Metta Mindfulness Silent Retreat - The Insights and the Spacious Spaces…..

Above:  Imbetween Spaces, Encaustic Mixed Media, 2015.

I had truly forgotten the sweet feeling of quietness, to invite peace, ease and happiness into my life, with each daily moment, and the embracing of these imbetween spaces.

Coming off a 4-day silent Metta, (the Pali word for lovingkindness and friendliness) mindfulness meditation retreat, run by True North Insight (TNI) with three powerful teachers, Molly Swan, Jill Davey and Patricia Rockman, where the theme was on the 'heart of mindfulness'.  The journey with all its conditions were as they needed to be, which I see now but didn't at first.  The Loyola House in Guelph have these beautiful trails to get lost within and the food was soul nourishing and healing.  The container provided by these three wonderful women has filled my heart and soul with love, gratitude and peace - it has been a gift.

This gift of mindfully sitting, walking, eating in silence for four days has provided a new awakening that is only a sliver of what still has yet to unfold.   The coming into silence was anything but silent in many ways, the incessant chatter from my own mind, the memories of sweet blissful love, and the haltering sorrows of loss and heartache, all came sweeping into this silence, and for days it continued…

The first two days was filled with my excruciating sleepiness, pure exhaustion came flooding in and the pain of sitting in every joint….was this exhaustion or avoidance?

I try to sit, meditate, to be still, to allow what may surface, reciting the metta phrases of love, safety and peace…yet all I get is sleepiness, I fall asleep, time and time again…. I try, really TRY, I hold my posture, breathe deeply, even force my eyes to open but all I get is sleepiness, it finds me time and time again..this is my struggle.  Again I ask, is this exhaustion or avoidance or an invitation to renunciation?

It crosses my mind, "what have I done, is there still time to leave, to run away?". …But deep within I know  I am here in the right time and place.  I'm here as I need to be.   The day seems endless the sitting (the falling asleep in my case) the walking, the standing, the walking, the eating, all in silence, and all with intent and so it goes on….all the while inviting Metta, for self, for the benefactor, the friend, the stranger, the unfriendly one, and all beings….sending Metta through myself, my heart making space for them all.

This reminded me of Rumi's poem, the GUEST HOUSE, to invite each guest with welcome arms, to sit, drink with them to listen intently.  And so I get through the first day (barely) and the second day there seems to be a sweet settling, and I think maybe I can actually get some meditation done today, to sit, but 'nope' sleepiness arrives at my door again.  This is when I realize the exhaustion is my guest to welcome in, to sit with to have tea and listen to intently.

That evening Jill Davey, gives a magnificent Dharma talk on 'happiness'…What is it?  How do I get it? How come everyone else seems to have it?  And like some, I too want those 'boots', - Yes that will make me happy, right?  The newly renovated garage, the perfect kitchen, and the pristine English style garden, with just the right amount of wildness, with no weeds…this will do it, bring me happiness?  Right!!!…Happiness is within - The making do with what is showing up, inviting a welcoming embrace for it all, being mindful with our thoughts, our reactions, our preferences, dislikes and likes, being loving with our imperfections….Being curious about it all, that is how I find my 'awake', whether it makes me happy or not.  This is what is finding peace and harmony is, being in the moment - a perspective.

Sometimes we aren't able to change the conditions, or control the variables, to try to do so only brings challenge and suffering, like my 'forcing myself to stay alert and awake'…when I came to accept the state of exhaustion, it lifted, and I found I could truly listen….this was my guest on the last day - and I began to be able to feel the metta for myself, for those around me and for those in the room with all the sweet annoyances, and even for those that have hurt me intentionally and /or unknowingly.  Out of which, I realize that I have only begun, touched the tip of the iceberg, and there is so much yet to feel, to deeply explore, to be awakened to.  To make the space for metta daily, to see, feel and connect and slowly and softly tread this earth as I continue the unfolding.   With a full heart I feel more space and welcome it all, whatever may arrive at my door.

Some altered book ideas to consider when making your own book…..

Above:  Hard covered books to alter…. 

The ingredients for choosing a book to alter include the following:

-the cover needs to be hard covered and intact with the spine

-sometimes I choose a book based on a theme of interest

-also consider the feel of the book …for instance is it thick enough for a niche or drawers

- the font, the size, the colour of the cover, any graphics that might be in the book can enhance the altered book

-If the cover or spine is ornate or embellished in anyway, it might be used as part of the design

-Sometimes the content of the book might inform the theme for your altered book or it might unfold as a part of a process carried over a few weeks, months etc. 

-pages need to be able to withstand paint, collage - heavier porous papers are best vs. shiny thin papers

Above:  Spines for altered books should be intact and strong, the best spine from this photo is the green book, the second from the bottom.  The book on the top has a spine that looks a bit too slanted to one side/direction, and this may cause the book to not sit flat…but that can be an interesting look to the overall design too depending on your vision and preference

Above:  An example of an altered book cover, the theme of this book is "Art, Nature and the Soul"…..It is an old manual on teaching art…..

