I always enjoy playing in the Scattered Life Collective’s peek-into-my-week. But some weeks feel like it’s almost essential – that I NEED this time of reflection to help put things in order and understand more clearly what’s been going on. This is one of those weeks. For those of us highly sensitive people who feel energy so profoundly, this eclipse week probably felt intense for you as well. For me there were some wobbles including an upsetting phone call, appliance breakdowns, and the one that hurt my heart most – the death of a beloved neighborhood crow. While I know crows don’t hold an honored place in everyone’s heart, they are a beloved totem of mine and each one is held with love and respect. In the early years of 2000 when Chicago was hit by the West Nile Virus it decimated our crow population and recovery has been slow. When our neighborhood population recovered to seven birds it was cause of great celebration for me. And losing one is a sadness.
out the window: With lots of kids on our block, come October our neighborhood tends to get heavily decorated. Today I put out my pumpkin table. I’ll snap a picture and share another time, but I have to say I have the most fabulous creepy looking pumpkin ever. I suspect it’s actually a gourd and not a pumpkin, but it matters not – I think it’s perfect. What do you think?
on the menu: Simple Garlic Butter Mushroom & Provolone Melts
good things:
- Watching the total lunar eclipse and steeping in all that powerful magic. Eclipses bring all kinds of energy and invite all kinds of reflection, but I particularly like to think of lunar eclipses as a chance for emotional body re-sets.
- This week I bought myself an armload of Peruvian lilies and made bunches of bouquets, some small, some larger, to put around the house. My heart is abundantly happy each time I set eyes on them.
- The magic of virtual hugs from friends. It’s so amazing how love can be transmitted across the airwaves with no difficulty at all, making everything so much better and a lot more sparkly.
- Getting internet and phone service back after a 24 hour disruption.
- Anne Choi creates fabulous metal beads and I’ve collected a number of them over the years. Here’s one of my favorites of a crow with a string of beads. When I don’t have it strung as a necklace I keep it on one of my altars.
reading:
Tibet Through the Red Box by Peter Sis. I like the work of Peter Sis and this children’s book is no exception. It is an account of his father’s diary which he kept when he was lost in Tibet.
The Art of Greg Spalenka: Visions from the Mind’s Eye by Greg Spalenka. I discovered Greg’s art through his wife’s work as a natural perfumer. Roxana Villa creates fabulous perfumes as Roxana Illuminated Perfumes and her husband often creates art for them. Or perhaps it works both ways, he creates art and she creates a perfume to embody it. In any case, he recently released a book which is a retrospective of his work. What a delight. And I love the inscription he wrote in the book: “may you always live your amazing art spirit!” Can’t you imagine what a wonderful world this would be if we all accepted that invitation?
watching:
I think Jane Goodall is amazing and I like this little video clip of her talking about recognizing all species as Beings.
listening: Rise by Eddie Vedder. I want to find my direction magnetically.
favorite word of the week: Out of respect for my feathered friends, this week I’m choosing the word crow. As a verb. It very often is defined as “to exult gloatingly especially over the distress of another; or to brag exultantly or blatantly.” But what I’m delighting in is the definition which is “to utter a sound expressive of pleasure.” Yes, more of that please!
out and about:
- Want to learn a bit about crow and raven calls?
- You know I love books, and I love cake. So tell me, how fabulous is this library cake?
- Ever been curious about how neon signs are created? I’ve always thought having one of a steaming cup of java in my kitchen might be pretty cool.
- Scott Partridge is a wonderful artist. Take a peek at his bird illustrations here and then head over to his website if you’d like to look at his other things as well. I’m always curious when someone’s name kind of reflects what they do – as in Partridge doing bird illustrations.
- Another fabulous artist who I find utterly inspiring: Aitch.
- Some simple ideas of how to work with intentions during the full-and-beyond lunar phases.
So that’s a peek at my week. Now tell me about yours. What’s your favorite bird? Did you get a chance to see the eclipse? Had a guiding word this week? Do tell – you know I love to hear.
I love the bird illustrations and I often wonder what influence a person’s name has on their life specially when it’s something as specific as his name/interests.
I’m sorry about the crow. I always feel badly when one of my neighborhood animals leaves us. I hope he died of natural causes after a long, happy life.
It was overcast here so no chance of seeing the eclipse…
The name/speciality thing fascinates me. I want peeks into it all!
Sorry you didn’t get to see the eclipse, but perhaps you got to hear full moon kitty howling – that’s almost as entertaining. 🙂
It IS hard when we lose our animal friends, but here’s to hoping they all get to live lives that are wonderful.
I used to work overnights and had time to sit and watch lunar eclipses. Such an amazing process. Now I work days, and sleep is essential. So glad to know that someone is taking the time to stand witness.
My favorite bird is the woodpecker 🙂
Woodpeckers are amazing creatures. I’m happy to keep my eyes on the sky while you sleep Liz. 🙂 And wishing you sweet dreams always.
Glad to hear that you had some good things to celebrate in your wobbly week. Jane Goodall IS amazing, isn’t she. What she says just makes so much sense. Of course she would name the chimps! I also love your gourd, the library cake, and, maybe most of all, my secret boyfriend, Eddie Vedder. 😉
LOL – secret boyfriends are fabulous, aren’t they?
OH your crow!
Love Eddie Veder … this is a favorite as well as Cold Hard Sun.
I am picking up mushrooms and provolone on the way home to make that sandwich for dinner. I am hungry … haven’t eaten breakfast yet. ..
I love the Wild Woman Project working with intentions. I am taking the leadership training right now. It is amazing.
Oh how fun about the leadership training with the Wild Woman Project. Look forward to hearing more about this.
This last weekend, my family had a brthday party for my youngest niece. She wanted a “blue” cake, and from past experience Mom (her grandmother) knew that a solid blue cake wasn’t to everyone’s taste. So instead she made a white marble cake with blue marbling, and drew up the frosting into “whitecaps, decorating the cake with blue gummy sharks for an ocean look.
Oh how fun!
Love the peek into your week! I too like crows and pay attention when they appear. The moon eclipse was delightful and I resonate when you talk about its strong energy.
Thank you for this delightful blog!
Thanks for stopping by to say hello Christine – and wishing you a wonderful week.
Your Scattered Life Collective posts always give me so much to play with. I’ll be coming back here when I have more time to watch all the videos and click through the links.
I’m so very sorry about the loss of your crow friend. Blessings to you and the family of crows in your neighborhood.
Thanks Harmony for the crow love and for stopping by.