Introspection Archives < Arwen, Professional Joy Seeker

Embracing Change?

Part of my daily practice is to write. I like to pull a card (Lenormand, Tarot, Oracle) then write about what it brings up in me. In our current climate, change has been a topic seemingly from everyone.

What do we do about change?
How do we create change?
How do we change things that are changing?
Can we change ourselves to adapt to our new climate?

And so it goes. I don’t think the discussion is new. I do think it is louder, more vociferous, more in-my-face than it has been. I also think it is showing me things that I cannot condone.

Violence in thought, word and/or deed is a big one for me.

All of that was on my mind when I wrote down the question for the day.

How can I embrace change more effectively?

If I am honest, I can admit that I was pretty sure I knew what my answer was. I would just have to embrace change as it came.

But the card I pulled forced me into a deeper way of looking at thing. A more profound yet far simpler answer was waiting for me in the turn of a card.

Using the Housewives Tarot (Quirk Books 2004), I flipped over the Three of Pentacles. And here is part of my journal entry.

Housewives Tarot Three of Pentacles — Housewives Tarot

Interesting. She’s doing the work to reinforce the shelf while the other three look on. Why are they not helping?

And that’s it in a small, encapsulated natural holder: nutshell. She doesn’t care that they are not helping. That they seem to be judging her work. She’s doing the work that needs to be done.

Her arms/hands are the tools. Left hand is a hammer. Right hand is a screwdriver. She didn’t have to stop to grab tools. She is Tools.

The work doesn’t scare her. She is as cheerful as a robin greeting spring. This isn’t about her. It isn’t about them. It isn’t even about the shelf.

It’s about the work itself.

She would be fixing something else if not this shelf. She’d be creating more plates. She’d be inventorying her environment to see what needed doing.

She would just do. It is where her joy is. In the doing.

Not the doing for others.
Just the very act of doing.

Today I do what needs to be done.

I end each journal entry with an affirmation. I tell my clients that affirmations are best said out-loud. I advocate that they are done three times three. By that I mean, say the affirmation three times. Do that three times a day so that you have a total of nine. Bare minimum!

And say them out loud. Look yourself in the eye in the mirror when you do this. Our brains process what we hear differently than when we read the same thing.

So what will you do about change? My answer turned out to be to just do the work that needs to be done. I guess the Universe is kicking me in the rump telling me to stop worrying about the efficacy of what I do and worry about the DO part of what I do.

Today I do what needs to be done. I know what I see that needs doing, but I don’t want to put words into your mouths. Instead please let me know in the comments what you will be doing.

Seek joy, y’all. Pass it on.

The Arwen Remodeling Project (2/12/2008)

Some may blink at the date above. I am republishing this from 2/12/2008. I have edited it ONLY to remove two memes. The rest stands exactly as it was offered in 2008 when I was on LiveJournal. It has passed the test of time. I still believe this. It’s a struggle to live this way. I fail. But when I succeed? Oh. Yeah. Baby. It’s like one of those mind-blowing orgasms where you know everything is perfect in your world.

————-From 2/12/2008————–

What is your truth? guaranteed to be not about BF! lol

Rage, Joy + Tarot

How does it serve us to call others names when we react violently to being called names ourselves?

[Tweet “How does it serve us to call others names when we react violently to being called names ourselves?”]

#affirmation So there’s this meme that’s been going around for a while about “what my friends think I do” etc. So I made one to amuse myself. I hope it amuses you too.

The last card is what I hope the truth is about what I do. That I offer compassion and hope to those I read for. It’s so important to me to show you how you can find joy. Sometimes I think it’s critically urgent that we all reset our brains.

There is so much wrong in our world. So much we can’t truly control. What we can control is our own response to the evils of power abuse and people abuse and animal abuse and, oh hell, just abuse. We can lash out in rage or we can channel our anger into productive things.

What good is it to scream epitaphs at videos, news, posts? How does it serve us to call others names when we react violently to being called names ourselves?

How is my calling a police office a fat fucking pig any different from someone calling me a fat fucking dyke?

I don’t see the difference. Do you?

