M A Y 2 0 1 3

Flora Bowley

Live Out Loud

Dearest Studio Voice readers,

Things here at The Studio Voice have been a small tornado! It is a good kind of flurry - the kind where ideas, inspiration, and creativity slip in and steal your sleeping hours.

We are strong believers that the Universe responds to where our hearts are focused so it is no coincidence that the theme of Living Out Loud has brought new and exciting changes to our own backyard!

First, you may have noticed that our blog has become active with lots of awesome guest posts related to our current theme. It is the mission of The Studio Voice to connect you to your story by sharing the stories of others. Our sharing guest posts on the blog allow us to fulfill our mission on a weekly basis. Afraid you might miss a great post? No worries - we have you covered! You can subscribe to our mailing list and get all the blog posts delivered to your inbox. In addition, we will include the most popular posts in the following issue of The Studio Voice.

For those of you who are interested in contributing to the The Studio Voice, just visit our submissions page. You will find our submission guidelines, current and upcoming themes, and a snazzy new form.

Second, we have been busy working behind the scenes to offer even more ways that you can explore and engage in the conversation. We are super proud to unveil Solitudes and Round Table.

Solitudes is a thirty day email subscription containing exclusive material designed to help you explore the current theme in more detail. You will receive a variety of writing/art/photography prompts, reflection questions, printables, and videos all of which will support you in discovering more about your relationship to the theme.

Round Table is a five week membership to an online community that cultivates sharing, reflective dialogue, and learning through teaching. Throughout the membership period, we explore the theme in depth  through guided discussions and sharing of our stories. It is a loving exchange - contributing to and extracting wisdom from the conversation.

You can learn more and join the conversation on our products page.

Lots of love and best wishes,

Amelia and Melody

http://studio-voice.com

Amelia loves using words and images to access those deep spaces where we are all tethered to one another, to connect through common experiences and emotions. Amelia helps thousands of people around the world everyday to see the joys of life, which are often captured in the smallest details.

Amelia has been an educator for 18 years. She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology, a master’s degree in experiential education and a doctorate in adult education. Amelia’s professional background includes teaching in higher education for more than 18 years,

working with Fortune 500 companies, small start-ups, non-profit organizations, women’s networking groups, support groups and individuals. She has worked with clients from 4 continents and 9 countries.

Amelia also operates The Black House Studio where she publishes her photography and personal musings because while she loves teaching and working with clients, her heart and soul belongs to telling stories through words and images. This is no surprise having been raised by a published author/photographer father and fine artist mother.

Melody is a seeker of all things that ring true. Her pot of gold at the end of the rainbow are life’s “ah-ah” moments. Melody’s seeking nature pushes her to live on the curve, exploring and expressing herself in all things creative.

With a degree in Informational Systems, Melody has an extensive background in the delivery of traditional and virtual learning and creating courseware and systems that have served the instructional needs of thousands.

Melody believe that our life’s journey is to find and express ourselves authentically and is one-hundred percent, hands-down inspired by the vulnerability and courage of those who are willing to stand in their own light.

Melody authors a personal blog where she shares her stories and reflections and facilitates the Truth Telling Series.

Dreams by Flora BowleyI’ve been thinking a lot about DREAMS lately…not so much the kind I have in my sleep (although that might be a whole different post..woah).  I’m talking about the kind of dreams I have in my waking hours.  “Daydreams”  if you will, but not the kind of daydreams I have while I’m staring off into space (again,

more blogging fodder there).  Nope, I’m talking about the kind of dreams I have when I get really present to my deepest core desires.  I’m talking about…

dreaming my dream life ALIVE kinda dreams.

Thankfully, I was somehow born into this world thinking/knowing that…anything is possible.

Amazing, right?  I mean, why on earth would a person believe that anything is possible in a world where so many people are suffering and so much injustice is at play?  I’m pretty sure my positive belief system has a whole lot to do with my amazing “anything is possible” parents and perhaps some kind of wild, well-deserved karma…and maybe a little ignorance?  Honestly,  

I’m not too concerned with how this positive belief system came to be the lens through which I experience life, I’m just stoked it’s there.

