Today is the Day I Turned My Life Around
"Today is the day I turned my life around." These words were echoing through my mind as I awoke this morning.
For the last 4 years, I have tended and healed the B&B I run with my partner as if it were my own, putting in long hours above and beyond the remuneration my small stipend pays me. We've given it our all. We've cared, cleaned, been committed and passionate. But it is over. The place is closed and due to be sold, my partner and I redundant and facing eviction despite our best efforts.
As my current way of life disappears before my eyes, as the threat of having 'everything' taken away looms - home, job, chickens, studio - what I really want becomes crystal clear like never before. But what am I going to do to achieve it, to REALise it?
Well, I have decided to make this the beginning of a new life, a new chapter, a new story - a story of personal redemption and power; of triumph over adversity; of healing, of trust, of grace.
Rufus at the door. I am committed to ensuring that he is cared for, even though he is feral
"Today is the day I turned my life around." I know now that I will look back and say that in years to come.
I hereby dedicate my life wholeheartedly to turning this ship around - to healing myself and supporting others in facilitating their healing, too. As cells in the body of humanity, our task is to help each other, to support each other, to work together towards ever-increasing levels health and life-serving behaviours. It's up to me to model this, to LIVE IT - to be ever more the change I want to see in the world.
Me with Drowsy, who fought my battles for me as a little girl. She's here beside me, smiling supportively, willing me to stand up for myself and those I love now
WE LIVE WHAT WE LEARN
A powerful message I received as a child, which seeped into my subconscious mind and which I hear myself perpetuating often, is, "Beggars can't be choosers." But I am NOT a beggar. I am a unique and dedicated creative entity, with a body of work which speaks for itself. I am a devoted mother and friend to my non-human companions. I'm more than willing to go the extra mile to help anyone who really needs it. I see where humanity is causing its own downfall and I passionately desire to contribute something of value, of worth, to its healing. I am playing a part in creating a new, life-serving Paradigm to replace the Old - that current mode of being and interacting with All That Is which serves only a tiny percentage of us well, whilst generating misery and lack for the rest of us.
The internal voice that tells me I am unworthy, unlovable and a failure is mistaken. I am loving, lovable and loved. Today is a new day and I am READY. No more scratching in the dirt - I'll leave that to my feathered friends. Today is the day I turn my life around. Today is the day I begin to truly live what I choose to learn and to teach, more fully and confidently than ever before.
TODAY IS THE DAY I TURNED MY LIFE AROUND
For the last 10 years, I have invested vast amounts of love, passion and energy into creating my portfolio and developing my art. When I wasn't mothering (unschooling), working, healing, or rescuing people and animals (and often whilst I was!), I have spent virtually every minute and every penny on my art. I have abandoned any notion of living a 'normal' life in the pursuit of becoming an independent creative. It's time to turn around, to open my heart to receive a return on that investment. An exchange of energy which will facilitate my work as an artist and a healer.
As my career builds, I will be RE-INVESTING in causes which are in alignment with my own core values - in ways of living which unite, which help create a New Paradigm with the betterment and evolution of Humanity at its heart. MY ULTIMATE GOAL is to create (or co-create) a SAFE PLACE where I can live in harmony with All That Is and offer solace and acceptance, joy and beauty to those who need its healing balm.
Detail from 'Brave and Strong and True'
In these troubled times, it falls to us all to be brave and strong and true. We can do this!
With love, Jay xxx
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I am very grateful for your support. Thank you so much 💝💝💝
You are a wonderful spirit and lovely person and I wish you all the luck !!! This is a great post that shows internal strength <3 I admire it very much !!!
Thank you so much for this lovely, encouraging comment, @veryspider - your words and the warm, supportive resonance behind them mean a great deal to me. 💜💜💜💜
You can do this <3 I may not know you personally but I have always been impressed with your art and photography and just energy and spirit in general :) Much love - Carl
Carl, thank you so much for your loving support - it means a lot to me, even though we only know of each other through cyberspace...Your words are resounding in my heart and I am truly grateful for them...Much love back to you and yours, Jay xxx
Beautifully written!!!