Maybe if we focus on our small joys, we can use that to help us channel our righteous rage into better uses. That’s my hope. What those better uses are I will leave up to each of us. Some are more fulfilled by writing while others may find that taking it to the streets suits them.

For today’s affirmation:

Today I acknowledge my anger. I let it feed me in useful, productive ways. I accept that things need to be changed. I put myself in the position of being an agent of change. I breathe in joy so I can breathe out productive change. Loved and loving, I love each of you. Seek joy, y’all. Pass it on.

Tarot MeMe, generated at KnowYourMeMe by Arwen Lynch, Feel free to share.

Blow It Away

Blow it away. Sounds easy, right? Simple? Or maybe simplistic. Maybe ridiculous.

[Tweet “Blow it away. Sounds easy, right? Simple? Or maybe simplistic. Maybe ridiculous.”]

Blow it away. Sounds easy, right? Simple? Or maybe simplistic. Maybe ridiculous.

Bear with me. I want you to try something. If you have a dandelion handy, fabulous. If not, use your imagination, darling.

Look at the dandelion. See all those little seeds ready to take off at a moment’s notice? What if each one of them was a game changer? A fate changer? A reality changer?

What if you blew into that center of seeds while making, not a wish, but a statement of purpose. A statement that defined your own desires to create space for joy in your life–whatever that joy might look like?

See, dandelions are weeds. Those seeds represent so many weeds. But change your perspective. Change your point of view. Change your attitude.

See them as the happy yellow flowers they will become. See them as the green leaves that can be used for medicine. See them as the white puffballs children delight in blowing away.

Blow it away. Change your fate.
Blow it away. Create space for joy.

Seek joy, y’all! Pass it on.

Dandelion MeMe, Arwen Lynch, 2014
Original Image Purchased From Art of Crafts Designs

Submarines, Horsetails + Curves

[Tweet “When we are surrounding by those all facing one way, if we’re called to face the other, we should.”]

The past few days were spent in my home town. I stayed with my sister who is a terrific human being. She can make me laugh until I snort! I lazed about her home while she and her husband worked. Yes, indeed, it was a lovely rest! I also got to hang out with my soon-to-be thirteen-years-old niece. I can’t begin to tell you what a fascinating young woman she’s turning out to be.

While I was there, I took pictures. This home is new to me so it was fun to explore. Built in 1908, it faces a levee where I remember many fun times including sledding and watching submarine races with a few boys–ahem!

She has a small square of horsetails that have been allowed, encouraged even, to grow tall. You can’t see it in this shot, but there is a Japanese glass fishing float in the midst. My sister told me she likes it better when the horsetails are trimmed down.

Me? I like them like this. I particularly like the one that’s broken then kept on growing its own way. It reminds me that we should all grow our own way. Even when we are surrounding by those all facing one way, if we are called to face the other, we should.

Today I grow my own way. Today I curve in the direction that calls to me. Today I put my mind on my own business because it’s important. I let go of my need to run other people’s business. Today I grow my own way. I am strong enough. I am beautiful enough. I am enough. Loved and loving, I love each of you. Seek joy, y’all. Pass it on.

Horsetails, Stephanie Arwen Lynch-Poe, July 2014

I’d appreciate your sharing this if it so pleases you.

Cheetah or Snail?

Well then, I guess we better point out what a craptastic snail the cheetah is.

Today is not a card day. Today is about something small and modest. Today is about ownership. Today is about being proud of what I can do. It is, in the end, about snails and cheetahs.

This post was sparked by something a friend said on their Facebook. They spoke of how it saddened them to see inspirational posts and photos and quotes about how they could do anything they set their mind to do.

You see, my friend has a chronic illness. For them, a good day is a day that doesn’t require a nap. I responded to their post with this,

“Defeatist thinking? That’s not defeatist thinking! That’s understanding what you can do. I certainly can’t run a marathon (don’t really want to either, thanks). I rewrite those things into things I can do. Like…walking more than half a block is a goal right now. Fuck defeatist thinking because that…well, that defeats the whole purpose. Seek joy on your own terms. If joy today is making it through cleaning up the kitchen, then celebrate that. You get to set YOUR own damned goals of happiness. So there.”