However, I’ve also worked crazy hard to keep this lens from building up grit and grime over the years {insert positive affirmation here}.  As we know, it’s incredibly easy to become jaded, negative and overwhelmed in a world with so many freaking variables.  Right?  There will always be obstacles popping up on our path which challenge us and make our dreams seem that much more out of reach, elusive or just plain annoying/impossible.

I can honestly say that if had I known then what I know now, I’m pretty sure I would have NOT pursued a career as a painter.  I mean, WTF?  Who thinks they can make a living selling paintings in this day and age…and before the internet even existed!  Apparently my ignorant twenty-year old self thought that painting for a job was a feasible idea (thank god for this ignorance), and thank god I didn’t seem to mind being totally broke while I pursued this dreamy “dream job” because OH MY…

there have been obstacles.

Painting by Flora Bowley

But somehow, with all those obstacles, I kept my dream alive, working my ass off year after year, painting hundreds of painting, showing my work on any walls that would have me and living large (as in happily) on very little income.  When I look back now, I realize I never really had a choice.  I am so passionate about creating and specifically about painting, that I’m not sure what else I would have done.  The fact that I now weave together ALL my passions—art, yoga, dance, personal transformation, making a difference, travel, being my own boss—into one lovely job kinda blows my mind.  All this to say, I really do believe (because I’m living proof) that…

anything IS possible…as long as you are willing to dream it alive (and work your butt off).

I would love to sign off with this little excerpt about dreaming from Monique Duvall’s, The Persistence of Yellow.

“I met my dreams in a dream last night.

They were whining about the view, the humidity,

The reckless rooms inside my heart.

We need room for flight, they cried.

So I’m deconstructing my tiny house today.

I’m giving my dreams the starlight as their steeple.

The uncluttered winds for their kites.”

Thank you to the ever-inspiring Myriam Joseph for unearthing this gem and passing it on to me.

Bless the Day and Choose Love by Shannon Kinney

Sometimes life throws stuff at us that feels downright unbearable. How could this happen?

And our mind wants answers. Why? Why me? Why them? Why is this happening?

Part of our spiritual journey in life is to get angry, to grieve, to mourn, to feel the pain, the sadness and the sorrow. And sometimes the only thing that truly does heal is time and faith.

We may never know why things happen or why people do what they do. Although our mind wants to make sense of it all… Why is she like that? How could this be happening? Is my life over? What has the world come to? Will I ever feel safe again?

The heart knows. The heart can surrender, evolve and adapt. The heart can face the fear. The heart can trust again.

Part of the path is to be ok with not knowing why, and that takes a whole lot of faith.

Faith is hopeful.Faith helps.

Life is a series of ups and downs, happy and sad, ebb and flow, celebrations and challenges, inhale and exhale, day and night… Sometimes we have to go through the darkness to see the light. But that doesn’t mean we have to suffer along the way.Let go of trying to figure it all out. Be here now. Feel the gratitude in your heart. Walk forward in faith. And know that even if it doesn’t make sense to your mind, life is unfolding as it should. You can’t control everything that happens to you in life. You can’t control the actions of others. You can’t change what they do. Yet, you CAN change

how you move in the world.You can feel. You can get angry. You can cry. You can freak out. You can forgive. You can fall down. You can get back up. You can be of service to the world. You can bring goodness and light to where there is darkness. You can choose love. And as Gandhi so beautifully reminds us, YOU can be the change you want to see in the world.

Today is a new day. A fresh, clean slate. Feel the love in your heart, and share that love with the world. This time of year reminds us that we can believe in the things unseen. There’s magic in that. And regardless if you look to God, the Universe, or the all-knowing Source, having faith in life can help.

Your Personal Reflection:

Practice this daily ritual of the sun and moon as a way to open your heart to faith.

Ritual of the Sun:In the morning, just as you start to wake, keep your eyes closed and stay in bed for a few extra minutes. Ask yourself: What do I need most today? Quietly wait and let a word or phrase

come to surface. Try not to edit your thoughts, but simply observe the first word or phrase that comes to your mind easily and effortlessly. (It’s easier to do this when you are still in that blissful sleepy

state!) Take a moment to repeat the word or phrase before getting out of bed. Smile and trust that the right word or phrase has found you

today. Feel the love in your heart and share that love with all those who cross your path.