Above:  Layers of pages with collage, paint techniques etc. 

Above:  A prepared niche

Enjoy choosing your books and exploring ideas, a theme for your project.   I will continue to post here some other tidbits in completing an altered book & collage process.

"Creativity Needs Space to Present Itself…"

Above: A section of a collage in my art journal…..This collage explores the things that inspire my heart.

Recently I heard Robin Sharma, say in a video he shared on the benefits of journalling, "Creativity needs space to present itself."….This is so true, it resonated with my experience of journalling anyway.  Anytime I have taken the time to journal my thoughts, feelings, ideas, to do lists, it empties my brain, to make space for the creativity to flow…It truly worked like that.  

Another example of this is, when you might have had a hard time sleeping, or your mind is working a mile a minute and you are tossing and turning, for what seems like HOURS....  I have found if I just get up and write a "to do list" or journal all the things I am thinking, feeling, ruminating about…My brain empties and allows me to let go, relax and finally fall asleep.  I do this because I am tossing and turning anyway, so why not give it a try.

I am so excited about facilitating and teaching the upcoming Four-Week Gratitude Altered Books with Collage & Mixed Media program in June.  It is almost full - only a few spots are left.   Together we will be exploring gratitude, in our journals and working with a hard covered book, creating collages, acrylics and mixed media within the pages.

It has been my experience that when we express gratitude in journalling and art making we begin to see the things we didn't notice before - Or that we see things in a new light and enjoy our everyday, the more mundane aspects of life much more intensely and richly.

So here's to that lovely cup of coffee in the morning, or the feeling of warm water from the shower on our skin.  The smell of rain on the grass, or the sweet buds of violets growing all around us…The list can be endless in how we can see the beauty in our to day to day lives.   I am grateful to those who take the time to read these posts and choose to share or comment on it.  Or simply take the time to reflect privately on your own about the thoughts shared here.  Nameste!

A New 4-Week Altered Book Program Exploring Gratitude using Collage and Mixed Media Techniques

Starting Wednesday June 4th to Wednesday June 25th, 7-9:30 pm in Elora

“We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.” – Thornton Wilder 

In this new 4-week altered book art program, we will explore the theme of gratitude, using reflection exercises, which will then inform the art collages, using mixed media and various collage techniques to alter a hardcover book.  

It has been my experience that when we are in a space of gratitude, we are happier, more grounded and balanced. We begin to really see things as they are and embrace the here and now more.  This grounded space is a very liberating one to be in, and provides room for ourselves to hear and feel peace with what is.  Gratitude attracts good energy, good experiences, wonderful like minded people and new opportunities.

Offering a new altered book, collage & mixed media 4-week art program. 

Starts Wednesday June 4 to 25th, from 7-9:30pm in Elora, ON. 

Together we will explore the theme of gratitude in our lives, while altering a hardcover book with numerous collage and mixed media techniques. 

Cost: $80 for instruction, $60 for supplies, Total: $140.  No experience needed. 

To register: supria@supriakarmakar.com

Benefits of Gratitude Thinking & Living…..

"We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures" 

~ Thornton Wilder

"Writing a new HeART story", Encaustic Mixed Media, 2013

Feeling and being grateful for all the things that show up in our lives, really does make a difference in moving through the ebbs and flow of daily living.  Gratitude has proven to enhance well-being.  In an article by Robert A. Emmons and Anjali Mishra, "Why Gratitude Enhances Well-Being: What We Know, What We Need to Know", they share the following ways in which being grateful enhances our lives:

1. Gratitude facilitates coping with stress
2. Gratitude reduces toxic emotions resulting from self and social comparisons
3. Gratitude reduces materialistic strivings
4. Gratitude improves self-esteem
5. Gratitude enhances accessibility to positive memories
6. Gratitude builds social resources
7. Gratitude motivates moral behaviour
8. Grateful people are spiritually minded
9. Gratitude facilitates goal attainment
10. Gratitude promotes physical health

For more wonderful readings on gratitude and the benefits of it on our health, wellness and life, visit:  Dr. Robert Emmons Lab.  As sited from this link:  

"Grateful people report higher levels of positive emotions, life satisfaction, vitality, optimism and lower levels of depression and stress.  The disposition toward gratitude appears to enhance pleasant feeling states more than it diminishes unpleasant emotions.  Grateful people do not deny or ignore the negative aspects of life."  (http://psychology.ucdavis.edu/Labs/emmons/PWT/index.cfm?Section=5)

Above:  A Gratitude Vision Board created by Supria Karmakar

Some everyday things I am grateful for …..

Your Turn:  Take a look around and find three things you are grateful for in your everyday life.

