it like this in the following excerpt from her letter to Lucia.
(Minor editing for continuity.)

“In the visioning session you led in June 2001 when I first met you-- I recall being so thrilled with my collage - something I had never done before - because it was a pleasure to look at.  That was a break through beyond my inhibitions of drawing or painting.   I realize that I still feel the same today having made dozens and dozens of collages since. Since the invitation to attend that event was from someone who leads a nutritional organization for women I had assumed our June 2001 evening would be about health; not so for me.   The focus phrase of my vision board was My New Future. That evening I immediately decided that I wanted to learn with you - so I took details of your CJEA accreditation and was with you in Cambria in March 2002.  The rest is history as they say!  I have never looked back. I love teaching Creative Journaling and liberating people from all the rules and releasing them from the boredom of writing all the time.”

The wonderful thing about this letter was that Ann actually put Lucia's logo in her collage (image at the top left) before she knew what the Creative Journal logo was.



Ann Beazer's collage: My New Future.


Click here to see Lucia's logo at the top right.

Step Four is about allowing your heart's desire lead the way to the design of your life.

Ann Beazer is a Certified Creative Journal facilitator and Visioning (R) coach.in the United Kingdom.Her core workshops are Creative Journal, Work with Passion, Visioning and Living Well. Each workshop is supported with complete sets of materials to use during the workshop and afterwards. Contact her at ann.beazer@me.com

Dorothy Segovia is the Visioning Coach blog manager and certified  Creative Journal facilitator and Visioning(R) Coach. She specializes in collaging your way through obstacles. Her how-to book with music CD, My Body, My Car: How to Coach Yourself Through Life's little Accidents, is available at www.writeinside.com.

Visioning Step 2: Visioning Euphoria

Visioning® Euphoria by guest blogger Kate Dana

With Lucia Capacchione, PhD, in San Luis Obispo CA, October 2012.

I have this collage with me today.

In October 2012 I attended a one-day workshop with Lucia Capacchione, PhD, best-selling author of 18 books, including VISIONING®: Designing the Life of Your Dreams. Under Lucia’s guidance, several attendees and I followed the 10 steps of Visioning® and ended the day with huge posters of our heart’s desire (“dream goals”). Mine was based on creative work, travel and living in a Spanish-speaking country, all of which I am doing now. Visioning® works. I was convinced when I read Lucia’s book, but meeting her and practicing the method together confirmed me as a believer. If you have a chance to attend one of Lucia’s workshops, I strongly recommend it.

Starting the 10 Steps to Visioning® on a sunny Saturday in México

Occasionally, life goals need adjusting. While I still have my original Vision board with me, when I find parts of it feel “stuck,” I create a smaller board to focus in on what needs a boost. Additionally, I have learned if you are not specific enough with your Visioning®, you will get what you ask for, like ordering mayonesa for your elote, when you really wanted crema. It still tastes good, but it’s not exactly what you want. Realizing this, I spent a sunny Saturday afternoon working Lucia’s magic. Just starting the process of Visioning® made me happy: when we stir energy around us – our lives, our desires, etc., – the kinetic energy is almost like a natural euphoria.

Midway through Visioning® – creative energy feels great

I have the 10 steps for Visioning® from Lucia’s workshop here with me in México. I follow them one by one, from brainstorming to finding images and text to assembling everything into a collage. One of my favorite of the 10 Steps for Visioning is Step 2: Searching for Images and Words, or the designers research phase, which comes as no surprise since I have graphic design experience. Step 2 begins by gathering pictures, captions, and phrases from magazines, a personal collection of photos or other visual sources. The emphasis is on what experience you wants to create in life rather than just images of things to be acquired. The mantra is: Grab what grabs you. Lucia urges creators to keep an open mind while gathering as many relevant images and words as needed. If other great but unrelated pictures surface, set them aside to be used in other collages. As mentioned in Step 3: Focus on the Vision, some people gather too many images, creating a giant pile that feels overwhelming to sort through. The best solution for this is to ask specifically, “Does this express my innermost wishes, my fondest dreams?” If it doesn’t, there may still be a reason it “grabbed” you; find a large envelope and stash these images or words for a future collage, where they may be relevant.