This simple ritual helps you bless the day and creates a clearer path between your heart and mind – the connection that helps you open your heart and reconnect to your center. (So when you notice your mind start to race mid-day about your growing “to do” list, or your frustrating family member, or the overwhelming problems of the world, remember your morning blessing, take a few breaths and reflect on that special word or phrase – peace, love, acceptance, gratitude, have faith, be the change…or whatever it may be.)

Ritual of the Moon:In the evening, when the house is quiet and you lay your head on your pillow, take a few moments to reflect on the day – remembering your word or phrase from the morning blessing. Ask yourself: What did today

bring? (Anything that didn’t get done, let it go. If there is something pending that won’t allow you to go to bed peacefully, then get up and wrap it up. You want to give yourself the opportunity to prepare for a new day, and that’s hard to do when you’re holding on to the things you didn’t get to.) Then, take a few deep breaths in and out, softly smile, release your day and let yourself sleep.

The ritual of the sun and moon offers you a chance to slow down and reconnect to what truly matters most this holiday season. Your heart knows. Its job is to guide you towards peace. And it’s your job to listen, observe and

become aware enough to follow its lead.

Peace and love to you today, and always.

Live Out Loud Photography by Laurie Zak-Richardson

and start again. We can continue to research. The experiment is often about process and enjoying that process is key. We don’t live in a world where when we get it ‘right’ everything stops and becomes good, static and forever fixed. We change, life changes, needs and wants change and what once worked doesn’t work. That’s good, it means we can conduct a new experiment, we don’t stand still and life doesn’t stand still. We can set our own parameters, our own stipulations, we can carve out our own lab for experiments and we can see what happens. We might have a vague idea of what we want to achieve with ‘the experiment’ but we are also fully open to seeing what emerges from the ‘mistakes’ the fortuitous and happy ‘accident’s and we are open to having things we couldn’t even perceive, being revealed to us.

Where is a good place to start with the experiment? A good place to start is doing what we want to do. What we feel an urge and calling to do. The thing we would do even if we weren’t paid for it we’d do it. An inner compulsion, a whispering in the heart, a yearning and burning desire. An experiment can be both tangible and intangible.

IT IS TIME TO EXPERIMENT. OUR LIVES ARE SO PRECIOUS AND SHORT! What do you want to discover if you can do? Oh, whoops, I mean you can do it, but what is the best way to do it – that is the experiment and continual experimenting!

The Experiment by Amelia Critchlow

The experiment has no definition, no final ‘end product’ we are working towards. The experiment is open to interpretation, and there are many, many ways we can approach it. The experiment means we can fail which is actually a good thing, because ‘failure’ (our individual definition of failure not anyone else’s) gives us permission to try again (not give up). We can throw different ingredients in to the experiment – we can see what works and what doesn’t (depending on where it is we are choosing to head) and once we know, we can change course, utilize those ingredients to maximum effect, and/or add more and keep trying.

The experiment means we are free to try, we do not have to wait for instruction, we are not bound by perfection and ‘getting it right’ (this is an experiment after all), it means that we have permission to try, and there is no judgement (only the ones we impose on ourselves). The experiment means we can rip it up

Mixed Media Painting by Amelia Critchlow

The Authentic Self by Kelly Berkey

“Bored people are boring people,” my Grandma Helen said to me, her blue eyes sparkling and red hair on fire with the sun coming through the window behind her. She had on Converse tennis shoes; one was red and the other was teal. As I stared at them she said, “I have another pair just like them at home.”

Bored people are boring people…I didn’t want to be boring. Grandma Helen sure wasn’t. She did what she liked and didn’t concern herself with what everyone else was doing. Fitting in with the rest of the world…was boring.

Her example was clear to me. We are all unique and are meant to shine.

Letting my light shine came naturally when I was young. I loved to dance and wear pretty dresses and draw all over the walls, windows, and television screen. My parents encouraged creativity and uniqueness.

