Steemit Vision Quest. Rediscovering the queen of the forest.
It is week six of the steemit vision quest.
Since discovering @cabelindsay's quest when he launched it in the first week with Space inbetween I have used the six weeks to do a lot of soul searching.
Along with my husband I have been making some big choices for our future.
This has required a lot of acceptance and ownership of the things we can not change as well as making a commitment to enhancing the things we can.
This includes a decision to move. I suppose it is a tree change.
Moving our family is not an easy decision, but it is I think the right one for us all.
To me the vision quest has been about taking time to stop and acknowledge self and truth and to appreciate the strength and beauty that I do have in my life.
To start on a journey of wellness and relinquish an identity of chronic illness.
Connect with the queen of the forest. The nature of strength and wellness that resides beneath dis- ease.
That is what illness really is after all. The body or spirit is I'll at ease.
This is a mix medium work I did today for the vision quest.
It is comprised of feathers I collected during the bird exposure I did in December 2016.
I have Ornithophobia.
Fear of birds.
Even feathers bother me A LOT!
I did a post about my motivation to face my fear in support of a charity. https://steemit.com/drawing/@girlbeforemirror/chicken-challenge-i-did-it
Reading the post now isn't easy.
I am facing the same challenges, in fact my health has declined since then.
This is my motivation to make sounder choices for my family. They are with me through this protracted period and they need a shift out of this as much as I do.
We visited a forest today.
It is near the location where we are looking at moving to.
This feels like the right place to regain hope and health.
To connect with the queen of the forest.
To find stability even if some things can not be improved, life can still be enjoyed.
Regarding the artist challenge
Queen of the forest
This was the process-
A canvas of eucalypt paper bark.
Several large pieces glued across a board.
A crown of feathers.
The feathers - turkey, owl, Rosella, goose, duck guinea fowl, peacock. I collected all of them myself, except the peacock, which were given to me.
Acrylic paint and pastels.
My Queen.
She represents reconnecting with nature, self, wellness, nurturing and motherhood.
All of these things I am seeking to strengthen as I continue a journey of wellness and away from a mindset of illness.
Thank you for your support.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Using feathers - you really are pushing yourself in a lot of very barve and painful ways it seems. As kids, we 'lived' in the woods as much as wee could, a neighborhood rule was all forts and traps to be build using only things we found. We also attempted to weave grass etc but we never honed that talent haha. My Aunt always painted on lichens, and my father made the most incredible scarecrow using a moose pelvis as the face 0_0. Man... I need to get out of my own funk, this looked a perfect one to make me get back out in nature and look around. I'm just not feeling brave and cannot seem to push myself much right now. I recently got hacked so my vp is drained, but as compliment to the contest theme, I sent you a planted tree/tip <3
I'm not feeling brave so much as desperate. I am hurting at the moment, my hands are really sore, I like to rely to all these lovely comments, I will reply in a little while when my hands feel a bit better.
Sometimes when I don't do much or have a good day I forget or diminish my issues. I end up doing too much. I am paying for it now, but it doesn't feel as bad as doing nothing feels. Nothing day after day just slowly eats away at you.
Have you been doing your music thing?
Man I'm sorry you got hacked. Bastards. We had a limited amount per month that got drained over night a while back. Violation. I just upped your recent posts, but my voting power is not very strong at the moment. X
No I have not been doing music stuff. All of that comes from a deep sense of joy which I cannot access at the moment haha. I write a lot in general, so facebook and here . I really appreciate the love, yeah it was a small amount but to me it was too much. And obviously I was pretty hard on myself because being in this sort of muted state I make more mistakes and am a lot clumsier, which adds to the stress. Video games are my artistic distraction, and I'm playing the current Assassin's Creed which is set in ancient Eygypt, and has guided tours about all sorts of fascinating things. Its my vacation lol . Desperation is a step up though, it has some fire to it <3
Also, I don't know what kind of pain you are having, but have you tried Kratom? It can help rotate off of pain meds , and it has a much much milder 'withdraw' effect , very helpful for chronic pain and also mood boost. Skullcap is another one and when mixed with kava (which has analgesic properties) is very helpful for muscle spasminig kind of pain. I wrote my fist post here about different types of kratom if you want to look into . xxox
I can attest that kratom is very helpful with chronic pain, and is pleasant, without adding to stress. Nice stuff.
I've used it for chronic neck and shoulder pain, and it has helped me a lot.
No need to reply, rest your hands xo
Hey Sister! Your Vision is showcased as a highlight of Steemit Vision Quest Week 6: Queen of the Forest: https://steemit.com/svq/@cabelindsay/steemit-vision-quest-week-6-queen-of-the-forest-highlights.
We celebrate your Creative Spirit, and we appreciate your entry in Steemit Vision Quest.
You just planted 0.39 tree(s)!
Thanks to @kilbride
We have planted already 4387.84 trees
out of 1,000,000
Let's save and restore Abongphen Highland Forest
in Cameroonian village Kedjom-Keku!
Plant trees with @treeplanter and get paid for it!
My Steem Power = 20732.04
Thanks a lot!
@martin.mikes coordinator of @kedjom-keku
Well it seems to me some witchy thing, to impress God we should praise him that is what I have learnt, this I saw first time in my life. Does it really work? It seems hell of a work is to be done to do so.
It's a painting. I don't seek to impress god with it at all. But if it portrays a witchy vibe I don't mind.
I came across a post just now, which is strange, about the courageous woman persecuted as witches in the name of god. Maybe you would like to read it. https://steemit.com/writing/@cryptosharon/witches-in-literature-the-victims-of-prejudice-and-ignorance
I will go through it, thanks
Thank you for the mention. I've come across a couple posts about witches in very little time. Here is another one that someone recommended me on my post's comment section:
https://steemit.com/life/@bennettitalia/witches-past-lives-and-recurring-dreams-a-true-story
I'm not as much into reincarnation as he is, but it sure strikes me as a collection of interesting coincidences.
that is an amazing artwork!
moving to that greenery place will be great for health!
Your beautiful feather queen reminds me of @stellabelle. I think you will overcome your fear in time with your art. Are you afraid of bird songs too?
She is the steem queen. I'm reading her book at the moment actually, I just received it in the post. Uncrap your life.
Good. I had a feeling you are following her work. @stellabelle was one of the primary reasons I signed up for Steemit.
Upon reading your comment I just bought @stellabelle Uncrap Your Life. Looking forward to uncrapping mine too. Thanks for the timely reminder. You are my first creative accident of today. Maybe there will be more.
I didn't know that such things could be used in art... U have done an amazing job... Moreover get well soon
You seem to be very daring, judging from your painting on feathers, which cause you such repulsion. I applaud your choice, even though I wouldn't have been as brave as you were, and I hope that it brings well-being. Be well, girl before the mirror; may your illness die and good days come for you.
This is very beautiful, I think you have chose a beautiful place to move too, being near a forest is so healing. Be gentle with yourself, one step at a time and thank you for sharing your art with us. she does indeed look like the Queen of the forest x