And I mean that. My garden is my example of this. Would I like a yard that has twisting paths with sudden explosions of color? Where animals come to play? Where I can stroll out to have a cup of tea under a weeping willow tree?

Heck yeah.

But the realities of my circumstances are that I live in a condo where I can container garden only. I have a bad back so sometimes I have to sit my ass on the concrete to scoop dirt into pots (and that, my friends is a luxury that some don’t have…the ability to get up and down from the concrete!). I (and my darling husband and my stepson when he lived here) recycle pots that others throw out.

I work with what I have and am joyful for that work. I can’t hold myself to anyone else’s standards (or sub standards for that matter.) What I need is to be true to my own precious self.

So my garden is what you see in the picture. Six salvia plants, two petunias, bell peppers, jalapenos and tomatoes. Not a twisting path in sight unless you count the dirt that fell out of the bag. I turned that to mud when I dragged the hose over to water.

And I am inordinately proud of my little patio mess. I own it. It’s me. It’s all me.

So, looping back to my response to my friend’s words…I want you all to give yourself permission to do what you can and a bit more. If your “bit more” is skipping 30 minutes of an hour nap, then good on you. Whatever your “bit more” is, that’s your inspirational challenge. So what if it is “empty the dishwasher in one session instead of two”? Who the heck cares? You did something that challenges YOU.

And that, my loves, that is what is important. Challenge yourself.

A snail doesn’t set out to beat a cheetah. It sets out to get where it wants to go.

Isn’t that enough? The snail knows it can’t compete with the cheetah, but you know what? I’ll bet the cheetah can’t compete with the snail either. Does the cheetah have the ability to carry its own den with it? NO?

[Tweet “Well then, I guess we better point out what a craptastic snail the cheetah is.”]

Silly.

Be the best you you can be. That’s enough.

Patio Beginnings, picture by Arwen Lynch-Poe, April 11, 2014

Seek joy, y’all. Pass it on.

#seekjoy

How Do You Maintain?

Today’s card is not a Tarot card. It’s a reminder via a tangle I did. I’ve been doing this awesome group called “Becoming Safely Embodied” with my therapist and three other amazing women. We just completed the sessions.

Among the things we did was some art therapy. On the last day we were asked to take a large piece of paper to draw or write about our experiences in the group. I grabbed a red pen and tangled.

This is only a portion of that sheet. And, truthfully, I didn’t find JOY in this group. Joy is something I find all the time because I actively look for it.

I think that the best thing was a chance to meet with others who were on a similar path of healing but who were not women I would have normally met. Each was unique in her own life and so incredibly authentic.

I think that is one of the hardest things to maintain. For me at least. No, not the joy seeking. The really hard thing is for me to maintain authenticity as a joy seeker.

There are times when I get so freaking tired of all the negativity. I want to stop leading a joy-seeking life and shriek like a mad woman.

Oh, I’m not perfect. Ask my stepson. He takes the brunt of my non-joyful behaviour (mostly around things I ask to be done that aren’t done–this doesn’t make me joyful.) I don’t pretend to be perfect either. I think that sucks too.

LOL. This post is more about what sucks rather than joy, isn’t it. 😀

So my 180 seconds today will be focusing on why the negativity of others eats at me. Why I feel so compelled to get out of my hula hoop. And how to stay in that self-described hoop.

What will your 180 seconds be devoted to today? Your choice! Just dedicate three minutes to challenging your self on some level.

Seek joy, y’all! Pass it on.

Joy Tangle, Arwen Lynch, feel free to share with copyright attached pretty please.

Somebody’s Watching Me

Today’s card is not a card so much as a reminder. Do you live your life as if everyone is watching you? Do you worry that the world is judging your every movement?

Sometimes I feel that way. I can feel eyes watching me. It seems as if the whole of the world knows I will stumble.

And you know what? If I live my life with that fear, guess what happens? Yes, you know it.

I stumble.

I try to be a joyful person as well as a joy seeker. I don’t see them as the same thing. I work hard to maintain a good outlook on life but, like everyone, there are situations and people that make me snap.

