Writing in my journal and painting are the ways I meditate. I recently sat to “meditate meditate” for five minutes and “received” the image of a dog chasing its tail. Could this is what it looks like to chase one’s shadow — or to be chased by our shadow self?

We all have a shadow self. It’s is the part of us that we don’t see or don’t want to admit we have. Like the dark side of the moon, it remains a mystery until we become aware of it enough to embark on a “personal shadow adventure.”

Learning to recognize when our shadow self is active can dramatically impact our lives.

Before painting, I sketch the idea. It’s important to know that it all fits on the page!

“That which we do not bring to consciousness appears in our lives as fate.” ~ Carl Jung

If our shadow self snaps at others when we’re cranky or annoyed and we become aware that’s what’s happening, we might be able to soften our responses — or apologize once we realize it’s happened.

There’s more that I don’t know about shadow selves than I do know. Lately, it keeps coming up in my awareness in the form of questions.

We’re each unique — and there’s a “boat-load” of unique individuals on Earth today. I believe we’re here for a reason, and the reason must be HUGE! Why else would there be so many of us?

If only we knew why! The reason could lie in the shadow self of our collective consciousness.

Last autumn, I awoke to a booming (I MEAN BOOMING!) voice in my head saying,

“EVERYTHING CHANGES!”

It scared me. I had NO idea what it meant. Of course, everything changes, everything always changes!

We often think we know what’s happening, or what to expect next, but we don’t know. We live with a false sense of security.

I’m no psychiatrist. I’m an introspective artist consciously choosing to make friends with my shadow self.

Is the shadow self the one who stops us from moving forward when we feel fear or shame?

Is it as simple (and mean) as the “inner critic”? The one who wakes us up at night to berate us for something we did or didn’t do the day before?

Is the shadow self the part that thinks we have to be perfect before we share our work with the world?

Is the shadow the part of us that thinks we DON’T have anything worth sharing?

Is the shadow self the one who “flies off the handle” when we’re frustrated?

“Who’s Pulling the Strings?” — You, Your Shadow, or the Great Unknown? Do you notice anything different between this photo and the previous photo?

For now, let’s make friends with the shadow as best we can and continue asking questions.

The things that attract our attention have information for us that can help us make choices and decisions in our lives.

When we take the time to notice our surroundings or notice what captures our attention, we’re sure to learn something subtle about ourselves.

My latest palm frond painting (a work in progress) began when I noticed some dead palm fronds cut up and awaiting removal near my parked car. I took photos from different angles to capture their essence.

Later, while staffing the Hawaii Watercolor Society exhibit, I was drawn to two paintings showing a strong contrast of warm and cool colors. The colors, not the subject matter, captivated me.

When I began this palm frond painting, I did so in a rush. I was too impatient to sketch it all out before I starting to paint.

This painting wanted to be painted!

I didn’t know what the painting was about until I awoke around 3:30 AM with thoughts of being transported someplace that I really wanted to go. I wish I could remember where I went, alas, it’s vanished. Such is the nature of sleep and dreams.

That’s when I realized I’m painting the feeling of movement.

Palm fronds that fall to the Earth carry with them a remembrance of the wind in their tangled leaflets and the striations on their “hilt.” They wear their history in their beauty.

I'm facing a new move in my life, in a year already filled with inner and outer movement.

No wonder these fronds captured my attention. They’re reminding me that movement is essential to a healthy, vibrant, evolving life.

Almost, but not quite finished, this piece is titled, “Remembering the Wind”.

Move on!

We each have our own sources of inspiration — thank goodness! We don’t need to rely on any one person, place, or thing to be inspired.

Each of us is responsible for being aware of our “AHA” moments, and sometimes backtracking to discover their origins.

Sometimes the genesis is clear. We’ve seen an incredibly beautiful sunset or vista and want to capture the way it touched our heart.

Sometimes the source is obscure. Inspiration is a flash of insight, out of the blue.

We can stoke our inspiration by following our heartfelt curiosity.

Being curious is different from being “nosy” or “niele” (Hawaiian word for “nosy”). When curiosity tickles us, it sends us on a journey of discovery.

