My Forest Studio

I love the forest. For me, it’s a mysterious and nurturing place that soothes my mind, body, and soul. 

Where I live, I’m surrounded by the huge, grandfather trees of the rainforests in British Columbia. Whenever I can, I make my way into the woods for a run, a hike, or simply a leisurely walk. Not only is it healthy fresh air, but it’s also therapeutic!

In Japan this is a practice called shinrin-yoku. Shinrin means forest and yoku means bath, so it translates to forest-bathing. You don’t need to exercise to receive the benefits of the forest, you only need to take in the atmosphere of the forest through your senses, so just taking time out from your busy life and going into the woods brings positive health benefits.

Here's a little video I made a couple of years ago when I was in Norway. It's a beautiful and tranquil place…

“Get lost in nature and you will find yourself.”

When I can’t be in my art studio, creating art, you’ll find me in my forest studio… Being nurtured by nature so I can Dream, Imagine, and Create…

Dream Catcher

A Fairy Tale

“The fairy-tale journey may look like an outward trek across plains and mountains, through castles and forests, but the actual movement is inward, into the lands of the soul.”

— Terri Windling

Dream Catcher (read the fairy tale)

Letting Go

There’s a divine paradox in life; to receive what you want you must first let it go.

Once you have a dream or desire in mind, it's already there and ready to be received. But you cannot push or pull it to you… you allow it into your life.

Receiving is allowing.

Imagine a stream of creative life energy that flows through life. If you focus too hard on any part of this stream, you stop the flow and life becomes a struggle.

Instead, match the energy of your desires and your whole Being becomes a part of the stream. 

You ‘go with the flow’.  

“The real skill is to raise the sails and to catch the power of the wind as it passes by.”

— Thomas Berry

Become the essence of your dream and what you create will match this energy.

What you receive in life is a reflection of what you are Be-ing.

So it’s a delicate balance. You have the desire and intention for something, yet at the same time you are completely at ease whether you ‘have’ it or not.

When you open and allow, you receive sudden insights and synchronicities. You are in the creative flow...

Receive is the sixth step in the creative process.

You can download the 7 Steps from Ethereal to Real, part one from the Little Book of Big Dreams here

Align With Your Dream

Dreams and goals start as ideas that, once planted and nurtured, begin to grow and blossom in their own unique way. A dream becomes 'real' through a natural, creative process that I call a Dream Journey.

The Magic Pillow

There are seven steps on this journey... (Read step one here)

This week I'm writing about the fifth step in the creative process ~ Align with your dream.

When you wake in the morning from night-time dreams, you know and understand that the dream does not exist outside of yourself. Your dream comes from you.

Your dream is you…

All dreams exist as energy in the unseen world and you ‘see’ and experience them on another level of existance. To make your dreams ‘real’ requires aligning with this energy and acting as if what you imagine already exists.

What you dream and imagine comes from your essence. When you follow your dreams, you are saying “yes!” to your truth and who you really are. You trust that your dreams and desires are what your spirit wants to express in the world. As you align with your dreams you begin tapping into the creative flow of life.

“When you lose touch with inner stillness, you lose touch with yourself. When you lose touch with yourself, you lose yourself in the world.”

— Eckhart Tolle

When you are in alignment, you become ‘whole’ in all areas of your life. There is no more separation between the inside and the outside. Your life becomes a true expression of You.

When you align with your dream, you are in alignment with who you truly are.

You can download the 7 Steps from Ethereal to Real, part one from the Little Book of Big Dreams here

The first step is to dream...

Every autumn I find myself busily bringing the ideas and projects I've been working on all year to fruition. It's harvest time in the Land of Dreams...

Everything we create in life begins with an idea or vision in our mind's eye... From ethereal to physical form it becomes real through a creative process. Everything is imagined into existence... 

A few years ago I wrote the Little Book of Big Dreams and in part one I described the seven steps in the creative process.

Dreaming is the first step in the creative process...

“ To make a great dream come true, you must first have a great dream.”

— Hans Selye

I've always been a dreamer. When I was little I could sit for hours daydreaming out my bedroom window, allowing my mind to wander and drift...

I created stories of pasts and futures... I dreamed of heroes and heroines, love, mystery, magic and adventure... Everything I wanted to be, do, experience...

Dreaming opens your mind to other worlds and possibilities.

What is a dream?

A dream is like a blueprint in your mind. It's a vision or feeling sense that can be experienced as if it is 'real'. It isn't yet tangible but it can be very powerful. 

Dreams can spark your desires, motivate and inspire you...

Where do dreams come from?

Your dreams come from your inner truth; the essence of who you are.

When you live your dreams, you live an inspired life of deeper meaning, purpose and happiness.

So listen to your dreams...

You can download the 7 Steps from Ethereal to Real, part one from the Little Book of Big Dreams here

Dream Weaver

(Read the previous episode here)

Careful not to wake the Old Woman, Rose pulled out the cloth bag she’d hidden under her bed long ago. Inside the bag was the most beautiful silvery-blue yarn that shone like the moon.