All the best luck. ♥
Thank you, Maria - I really appreciate your encouragement ♥
U r welcome. ☺
You truly are like the title of this painting Brave and Strong and True.
I could really feel your strength and determination now to 'turn your life around' and I know without any doubt that you WILL.
I've been told that we are only given in life what we are capable of being able to accept and learn and grow from. Your situation must be frightening on one hand and yet the Universe was probably just waiting to hear you say: 'TODAY IS THE DAY I TURNED MY LIFE AROUND.'
Your voice is an inspiration to me and I feel your words could almost have been spoken by me ~ Only you express them so passionately and eloquently.
The investors in your art will be there for you as soon as you are able to connect with them so that they know it's out there. The freedom you express in your work and the techniques you have evolved are UNIQUE. No-one else can paint like you and people will want to share in the creative and loving energy you are communicating. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
Ally, I just saw that you ReSteemed this post - thank you so much, my friend ♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎
A pleasure Jay.
As soon as we give our 'messages' out for the help we need ~ The Universe will respond. And being able to help the Universe, even just by resteeming is great to be able to do. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
Every little thing helps, Ally - the Butterfly Effect is a very real thing ❤❤❤
@allyinspirit, I may not 'know' you in real life, but please know that I love you, Soul Sister. I wish I could adequately express how positively your words of support - and the beautiful energy behind them - affect me as I'm absorbing them, but as I suspect you are well aware, such feelings are beyond words and can only be felt, and resonated with, and appreciated. Thank you so much. ONLY love to you, Jay 💖💖💖💖💖💖💖
Yes. I totally understand the inadequacy of words sometimes Jay. When we resonate, we just resonate and the feelings leave us light and joyful ~ And then in some way those feelings will ripple out to other people along our pathway. It's all helping all of us expand and then that will be reflected in our art and everything we do. Much love and well wishes to you and your partner and all your chickens.
PS: I love how you see that it's not just for yourself that you 'turn your life' around but that your daughter Raven and Bertie and Rufus are all counting on you. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
Ally, that's exactly how I see and feel it, too - thank you! ♥︎♥︎♥︎♥︎
Jay, have you seen @homesteaderscoop's introductory articleSupporting a Steem Community Economy: Intention, values and ethics in our products - Introducing Homesteaders Co-op.
Maybe you have or can develop work/products that would be in harmony with the eco-friendly and sustainable ethics of this Co-op? ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
Thank you for pointing me in their direction, Ally. I am now Following @homesteaderscoop and their various constituent parts and will look into that more for certain. At a glance, their aims and ethics are certainly in alignment with my own. Thank you again! xxx
Pleasure Jay.
I think it's such a wonderful initiative ~ Perhaps more suited for artisans than artists/painters. But I thought you may also have items that you have made from natural materials etc that you could offer for sale there too. ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
I agree, Ally, it's a really fantastic idea. Perhaps my painted pebbles might be acceptable to them - I suppose it depends on how strict the criteria are... xx
Your painted pebbles are really striking and would make a beautiful addition to the Homesteaders Co-op website. The tiles on your Etsy site could also be part of your range. I feel anyway.
This is the application form: https://homesteaderscoop.com/sell/ ~ I don't think you'll have any trouble filling it out as most of the information required is in this post already.
I hope you are able to set up a Patreon Page. I've been thinking about doing something like that for some time now but always find explaining what I do to be really 'challenging.' ♥︎♥︎⚖️♥︎♥︎
I hadn't thought about the little minis, Ally - they are created on the 'middles' of mounts, cut out to matte photographs by a friend of mine. They used to go into his recycling bin, but he now saves them up for me and passes them on. I'll check out the application form, thank you! I opened a Patreon account a while ago but, like you, haven't yet found a way to initiate a campaign or whatever they call it over there... I'm looking into it right now, and also the idea of starting a crowdfunding project on one of the many fundraising platforms is buzzing around in my awareness, with contributors having the option to receive a piece of my artwork or a Said In Stones pebble or two in return for their donation... The search goes on for somewhere either temporary or more long-term... I'm open to all possibilities and my focus is on making sure we're all happy and healthy and working towards a bright future making a difference in the world and the lives around us. Lots of love to you, Ally! xxxx