This may come in handy ...

... when you need a reminder.

soooo, here YOU are: all your power and intention and inner wisdom.

you want to ...
sleep more, smile more, run more, meditate, be alive, eat good food, laugh ...

nurture your wisdom. act from integrity

The Art of Feelings Collage

So, where do I begin? Basically, my collage is supposed to be a river, with stepping stones around it, and the mask in the top right corner represents mindfulness as well as the facade that many people, including myself, mask themselves with.

1. The "river" itself represents impermanence. The outline of the river consists of various phrases, that relate to digging deeper, beyond the surface. For example, some of the stickers say "break the rules", "get the inside scoop", "inspire to be", "live without a plan", "choices". These are all simple phrases or words which I found all relating to our existence and testing our limits. They are the boundary of the river because our answers or reactions to those phrases are what limit our potential. For example, in reply to "Live without a plan", if we "live with a plan", then we are always on one track, and are bound to one lifestyle (which is another big word on my collage).
Besides the words on my collage, I have various images. Most of the images are optimistic and happy, because I've found myself to possess a more optimistic attitude all the time rather than not. Of course, there are a few pictures here and there that represent fright and anxiety, but for the most part, they are all positive images. There's a picture of a girl laughing, another girl holding a sign saying, "I'm beautiful", and a group of friends with their arms around each other.

2. To represent s p a c e, I had a gap between the mask and the river with stepping stones. Although there is space between myself and my experiences, the stepping stones are what connect me to it. The stepping stones all say "ban [insert word]", and the various words are "stereotypes", "racism", "inhibition", etc. I used these as stepping stones because it's things such as stereotypes and racism that disconnect us from situations and limit our perspective. The stepping stones create space between our experiences and ourselves because they are a degree of separation

3. On the mask, it says "What's on your mind?" and there is another word above it: self-esteem. The first is self-explanatory. Asking myself what's on my mind, I am mindful on myself and aware of my existence. The latter (self-esteem) is an issue that I have been trying to deal with because at times, I definitely lack it. The mask itself is in the corner, and overseeing everything else on my collage. It can see its distance from the river, but it can also clearly observe the tranquility and points of turbulence.

Post your art and explanation! :)

Hey ya'll! Please post the digital pic of your art piece as well as the explanation of the 3 required elements of your collage.

Number Two

Things have been going well as of late. I've been able to meditate consistently. I've found it helpful to meditate right when I wake up to prepare me for the day ahead. It's arduous to try to meditate at school with all the students rushing everywhere.

In terms of exercise, I've been playing a lot of a sport, which I won't name. I'm also taking those classes that I talked about in my last blog. I'd say I'm doing well in this category, which isn't a problem at all, because I really do love to exercise and I enjoy the soreness.

My diet has improved as well. I've used Ms. Armstrong's recipe for that breakfast concoction, and I like it. It feels rewarding to be making something for myself that's tasty and healthy. I go to the grocery store, and I can make healthier choices in terms of what food I should find in the pantry.

Sleep hasn't improved too much, although this past week, I was actually able to get about 7 hours of sleep each night. Seven hours is a lot more than usual. My sleeping pattern was a lot different though, because I'd fall asleep a lot earlier than usual, then wake up a lot earlier: about 3-5 AM. It's just the way that it worked out. It was advantageous to do homework that early because I wouldn't be distracted by anyone else.

My room is still clean; that doesn't really change. I'm planning on a day soon when I can thoroughly clean it.

the end :]

Lately, I have taken a liking to meditation. I'll sit in the middle of my room and meditate for a couple of minutes. It helps to do it when I get home, before I start on my homework. I've also found it very calming to sit on my roof and journal all my thoughts and feelings. I consider it a method of meditating because it calms me and helps me center myself. I also get rid of distracting thoughts when I put them on paper. A goal for myself in the meditation aspect would be to find time to meditate all throughout the day instead of just when I get home. Short term, I could meditate right when I wake up, as I'm brushing my teeth or in the shower. I could also meditate for the five minutes of break, or at the beginning of class to help me focus.

I love exercising, and I do so in multiple ways. I'd say I'm a pretty active person. I really enjoy yoga. Some of my goals in terms of exercise are to stick to what I've been doing and be more consistent. Although I do exercise a lot, there are periods where I lack any motivation whatsoever to do anything. Short-term, I want to take my exercises classes at least three times a week and go to the gym with my friends on weekends more consistently.

My diet is where I need the most improvement. I sometimes go for days only eating one meal per day. Other days, I overeat. I've been cutting down on junk food, such as fries and pizza and I've stopped drinking soda. I need to drink more water, and eat healthier foods. I've found it helpful to go out and buy my own food from the grocery so that I will have access to healthier foods. I think a big reason that I don't eat healthy foods is that they aren't accessible. I really want to improve in this department though. Short-term, I'm just going to make sure I eat several smaller meals during the day. I'll also bring my own food to school since the cafeteria isn't very healthy.

I also need a lot more sleep. With all my extracurricular activities as well as homework, I only get on average, about 5-6 hours of sleep. Perhaps if I worked more efficiently on homework and spent less time online, talking to people, I'd get more sleep. I've found that I procrastinate if I don't want to do a big project, but that needs to stop. I'll set schedules for my homework, and meet my goals.

My room is pretty much always neat. I like it a lot because without the clutter, I can find things fairly easily and I feel like my mind is a lot more organized too in terms of thoughts. It also helps to feel like I'm going to sleep in a clean environment. A short-term goal would just to be to maintain the cleanliness, and longterm, I want to organize a few t hings that haven't already been sorted.