But in this world, keeping my light shining wasn’t as easy. In my early 30’s, I decided that instead of working an 80 hour week as a self employed florist and cafe owner, it was time for me to join the rest of society by conforming and living a secure (insert boring) life. I didn’t realize how much of myself I was going to have to give up to fit in. Oh wait! I never did manage to fit in…but I digress.

In this normal world, everything and everyone kept telling me I needed to change, That letting my light shine made people feel bad about themselves; it was intimidating. Being special isn’t good. No one likes change, no one wants to see you happy, and no one wants a better life. The message was clear: We are all here

to be miserable, make each other miserable, then Image credit: Kirk Decker Photography

Image credit: Kirk Decker Photography

go home and share with our loved ones just how miserable of a day we had. Hence, make them miserable to.

Walking out of my cubical drone job a year ago was the best thing I ever did for myself. It was a feat of immense Self Love, actually. But that was the first step in a year long journey of healing and finding my authentic self again.

I’ve learned a lot this past year. For one, letting my light shine is NOT me intimidating anyone. If people are intimidated by me or anyone else, they need to look inside themselves and own their own insecurities.

They need to quiet themselves and find out why they are having that reaction. I will no longer take responsibility for someone else’s insecurity. I have my own to work on.

I’ve learned that if I want to live my life fully, I need to shut out all the things that do not serve me. Don’t have time to create? Shut off the television. Don’t have time to cook a healthy meal? Shut off the computer. Don’t have time to move your body? Put away the iPhone.  The world will not end if we unplug for a bit. Every minute I spend sitting and watching what another person is doing, I take away from myself a real life enjoyable experience. I love myself too much to do that anymore.

Taking the risk of living an authentic life, finding out what I am passionate about and opening myself up to the universe to see what life I was meant to live has been exhilarating. It has also been hard work. Being

Image credit: Kirk Decker Photography

present in your own life takes a great deal of self control. Letting go of the fear of rejection, of criticism, of not fitting in was easy once I realized I was already experiencing those things while spending my day doing something so incredibly boring to me. Why not take the risk and actually enjoy what I was doing with my life?

Here’s what I’ve found on this quest for my authentic self:

I am an Artist. Art in itself is the journey of living out loud. What is art if it’s not meant to be shared? And art isn’t just what pigment I have placed on canvas, it’s the meal I cook, the flowers I grow, the way I wear my hair. It’s the crook of my hand, the words I stamp into metal, the poetry I read, and the music that fills my studio. It’s the birds singing outside, it’s the grass beneath my bare feet, and the wind playing in my hair. It’s a long gaze into the eyes of another person and feeling my soul dance with theirs.  Life is Art.

I burst with gratitude every day for this life, the art I create, the joy that I experience being my authentic self. I want to share it with the world, scream about it on the streets, twirl in the grass in celebration until I fall down dizzy, laughing at myself.

We all have a story inside us. Sharing our stories, our experiences, our art, our love, our passion is a celebration of life and a gift that we give ourselves and those around us.

So what is the purpose of my life? Émile Zola said it better than I ever could.

If you ask me what I came to do in this world, I will tell you, I came to live out LOUD.” ~Émile Zola

Image credit: Kirk Decker Photography

I have been doing a lot of pondering about polarities lately, about this world of OPPOSITES, and the ultimate inclusion of all things.

It is my work in this life to recognize and bring to the forefront of my consciousness, all those parts of myself that I push away, and vehemently dis-own, because of my beliefs about said things, and what I think those things mean.

I do not do this because that’s what teachers teach, or because it’s spiritual, or because I’m following some dogma or theory about shadow-work or something.  I do it, because it has been my OWN EXPERIENCE, again and again, that what-so-ever I am willing to fearlessly OWN, and usher-in, and SEE, and acknowledge and ALLOW…

comes Home to me.

It opens me up with love and understanding beyond anything I can describe to you, and it ultimately restores my peace and joy.

This is not new information to anyone who has even dabbled in spiritual teachings, but I want to just re-iterate that there is a vast difference between the CONCEPT of something like this, and the actual REALIZATION of it.  No one can “teach” you this – it is entirely self-taught.  You must discover it for yourself, or you won’t discover it at all.