Collage detail: “Grabbing what grabs me”

When gathering words and images, I sometimes feel persuaded to collect positive phrases or motivational quotes, partly because I am fighting off what Lucia calls the “Inner Critic” voice, the doubts we occasionally hear in the back of our minds as we pursue anything. Mentioned in Step 5: Explore and Find Order in Creative Chaos (from the 10 Steps to Visioning®), these doubts can come from ourselves or others around us. I find it most important when this happens to stop and write a “Q and A conversation,” asking myself what I want and why, responding honestly and free of fears. As with most situations in life, if you doubt them, you rob them of opportunity. If you believe, they have a much stronger foundation to stand on, with your focus and faith as support.

Visioning® to Go, in a vibrant “Méxican pink” envelope

While Lucia recommends a giant poster, I don’t have the space, so I create a smaller piece that folds in half or thirds, like a card or brochure. I find having my Visioning® collage with me is like carrying a mantra or prayer. This small item keeps me in check. I refer to it when I wake up, throughout the day, and before I go to sleep so the vision is fresh in my mind. Eventually, the desired outcome begins to happen. Sometimes slowly, sometimes quickly; signs and events reveal that the Visioning® is working: it is real. We all have the power to direct our own life, we just need to say how or what we want, and be specific.

Visioning® collage: Inspiration. It’s all around us.

My Visioning® collage turned out great: colorful, organized, and specific to what I am focusing on: all very much to my liking. I can already feel the changes I want happening. Gracias Lucia por tu Visioning® y por su información. Todos somos de gran alcance en su interior.

Guest blogger Kate Dana is a mixed-media artist and travel writer studying Spanish and teaching English in Jalisco, México. Since 2009 Kate has been studying Spanish, creating art and traveling. She is inspired by the music, food and history of Spanish-speaking countries and has enjoyed visits to Spain, the Dominican Republic and México. Visit www.katedana.com to read about Kate's travel adventures.

Kate is also a 2012 graduate of International Teacher Training Organization in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, where she earned a Certification in Teaching English as a Foreign Language. For more information visit www.katedanateaches.com

Visioning: Celebrating the Journey

While the phrase, “enjoy the journey” trips off the tongue quite nicely, the enjoyment can quickly turn into a traffic jam if you feel that your unmanifested dream is taunting you from the collage. Big dreams mean big-time investment in releasing internal road blocks. Gratefully, if you are following your vision, the answers are a journal entry away.

I live in a safe and sacred home in Ventura. 5/26/2012

 

Last week I found myself beginning Chapter 10 of Lucia's book, Visioning: Ten Steps to Designing the Life of Your Dreams. Chapter 10 is celebrating the dream coming true. Oops. I'm still in Morro Bay, dutifully applying for full-time work in Ventura and the surrounding areas. I looked at the journal exercises which all had to do with acknowledging myself for going for my dream. I toyed with journaling anyway, imagining that the dream came true, but that is actually discussed in Chapter 8, in the Writing by Heart exercise. This brings up an important point: reviewing our work.

Reviewing our work is the same as appreciating how far we have come. Looking back at my 6/5/12 journal, I found this entry prompted by Writing by Heart, #2, page 135. DH stands for the dominant hand; NDH, the non-dominant hand.

DH: Dear Patio Table and Chairs, who are you?

NDH: I am the seed of laughter and enjoyment.

DH: Why are you in my collage?

NDH: A strong, fenced, nurturing outside space is vital for your inner life.

DH: What qualities do you have that I need to realize my dream?

NDH: Strong frame to set your tools on, to rest, to meet with friends and to work.

DH: What do you want to tell me about realizing my dream?