On March 22nd, for the Spring Equinox 2014, Jill Davey of RiverSound Retreat and I, Supria Karmakar will be offering another daylong retreat exploring the topic of gratitude, opening to what is, vs. holding on or letting go, using meditation, yoga and vision board creation.  Come join us exploring gratitude and doing a day long retreat by the river in the beauty of the trees.   To register:  Jill@RiverSoundRetreat.com or call/text 519-993-7480 

What is Art Therapy?

Art therapy is one of many modalities that is capable of helping guide you to health and happiness.
"Art therapy is a mental health profession that uses the creative process of art making to improve and enhance the physical, mental and emotional well-being of individuals of all ages." (American Art Therapy Association, 2012, Online).

Art therapy is an expressive language of the conscious and the unconscious minds.  The pursuit of art can be accomplished through various mediums including:  sculpting, drawing, mosaics, painting, clay making, encaustic, collage, mixed media, journalling, music and a variety of other art/creative modalities.

Art therapy can be instrumental in assessing and treating a variety of psychological matters.

"Art therapy is used with children, adolescents, adults, older adults, groups, families, veterans, and people with chronic health issues to assess and treat the following: anxiety, depression, and other mental and emotional problems; substance abuse and addictions; family and relationship issues; abuse and domestic violence; social and emotional difficulties related to disability and illness; trauma and loss; physical, cognitive, and neurological problems; and psychosocial difficulties related to medical illness." (American Art Therapy Association, 2012, Online).

Art therapy is another instrument and possibility in the scope of promoting psychological health and well being.

Some of the benefits include:

• facilitates positive self-expression, feelings and emotions
• an enhanced positive perspective on your life
• promotes a sense of personal independence, self-reliance and self-sufficiency
• assists in working through a difficult situation and experience(s)
• provides an opportunity to express non-verbally aspects of one life that might feel otherwise difficult to express or share
• Give some personal insight into a situation or lived experience(s)
• Promotes other ways of coping and problem solving skills
• Facilitates overall insight, empathy, acceptance, self-compassion, loving kindness
• Proven to assist with managing, exploring and problem solving around traumatic experiences
• Empowers and gives voice
• Facilitates focus, and decreases frustrations 

 The Evidence Supports Art Therapy:

"Numerous case studies have reported that art therapy benefits patients with both emotional and physical illnesses.  Case studies have involved many areas, including burn recovery in adolescents and young children, eating disorders, emotional impairment in young children, reading performance, childhood grief, and sexual abuse in adolescents.  Studies of adults using art therapy have included adults or families in bereavement, patients and family members dealing with addictions, and patients who have undergone bone marrow transplants, among others.  Some of the potential uses of art therapy to be researched include reducing anxiety levels, improving recovery times, decreasing hospital stays, improving communication and social function, and pain control." (American Cancer Society, 2012 Online).

Research has shown that art therapy has been used quite successfully to help children learn to effectively communicate, have improved concentration, improved behaviours and develop closer relationships.  It has shown to improve moods, promote relaxation, and decrease disruptive behaviours and attitudes.  Randomised control trial research shows that art therapy helped improve coping strategies." (Penny Brohn Cancer Care, 2011, Online).

REFERENCES 
American Art Therapy Association (2009) Who is helped by art therapy. Retrieved February 26, 2012, from http://www.americanarttherapyassociation.org/upload/whoarearttherapists2009.pdf

American Cancer Society (2012) Find support & treatment, The most reliable cancer treatment information: Art therapy. Retrieved February 26, 2012, from http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffectsComplementaryandAlternativeMedicine/MindBodyandSpirit/art-therapy

Mullin, J., Grandin, T. (2012) Drawing autism. New York: Mark Batty Publisher

Penny Brohn Cancer Care (2011) Art therapy. Retrieved February 25, 2012, from http://www.nhs.uk/ipgmedia/national/Penny%20Brohn%20Cancer%20Care/Assets/Arttherapy(PBCC).pdf
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Braman, O. R. (1997) The oppositional child. Indiana: Kidsrights

Bloch, D. (1993) Positive self-talk for children, Teaching self-esteem through affirmations, A guide for parents, teachers, and counselors. New York:  Bantam Books

Deaver, S., & McAuliffe, G. (2009). Reflective visual journaling during art therapy and counseling internships: A qualitative study. Reflective Practice, 10(5), 615-632.

Gussak, D. (2006) Effects of art therapy with prison inmates: A follow-up study. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 33(3), 188-198

Ponteri, A., K. (2001). The effect of group art therapy on depressed mothers and their children. Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 18(3), 148- 157.

Smeijsters, H., & Cleven, G. (2006). The treatment of aggression using arts therapies in forensic psychiatry: Results of a qualitative inquiry. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 33(1), 37-58

Walsh, S. M., Martin, S. C., Schmidt, L. A. (2004) Testing the efficacy of a creative-arts intervention with family caregivers of patients with cancer. Journal of Nursing Scholarship. 36: 214-219.