So it is with this in mind, that I continue to pull in the orphaned pieces of my puzzle whenever I get a chance, and today I invited in “Ugliness” –

the opposite of beauty.  I wanted to meet with her, to better understand her, to see what she wanted me to know. Lord knows she’s been in my life since forever, but I’ve been shoving her out the door all this time.  Trying to deny her, trying to re-frame her, trying to positive-talk-her, trying to tell her she’s really beautiful, trying to cancel her out… and she wasn’t having it.

She wanted to be seen for what she was.  She knew this was my freedom we’re talking about, and she wasn’t letting me off the hook.  All of that over-riding stuff I mentioned above worked for awhile in it’s time, but not anymore. She knew it was time, she knew I could handle it now… so she turned up the heat, and I had to start listening.

So I invited her to tea.Just me and “ugliness”, sitting down for a chat.

Here’s how it went down:  *disclaimer: this is me and my own perception of my own “ugliness”, this is not some global concept – and I am not trying to define ugliness for anyone. I encourage you to get in touch with your own concept of ugliness and sit down with it. Don’t take my word for it.*

Me:  Ugliness, would you like to join me for tea?

Ugliness:  Yes, I would love that.

Me:  Here you go… (I pour her a cup of hot tea and give her a cookie — no 2 cookies, because I know she won’t ask for more, but she secretly wants 2)

Pondering Polarities: The Truth About Ugliness by Sunni Chapman

Ugliness:  *smiles*  Thank you.  (suddenly notices she is less interested in gobbling up the cookies)  *get’s teary eyed at this realization*

Me:  I haven’t been very kind to you, have I?

Ugliness:  No. But I understand… I’m ugly. Why would you want me around?  *looks at me inquisitively*

Me:  *gets teary eyed too*  You know, I have honestly believed that too and that’s why I’ve kept you away for so long. That’s why I’ve been the “mean girl on the bus” towards you inside, and shamed you, and mentally beat you, and physically abused you, because I have equated you with lack of love. As long as you’re around, I can’t love myself. Why must you be so awkward? why must you be so fucking awkward? Why these marks and scars and shapes and pounds of flesh? why??  I can’t resolve you with how I feel on the inside. Why can’t you reflect how I FEEL?

Ugliness:   I am.(*gets very still, sits up very straight and looks me dead in the eye.  she is calm and absolutely unmoving, and her gaze penetrates to my core – she is crystal clear.*)

Me: *cries, and cries. sobs.*  ohhhh. oh yes. Yes you are. I do feel ugly – about so many things. Not just body or physicality, but so many things. Simple, everyday-things even, things that I do that are less-than-perfect in my minds opinion.

Ugliness:  Yes, I am a reflection of that. Nothing more.  I will always be around, in case you haven’t noticed.  I show up as you, or I show up as THEM.  As long as you continue to see me this way, you can’t love fully.  As long as you exclude me, you can’t love your whole self. That’s why it feels so wrong. That’s why I seem so ugly to you.  Because you think I’m standing in the way of you and freedom.  But the truth is I AM your freedom, I am standing as your BRIDGE to freedom, not as an obstacle to it.  And every time

you avoid me, you don’t take that bridge, and you widen the gap from where you want to be.

Me:   Oh.  (still a little stunned – noticing now it’s me who’s the small confused one, and ugliness is looking quite magnetic at the moment actually, sitting up straight, and absolutely still, with burning clarity and knowingness)  **takes long pause to cry and to say sorry to ugliness, to acknowledge how cruel I’ve been, to take her IN, and to thank her. repeatedly. To hug her, and hold her, and let her hold me.**

Me:  Ugliness, is there anything I can do for you?  What can I do to help you, to bring you in, and to usher us both to the in-between place… the balance?