NDH: Light filled intention is the way to your dream. Let go of each minute and flow with the good feeling stream.

DH: Thank you so much. I really, really appreciate you being here. Please write me a poem or prose from your lovely, lovely self.

NDH: The Patio Prayer

Come close my child, come sit in my heart.

Would you not find comfort and peace here?

Be with me, be with me even if you are weary and lost.

Be with me in the sun to quench your thirst.

I am always here, my love.

DH: Thank you. I need and love you.

This entry actually did turn into a song entitled The Patio Prayer.

During this review, I realized that good dreams take time. It took 10 years to move to Morro Bay permanently in 1994, after I discovered this area in the early '80s. The surprise was that I arrived in town as a beginning songwriter.

While I am hoping that Ventura won't take that long, my work is to enjoy packing, gassing up the car, smiling at the other driver's and to remember to take snapshots of the scenic views. If I'm being prodded to “hurry up and move already,” then I know the Critic is trying to hitch a ride. Review page 109 in Lucia's book to ditch this naysayer, pronto!

One last thing. I realized this week that there are two smiling women on my collage. One is seated inside. One is sitting outside with her eyes closed, facing the sun. (That image's non-dominant hand voice yielded a different song.) Both women are smiling—happy to be where they are.

Guest blogger Dorothy Segovia, is a certified Visioning® Coach and author of My Body, My Car: How to Coach Yourself Through Life's little Accidents, featuring an original music CD. www.writeinside.com

Come hear Dorothy sing The Patio Prayer at the free concert and book signing on
Sunday, November 18, from 1-3pm at Coalesce Bookstore and Garden Chapel in Morro Bay, CA. 

Visioning a New Studio

This Visioning® story is from Ann Beazer of West Sussex, England.

Ann is a graduate of both the Creative Journal Expressive Arts certification training and the Visioning® coach training. Her dream was to have a studio at her home for conducting workshops and working with clients.

1) BEYOND MY WILDEST DREAMS

I must say that the manifestation of my dream has far outweighed my expectations and I am so delighted with the outcome! It's a beautiful space and everyone who has entered has commented on the sense of light and space and the peaceful atmosphere.

2) THE JOURNEY OF A DREAM

I am well aware that the fulfilment of any dream is an 'inside job' and I have had a very real opportunity to 'practice what I preach'.

The focus phase for my vision board in January 2009 was 'Workshops - 'less physical and practical effort' and was accompanied by the BELIEFS 'if only.... but I don't think that could ever happen, I can't see how, it's impossible.'

In August 2010

I made another vision board, this time the theme - 'A Purpose Built Studio'. What had changed? My BELIEFS had moved on to - 'Wow why not build one?

It's crazy but worth considering'.

At times I was very impatient (I envisaged an opening party picnic outdoors in June!) There were also times when I thought the way forward would be blocked (the planning authorities) and then frankly I wouldn't have to take responsibility for MY dream.

However the longer I waited for things to happen the more my BELIEFS were evolving. I found that I could not escape the hunch that this was the right thing to do though apparently crazy from a rational perspective. I really learned again that each vision has it's own rhythm and impulse.

3) YOUR DREAMS

Your dreams also have their own life and energy: they do need nurturing to stay alive. DON"T DESPAIR if your dream hasn't yet arrived, the timing is often not what we would ideally like. It's in waiting that our belief systems are aligned and clarity emerges. Do revisit your past dreams - I am sure that you will be encouraged and you may well be surprised to see what has evolved.

4) COMMUNITY OF ENCOURAGEMENT

Ultimately the new studio is not primarily a building but a centre where people can meet each other, move on, liberate themselves from the status quo (if that's what they need to do), and create a new future. I count it an enormous privilege to have met so many beautiful caring, thoughtful, generous people who have dared to tap into their intuitive wisdom and create their own future. We so need to encourage each other to be who we are.

5) FREE

My Intention for the studio is summed up by the name ELEUTHERA, which is Greek for FREE.

