Living in a State of Grace

As a DT member for One Little Word, it was my turn to pick the word for November.  "Grace" seemed like a good choice.  After all, that's what this month is all about, at least in the US.  So I've been using it, like in this art journal page from my circle journal group...

And in the mobiles I created for a recent blog hop between Stencil Girl and Foam Express.

The Latin root of the word grace is "gratia," which is also the root of the word gratitude. 

This word gets bandied about a lot and means different things to different people.  But to me, at its heart, grace means gratitude for all that is. And not just the good stuff.  The ups and downs, the highs and lows.  The problems and the blessings. 

When we fully embrace all of the events that happen in our complex world, we can align with all that is.  And when we align, rather than resist, we live in a state of grace.  After all, some of our best life lessons come from the hardest times.  Something that upsets us today might later turn out to be a blessing in disguise.

I'm grateful for a lot of things - too many to list.  But one of the things I'm most grateful for is this wonderful community.

Recently, I attended a weekend workshop at The Ink Pad in NY with friends and other members of the Stencil Girl Design Team. 

I am SO GRATEFUL to be part of this talented, supportive group of people, who are so giving with their knowledge and friendship.

In the workshop, taught by the amazing Mary Beth Shaw, Pam Carriker, Michelle Ward and Andrew Borloz, we experimented with different stenciling and painting techniques, and then bound our pages into gorgeous journals. Here I am with the four of them, and Seth Apter, who also designs for Stencil Girl!

Pam Carriker, Seth Apter, Me, MaryBeth Shaw, Andrew Borloz & Michelle Ward

I was also grateful to spend time with my friend Marjie Kemper, to see familiar faces from prior classes, and to make new friends!

I decided that I wanted my journal to truly reflect this special weekend and the gratitude I feel for being part of this community.

In thinking about "grace," what's clear is that it is a constant practice.  Our nature is to resist all that is unpleasant, and cling to that which we like.   Living in a state of grace is something to strive toward.  It is a journey. And so, I've named my journal "Journey to Grace" - to inspire me as I walk this path. 

The stencil on the cover is from October Stencil Club.  The word "OM" is in the tree.  OM is said to be the sound of the universe.  When we chant it, we are tuning ourselves to all that is -- the good, the bad, the seen and the unseen -- aligning ourselves with all of existence. 

Here are some of the inside pages, as yet very unfinished.  Do you recognize some of the stencils?  I loved using them this way... layering and layering until it's hard to tell what came first.  

 

Speaking of stencils - I have four new designs out with Stencil Girl!  Stay tuned for a blog post chock full of demos and tutorials showing you how I use them.

When you hear the word "GRACE,"  what does it bring up for you?  Let us know by linking up at One Little Word.  Anything goes -- just be inspired by GRACE!  I look forwarding to visiting the inspired creations by the rest of the Design Team, and by seeing what YOU do!

“I do not at all understand the mystery of grace - only that it meets us where we are but does not leave us where it found us."  Anne Lamott

And, P.S., if you missed my Thanksgiving free download, here it is!

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