Rose wondered how she could possibly make a web that was seven feet high and five feet wide from such a small bag of yarn, but the more yarn she pulled out, the more yarn there seemed to be!

And so for seven days, as the Old Woman slept, Rose weaved her magical web. And for seven nights, when the Old Woman went out into the forest, Rose slept under her silvery blanket and wove magical dreams into her web.

Rose’s dream web was now complete and it’s brilliance made the whole room glow with shimmering moonlight.

Forest detail in black and white

“What’s that glare?” the Old Woman said. “It hurts my eyes!”

“That is the moon shining across my bed,” said Rose.

“There must be a hole in the roof letting the light in,” grumbled the Old Woman, “It better be gone by morning or else!” she threatened. Then rubbing her eyes she climbed out from the cave, through the roots at the bottom of the tree, and out into the night.

Rose was frightened. How could she hide the web from the Old Woman? What if Lucky never returned?

Just then she heard the familiar, small voice calling her name.

“You’ve done well Rose,” said Lucky, “but there’s no time to lose. It’s a full moon tonight and the Old Woman won’t stay out long. Throw the end of your yarn up here and climb out.”

Rose pulled out the last of the yarn and threw it up to the little green man at the entrance to the cave. Lucky tied the yarn around a large root and Rose climbed up. The yarn was as strong as steel, yet light as a feather. Together they pulled Rose’s dream web out from the Old Woman’s cave.

“Wrap it around you,” said Lucky. “It will keep you warm and safe in the woods. Now be quick and follow me!” And with that, the little green man disappeared into the dark forest...

(continue reading)

Forest of Dreams

In the Forest of Dreams anything is possible... 

Beginning a new dream is like walking into a forest without a clear path. 

You have a destination in mind but you don't know what you will encounter along the way. You trust its unfoldment as you venture into the unknown... 

Like a fairy-tale forest, the path to your dreams is full of signs and symbols to guide you on your way. 

You need only to dream, imagine, and have courage to step forward into the magical realm of creation. 

 'But have the courage to write whatever your dream is for yourself.' ~ May Sarton

In the Forest of Dreams, anything is possible...

Align with your dream.

The fifth step in the creative process is to align.

When you wake in the morning from nightime dreams, you know and understand that the dream does not exist outside of yourself. Your dream comes from you.

Your dream is you…

All dreams exist as energy in the unseen world and you ‘see’ and experience them on another level of existance. To make your dreams ‘real’ requires aligning with this energy and acting as if what you imagine already exists.

What you dream and imagine comes from your essence. When you follow your dreams, you are saying “yes!” to your truth and who you really are. You trust that your dreams and desires are what your spirit wants to express in the world. As you align with your dreams you begin tapping into the creative flow of life.

When you lose touch with inner stillness, you lose touch with yourself. When you lose touch with yourself, you lose yourself in the world. ~ Eckhart Tolle

When you are in alignment, you become ‘whole’ in all areas of your life. There is no more separation between the inside and the outside. Your life becomes a true expression of You.

When you align with your dream, you are in alignment with who you truly are.

The first step is to dream.

It all begins with a dream... 

Dreaming is the first step in the creative process. 

 'To make a great dream come true, you must first have a great dream.' ~ Hans Selye

Dreaming opens your mind to possibilities...

What is a dream?

A dream is like a blueprint in your mind. It is a vision or feeling sense that can be experienced as if it is 'real'.

It isn't yet tangible but it can be very powerful. 

Dreams can spark your desires, motivate and inspire you...

Where do dreams come from?

Your dreams come from your inner truth; the essence of who you are.

When you live your dreams, you live an inspired life of deeper meaning, purpose and happiness.

So listen to your dreams.

And follow your dreams... 

Coming this Fall:

True Art

I learn a lot from painting pictures.

I've learned that life is just like painting. Well, after all, life itself is a creative process...

Sometimes I leave a painting for too long and it loses my interest. And like a neglected dream it is in danger of never becoming fully realized in this world.

It's no longer new and I need to get excited about it again.

‘I played with an idea, and grew wilful; tossed it into the air; transformed it; let it escape and recaptured it; made it iridescent with fancy, and winged it with paradox.’ ~ Oscar Wilde

To be playful with creativity and ideas inevitably brings new visions, insights and the excitement that is so important to life itself.

It's the spark of new dreams that keep me going... 

But it is perseverance that makes them real. This is the true art.

 'True art is characterized by an irresistible urge in the creative artist.' ~ Albert Einstein

Daisy Dared to Dream

Daisy was not content to be just another pretty wallflower. She always sensed there was more to life.

Oh, she was happy and grateful to be her bold, beautiful self, but she was restless...

Daisy wanted to travel.

She wanted to go and be and do... She wanted to see the world.

So Daisy dreamed. She imagined traveling to distant lands; the beautiful sites she would see, the people she would meet...

She dreamed and imagined and played with ideas... until one day...

Stay tuned for more adventures and incarnations of Daisy... 

Daisy travels the world...