Here is my declared intention:

Eleutherea

A space where we are free to

Be ourselves

Slow down, muse, refresh

Appreciate our gifts and talents.

A space where we are free to

Live and think creatively

Share our enthusiasms

Play and just have fun.

A space where we are free to

Listen to the inner whisper

Acknowledge suffering as life's teacher and

Feed our souls with truth.

A space where we are free to

Welcome new hopes and visions

Make new beginnings

Discover choices often hidden from view.

A space where we are free to

Practice gratitude

Take time for wonder and joy

Encourage one another on life's journey.

GOETHE has the final word

Whatever you can do

Or dream you can do

Begin it....

Boldness has Genius, Magic and Power in it,

Begin it Now

www.annbeazer.com

Visioning(R) All in the Family

Claudia Hill claudiajeanhill@comcast.net Creative Journal Expressive Arts Facilitator & Certified Visioning® Coach. Claudia has used Visioning® with her family for the past 3 years. They get together on New Year’s to create their collages. Recently, she used Visioning® as an activity for her daughter Jenna’s baby shower, which Jenna then wrote about on her blog. “My Mom and sisters threw me a baby shower while I was home. All I have to say is THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! It was so great to see all my family and old friends!As guests arrived at the party, we did an activity where each person had to rip a picture/phrase out of a magazine that described a wish they had for me. We then went around the room and each person introduced and shared their wish. It was a really fun activity. Unfortunately, no one got to see the finished collage because I put it together later that week. So here it is!” Collage from the guests wishes: Jenna’s wish for her baby: "A happy family: The Mom and Dad swinging their child & 'Create Outer Order and Inner Calm:' I thought the flower represented that."

Great baby shower idea! Thank you Jenna and Claudia for the posts.

Claudia's earlier Visioning(R) posts are below: Family Visioning® blog: Click here Empty Nest: Click here

Living A Creative Prosperous Life

by Guest Blogger Dorothy Segovia

Dorothy is graduated from the Creative Journal Expressive Arts program in 2004 obtained her Visioning ® certification in 2007. She teaches workshops at the California Conservation Corp. Her public workshops focus on Voice Dialogue, dream work and movement. She is currently producing her musical Fire! and completing a music CD.
She can be contacted at (805) 259-5727 or http://www.writeinside.com/.

I was excited to attend Lucia’s October 2010 Visioning® workshop because it was time for a new vision. Typically, my focus phrases have to do with how I want to feel, more than a specific manifestation.

My focus phrase was I am Living A Creative, Prosperous Life of Love & Joy.

I spent time working with the collage journaling with the images and doing movement. Putting my body in the position of ‘being’ an image and allowing my self to move around the room reveals spaces where energy is blocked. Breathing into the movement or gently holding the position opens me to a new level of awareness. It’s a very subtle, yet valuable part of my collage work.

My favorite image is the Creative Self in the center of the collage. Asking the 4 basic creative journaling questions yielded the following insights:

“I am Download Dorothy. I am grateful to see you realizing that I live on the breath because the breath is in & out, out & in until death. You can’t lose me or use me up. Be happy.”

Because I’m used to a constant flow of new ideas, I tend to get bogged down. It’s easy for me to start things but sometimes hard for me to finish. I like the fact that in the above right of the collage are products of my creativity. This has helped me focus on what projects need to be completed.
The most surprising manifestation so far was the Money Covered Apple on the left. This manifested about a month after the workshop. I was helping a friend move and decided to be responsible for her electronics: a DVD player and laptop. When we got to her new place I asked her where she wanted me to put the items. She looked at the laptop and said she had upgraded to a new computer and did I want to keep it?

Of course I said yes. An Apple ibook with a program called Garage Band was just what I needed. Now I can do the preliminary recordings of the last song for my CD.

Creative journaling gave me the Apple instructions:

Reach out and pluck the fruit that is yours for the allowing.