But I don’t worry about what those watching eyes think. I can’t live my life walking to their wants, their needs. I can’t plan my day with “what will X think or say about me.”

I have to live my life for me.

Of course, when it’s this particular set of eyes watching me, I’ve found that putting food in her bowl really helps get rid of that being stared at feeling.

What do you do? How do you deal with the expectations you think the world has of you?

For your 180 seconds today, I am challenging you to identify one expectation that you try to meet that you don’t want to meet. Decide if that expectation is truly you or if it is someone else.

Don’t live someone else’s life for them, darlings. Live your own. You are doing a beautiful job of it.

Seek joy, y’all! Pass it on.

Vinegar Stares, Arwen Lynch, 2012

Vinegar Staring. Arwen Lynch, 2012

Why Pick A Word For The Year?

You may have heard of the trend in the past years to pick a word for the year rather than setting resolutions.

Resolutions seem, to me, to be invitations to fail.

Today’s card is not a card but a word. It’s a word that I associate with a card (a few truth be told.) You may have heard of the trend in the past years to pick a word for the year rather than setting resolutions.

Resolutions seem, to me, to be invitations to fail. Words of power or sacred words or words of intention are different. By setting up a word, you are actively calling in that energy.

Some words I’ve seen are:

Peace
Gratitude
Abundance
Limitless
Strength

My word is “galvanize” which took me quite a bit to really settle on. I thought it would be Joy or Love or Happy, really. Or maybe Connect. Connect was a strong contender in this decision making process.

But I hit galvanize and realized that I’d been saing it off and on for a while. I looked it up to make sure I knew what it meant. (Ask me about the time I referred to a convocation of professors as a noisome jungle…)

Galvanize, verb
1. to stimulate by or as if by a galvanic current.
2. Medicine/Medical . to stimulate or treat (muscles or nerves) with induced direct current ( distinguished from faradize ).
3. to startle into sudden activity; stimulate.
4. to coat (metal, especially iron or steel) with zinc.

So of those four possibilities, only one was “off the list”, so to speak. I really don’t think I need to coat myself with zinc. 😐

But the rest? Oh yes, baby! The rest sang to me. I love number three…to startle into sudden activity.

You know I’ve been yammering on about the Leonie Dawson workbook+planner. Well y’all, that’s what startle me into sudden activity. It stimulated me on a spiritual level as well as physical.

I was firing on all cylinders, y’all.

If you want to check this workbook out, go here. Yes, I talk about it all the time. Yes, I make money if you buy a copy.

But yes, it really is that good. I never get evangelistic like this but this darn thing has really helped me.

It’s not about “thinking yourself rich”. It’s not about avoiding the reality that sometimes life just sucks.

It’s about how to set yourself up to be incredible and to really make amazing things happen.

It’s that good for me. I hope you will take advantage of this. And there’s no time limit on when you can start it. So no worries there. It’s never too late to start.

So the graphic today is from the workbook. I wrote my word in the existing form. Then I snapped a shot with Instagram and posted it.

Galvanize!

Seek Joy, Y’all! Pass it on.

Zentangle, Arwen Lynch, 2013

Friends, Sticky & Centers

How do you connect? How do you fit in? Where is your place in the web of joy that we are creating?

Today’s card is not a card but one of my Zentangles. It reminds me that differences can make a whole ‘nother story. There are four elements here. None of them were planned. I just picked a doodle and did it. The one I wanted to learn was the one in the upper left corner.

How often have you met someone and become friends with them only to expand your world even more by the people they know? Who is in your life now because of someone else? Sometimes that someone else has moved on or faded away for whatever reason.

Look at the pieces of your world as represented by the people you know. Celebrate what brought you together. Even “bad” times can create good friends.

How do you connect? How do you fit in? Where is your place in the web of joy that we are creating?

Why it’s at the center of course! And everyone around you is a the center of theirs. We mesh and merge and mingle to make one ginormous interconnected mass of joy.

Stay sticky, my friends. Stay sticky.

Seek joy, y’all. Pass it on.