I’ve been on such a journey the past few months — one I wasn’t fully aware of until inspiration for my newest painting struck.

Finally! Yippee! It’s felt like F-O-R-E-V-E-R since I’ve felt this level of inspiration. I’ve missed the feeling of eager anticipation that sometimes precludes the start of a new painting.

Yes, every new painting starts with an idea or inspiration.

Sometimes my inspiration is a piece of coral, or a stone, or a flower — something that catches my eye. These can be great fun to sketch, draw, or paint.

The level of inspiration I received last week is connected to the books I’ve been reading and the questions I’ve been asking in my journal.

This kind of inspiration is a product of my heart working with my brain to give me a visual representation of what I’m learning.

This intensity of inspiration doesn’t happen as often as I’d like. I’m hoping that now that I'm more aware of the process, I’ll be able to entice deep inspiration to happen more often.

STEPS TO ENCOURAGE A TRULY INSPIRED, CREATIVE LIFE

1. Make more drawings of the things catching your attention. This can mean making more starts and fewer finished pieces. It can mean making many smaller drawings or paintings.

2. Focus more on what is wanted rather than on the lack of what is wanted. Be more aware of the things that inspire us and nurture the pursuit of them — and be less aware of missing the inspired feeling. (We find what we seek!)

3. Continue to read books that inspire. Recent reads include a novel, “The Luster of Lost Things” by Sophie Chen Keller and “Into the Magic Shop” by James R. Doty, MD.

4. Listen to podcasts that inspire: “On Being”, “New Dimensions”, “Hidden Brain”, “Ted Talks”, “Abraham-Hicks”.

5. Pay attention to the questions we’re asking and look for the sparks that often launch inspirational “AHA Moments”.

6. Keep our hearts and minds open to the possibilities swirling around us —

Trust in Your Possibilities.

By taking inspired action, I began the creation of this painting — which is almost (but not quite) complete.

If this feels like a formula you’d like to follow, please do! I can’t promise it’ll work for you, but it might. I definitely feel more inspired when I remember to follow these steps!

If you have another way to encourage inspiration into you're your life, please share it with me.

Sometimes I get lost — not physically lost, I live on an island for goodness sake! I get emotionally lost.

Does that sound weird? It feels weird. How old do I have to be before I always remember “who I am” — on the inside?

I know I’m lost when I forget how to have fun, or what makes me feel good about myself and about life in general.

I get lost when I over-think or over-work or over-worry about anything.

Worry is a product of trying to control life. Control is tricky. It can be a verb or a noun, sometimes it’s “good” and sometimes “not so good”.

Self-control might be the only kind of control we actually have, and that’s not even always true.

We might like to think we can control outcomes. We can’t, not really.

Hopefully, we know we can’t control others! Although that doesn’t stop people from trying!

All we can hope to control is our response or reaction to the world around us.

My antidote to getting lost is to look for the ever-present magic and mystery in life and to share it with others. These are some of the talismans I keep to remind me that all of life is magical.

Forgetting that magic and mystery ARE ever-present is fatal to my well-being, and, I suspect, to that of others.

I find the magic and mystery in life when I remember to look!

Last week, when I felt lost, I asked IWS what to paint. She suggested I paint the energy of “Beauty, Magic, Mystery, and Joy”.

I gathered all the magical objects I’ve been saving — the kinds of things that evoke questions or are beautiful in and of themselves (at least to me).

Then I closed my eyes and waited to see what my mind’s eye suggested.

This involves getting out of the way and trusting that whatever comes to mind is the “right” thing to paint.

My “Hide-N-Seek” painting process is perfect for this magical task and the painting was begun.

“Beauty, Magic, Mystery, and Joy” has been evolving for the past two weeks.

I remind myself often to “only paint what I know to paint”. This means I take my time to “Stop, Look, and Listen” to my painting between brushstrokes.

Part of painting magic and mystery is to not “over explain.”

That way the viewer can find their own levels of mystery and magic within the painting.

Once you find your magic and mystery in my paintings, please email me to tell me what you’ve found: patrice@artofaloha.com