Ugliness:  Stay with me.  When you kick me out of heaven, you kick yourself out of heaven.  I am a piece of the whole – YOUR whole.  Exclude me, exclude yourself. See how this works?  Without me, beauty doesn’t EXIST. Without me, beauty is EVERYTHING.  I have come to be, so beauty can be experienced.  But when you disown me, beauty cannot be truly experienced.  Beauty becomes a concept you chase — a shadow on the wall — it’s never “perfect” you can never quite grab on to it, or attain it, it remains forever SEPARATE from you, because the thing that DEFINES it, is left out. Think of a chessboard, and think of the black squares as beauty, and the white squares as ugliness – the contrast of the 2 tones allows a game to be played, it allows apparent “movement” through a field towards a goal.  Without the ugliness (the white squares) – to define the beauty (black squares) -it’s just a black board. No game, no movement, no journey, no experience.  A beautiful flower calls to you from a garden, it is surrounded by weeds, it’s beauty is truly experienced because of that contrast.  If it is in a sea of lilies in a field, the lily is not discovered, or truly experienced.  Nothing is truly ugly or beautiful, and each is in the eye of the beholder. But your consciousness has experienced your

body as “ugly” so that it can be “the weeds”, and the lily — which is the heart of you, the source of you, the core of you — can be revealed out of that contrast. Ugliness defines a path, for each of us, in it’s own way, regarding different things (bodies, the world, situations, events, behaviors, regrets, etc.)

Me: oh wow. this is so “beautiful”!  I see, yes I see, that makes so much sense. Thank you ugliness. My god… *gets choked up*…  you are so beautiful.

Ugliness:  yes. I’ve always thought so too.  *no smiles – total ownership*  All polarities arise from the same source.  ALL is beauty… I am beauty’s cloak. For a time.

And here you were thinking I was the one who wanted 2 cookies.  Believing what you’ve been believing about me, it’s a wonder you don’t want 12 cookies.

Me: yes!!  My goodness.

Ugliness:  This is all for your joy, and your adventure. Same goes with all polarities. Sadness is your ultimate happiness.  Anger is your ultimate calm. Heavyness is your ultimate lightness.  Danger is your ultimate safety.  Scarcity is your ultimate abundance. Desires and wanting are your ultimate fulfillment and contentment. Not understanding is your ultimate Understanding. Non-presence or busy-minded-ness is your ultimate presence and peace. Ignorance is your ultimate knowing. Selfishness is your ultimate self-less-ness. EXclusion is your ultimate INclusion.  They carve the path…

Me: …to Center.

Ugliness:  to Center.

Me & Ugliness:  mmmmmmmmmm…. yes!  *clinking of tea cups, knowing smiles, and more hugs all around*

ContributorsThe Studio Voice is an online community weaving story, inspiration, poetry, art, and all other forms of expression. We are so grateful to our contributors for helping us fulfill our mission of connecting you to your story by sharing the stories of others.

Please take the time to learn more about each of our Spring 2013 contributors. They are living examples of Living Out Loud.

If you are interested in contributing to The Studio Voice, please visit our submission page.

Kelly Berkey is a professional artist, blogger, bohemian barefoot goddess. She works from her home art studio in the beautiful

countryside of Missouri where she paints colorful portraits, creates inspirational jewelry, runs her two Etsy shops, photographs everything,

plays her music way too loudly, and blogs obsessively about her artful journey.

You can find Kelly at Kelly Berkey Designs and Kelly Berkey Art.

Shannon Kinney-Duh is the mother to two little boys and has been married for 10 years. She’s a certified Hatha yoga teacher, holistic life-coach and writes a blog at A Free Spirit Life. When she’s not playing with paint or making messes with her boys, she creates e-courses like “Inside Out: A Creative Adventure of Self-Discovery” and “Mothering with heART.”

You can connect with Shannon at Website | Twitter |  Facebook | Instagram

Flora Bowley (pronounced bowl-lee) is an internationally celebrated painter, designer, workshop facilitator, top-selling author, visionary and inspirationalist.  Combining eighteen years of professional painting experience with her background as a yoga instructor, massage therapist and lifelong joy seeker, Flora infuses her teaching and painting style with a deep connection to body, mind, and spirit.  Her first-book,  Brave Intuitive Painting, has now sold over 15,000 copies and her soulful and transformational online course has inspired thousands of people across the globe to move through fear and welcome joyful spontaneous expression back into the creative process.  When not traveling to far away places, Flora can often be found painting in her light-filled studio, communing with mossy forests, meditating in her backyard sauna, daydreaming about her next bold move, making soup and living happily among a colorful

community of fellow artists in Portland, OR.  Flora “lives out loud” by living each day as an expression of her truest self, creating from the heart and inspiring others to do the same.

