Being mindful and fully present throughout our day, we can honour the water, the air, the meal. The ceremony is a mindset. Any ceremony can be as simple or as complicated as one wishes: whatever feels right and comes from the heart will make a fulfilling ceremony.
It has been almost a month, since I have planted seedlings into my permaculture towers, following the garden preparations and the building of the towers. Each day I marvel at the strong green plants sprouting out of the towers. Some are already blooming, a few small green tomatoes have formed, and with each rain things get greener and wilder. Here is a progress update on the plants, with photos on May 27th (day 1), June 10th (day 14), and June 20th (day 24). You can click on the thumbnails to see more detailed, larger photos.
A beautiful puzzle, a pleasure to do. Might be a little challenging for a beginner, due to the large areas of orange rock. The sky is only 4 pieces deep, with a clearly defined bottom boundary with the rock, the sea area is well-defined with two arc shapes of foam dividing it into easily-managed gradient-coloured regions. The trees at the bottom right and the top of the orange rock are darker than almost anything else in the puzzle. All these regions are good places to start.
Pick a shelf, a drawer, a cupboard, or a desk top. Sort through it, throw out what you do not need, group things in a logical manner. Step back, survey the fruits of your labour and take a deep breath. Now there is one less obstacle in your everyday life. Pick another one tomorrow.
A beautiful painting bringing to forefront the issues of ecology, consumerism, and the police state. The artist explores the two sides of the coin: how we see the idyllic society and what it costs in the environmental damage and lack of freedoms.
A beautiful painting, this puzzle would be very pleasant if the makers had left out the “magic effects” of the shiny pieces that change hue based on the viewing angle, and had focused instead on the cut of the pieces. Not only does the shine make it hard to assemble this puzzle in anything but perfect bright daylight, it is not completely clear when the two pieces fit together, introducing a chance of error, especially in the uniformly-coloured regions such as the sky and the sea.
The last few days have been rainy, so I haven’t been able to do much in the garden except watch things grow. I have been interviewed for the Shop of the Month section on the Keepers of Enchantment blog, have created many a treasury on Etsy to celebrate the summer, and have made some new amethyst belly beads in a children’s size.
As I stepped into the fresh wet outside world this afternoon, right after the rain, took a deep breath …
As interesting as this idea is in theory, I did not enjoy this puzzle much in practice. Sure, learning about the history and making of tea is enlightening, yet I do not think a puzzle is the appropriate medium for this. Putting together the perimeter with the small text was tedious and did not make reading the text easy until the puzzle was complete. The green arrows with headings, and the colour of the small images for each paragraph (that are so tiny it is hard to tell what is depicted on them), can serve as guides to the placement of the puzzle pieces.
Before performing an action, imagine the process of doing so and the consequences stemming from it. Decide whether you truly want to proceed. It can be a powerful deterring or motivating tool.
Following the garden preparations and the building of permaculture towers, I have planted different types of large and cherry tomatoes, eggplants, sweet and hot peppers, carrots and radishes, butternut and spaghetti squash, kale and Swiss chard, cucumbers, and a variety of herbs. Below are the photos and notes on each plant’s uses, environmental preferences, and useful plant combinations.
“I had a vision,” the Emperor said –
“Last night, it was as though my soul
Had shed me while I lay abed
And slipped beyond the mortal shoal
Down to the deeps of imagination
Where night-thoughts swirl in painted streams
Size: 1000 pieces
Dimensions: 67.95 cm x 48.1 cm
Producer: Mega Puzzles, Vibrant series, 2013, No. 51420ABN, A28103LP
Artist: Very unfortunately, Mega Puzzles prints a copyright for the entire series with several names of the artists (as opposed to the name of a single photographer who owns a particular featured image), and even through searching I was not able to determine which artist took this photo. If …
It is when we forget that children express their emotions without filters and as we place expectations on them to act in a mature way, that we get frustrated with the situation and disappointed in their behaviour. Have fewer expectations, and you will be less stressed and might even be pleasantly surprised.
During the day, I sometimes get a hour or so when the baby is willing to play by herself. This happens most often around mid-day, when I’m hungry enough for lunch. I do my best to take advantage of that time, to cook up a few dishes, tidy up the kitchen, and fit in a lunch for myself. Today I decided to document what I did.
One of the best ways to reset your mood and melt away stress is to get outside. Tend the garden, read a few pages, take a walk, play with your kids, or just open the door for a moment, look around, and take a deep breath.
To pick up on our permaculture adventures: we have constructed The Two Towers. It took most of the day today and here are the details.
It has been a busy, productive and fun weekend, with lots of playing, fresh air, and garden preparations, so much so that I had no time to write this until Wednesday evening.
In addition to the alone time, we also need to allocate time to spend with like-minded people, to relax, be exposed to new ideas, and share our reality with those who understand.
Size: 500 pieces
Dimensions: 48.5 cm x 35.5 cm
Producer: Sure-Lox, The Canadian Group
Puzzle: A lovely puzzle to put together, yet not completely trivial for a beginner. A good place to start is the border of the sky and the building which isolates the top third of the puzzle and provides a horizontal guide to assist in further assembly. The pillars and the lantern post make for good vertical guides. The dome, …
It has been a few busy weeks, and it seems the next few shall bring much activity as well, so it took me until Friday to write this post. With the spring coming, I’m working on a fresh new product line of belly beads and planning my garden using the permaculture approach. And so far it has been an exciting adventure with lots to learn.