You can connect with Flora at: Website | Twitter |  Facebook | Instagram

Contributors

My whole life is about art and I’ve spent years building it to be that way. For the last 20 years I’ve been studying art, making art, raising my children and inquiring in to what it means to be here right now in this life – at least for me – as well as undertaking paid work! For the last few years I’ve been fully freelance working for myself running online art-courses, teaching person to person, and making and exhibiting my own art-work.

Having recently graduated from my Fine Art MA at Wimbledon School of Art, UAL, London in September 2012 I have now embarked on opening an art project and gallery space in London UK with 3 other art friends (www.artlacuna.org) – these are exciting times and it’s taken guts, energy and vision – not to mention planning and goal-setting.

Having decided a few years back that life is too short not to do what one is compelled to do within one’s heart I set about making art a full and all-embracing part of my life. It’s not been easy but is most definitely the ‘right’ thing to. Therefore ‘living out loud’ for me, is finding a way to live which enables us to honour and live those dreams calling us from within our hearts. That passion that says ‘I need to be doing this’. It’s about believing there is a way for it to work and about making a life – not just a living. When we dare to do this we are most definitely living out loud. I’ve discovered that if you take steps toward those dreams, the universe meets you in strange and unforeseen ways which declare you are doing the right thing and ‘living out loud’ in a positive way, not just for you, but for all those whose lives you touch.

You can connect with Amelia at: Twitter | Facebook: Amelia Critchlow & Experimental Art E-Course | Blog

Sunni Chapman is a writer, designer, and metaphorical wave rider.  Her creative interests are kaleidoscopic in nature, and as difficult to pin down as a fish in slick water. She lives for the deep dives that pull out the jewels,  and has been known to indulge in mad tea parties.  She writes about all of this, and more at TheDailyBreadcrumb.com. Check out her new book:  Through The Looking Glass, Awakening Your Inner Alice.

THOUGHTS ON ‘LIVING OUT LOUD’

To me, “living out loud” means deeply realizing that you’re the only one who’s listening.

I know how that sounds, but what I mean by that, is no matter who is appearing to hear, see, and support you… you can NEVER experience their hearing,

seeing, or supporting of you, can you. Words of approval or recognition may come out of their mouths, and you may have a reaction to those words, but the reaction, and how those words are experienced can only EVER be known by YOU, and you alone.

See for yourself—can you ever truly know another persons experience of you, or anything else? Or can you only imagine it based on your own thoughts and feelings about what they say?  You see, you never, ever have anything but your own experience. The thoughts and feelings showing up for you are the only ones there will ever be for you. We say, “I know how they feel”, or, “I know what they must think” and that simply isn’t possible… what we know is our own feelings and thoughts, and then we project that onto them.  But it is still, and always, only ever your experience, isn’t it.

You are the one you’ve been wanting to hear you and truly see you, all this time. You are the one you’ve been waiting for.

When you deeply realize you are all you’ve ever had, then there could never be any reason NOT to “live out loud”, because you finally see that you are the only one you’ve ever really been hiding from.  And if that is the case, why on earth would you need to keep hiding?

I can hear me. I can see me. It’s so much more than enough. It’s all I’ve ever really wanted.

I believe that the most beautiful and interesting images often come from the most everyday of objects-it is the way of seeing things from a unique perspective which will bring this beauty to light. Everyday life is so amazing in an abundance of simple yet touching ways, and I strive to capture what speaks to me, often in the most unexpected and seemingly ordinary places. It is my fondest hope my images invoke emotion in the viewer, and I consider it a great privilege and honor to share my visual world with others.

You can connect with Laurie at: Google + , Facebook & Happy Me Laurie Z

liveout

loud

http://studio-voice.com