Page 3 - Sept Oct 2015 flipbook

The Wave
Letter From The Editor
Art Feeds The Soul
We have heard that one many times. But when the chips are down, and you don’t have but two pennies to rub together, what does art matter? When cities and states are “running out of money”, slashing budgets to the bone, and all the news media cry financial doom and gloom, how can anyone THINK of spending a dime on the “frivolities” of art?
Well, I’ll leave aside the debatable idea of whether the economic sky
is falling, and take issue, instead, with the common belief that art is a frivolity, a luxurious extra, to be financed after, (personally) all bills are paid, children sent off to college, the house mortgage and car paid off, and (socially) every last infrastructure cost covered, and the last payment made on that sports stadium. If we do not feed our souls while we are working hard to pay off all these obligations, we wither and die, unable to work any longer, nor to enjoy the fruits of our labor.
Bread and Roses
“Bread and Roses” was a popular song that workers sang during labor protests in the early part of the 20th Century. It is associated with a successful textile strike in Lawrence, Massachusetts in 1912, led by women workers, now often known as the “Bread and Roses strike”.
The song, in part:
As we come marching, marching in the beauty of the day,
A million darkened kitchens, a thousand mill lofts gray,
Are touched with all the radiance that a sudden sun discloses,
For the people hear us singing: “Bread and roses! Bread and roses!”
As we come marching, marching, we battle too for men,
For they are women’s children, and we mother them again. Our lives shall not be sweated from birth until life closes; Hearts starve as well as bodies; give us bread, but give us roses!
Even the humblest abode, held as roof over the heads of its occupants in the most meager of circumstance, often has some bit of art gracing it’s walls; even if just a child’s school drawing taped to a door. We need art in our lives as much as we need food and shelter, if not more.
Beyond Words
If the pen is mightier then the sword, the brush may be mightier then the pen. Shapes and colors can convey so much more then words alone, containing layers of feeling and messages, each viewer receiving and understanding different meanings from the same work . Art can unite us, move us to action, express the otherwise inexpressible, and inspire transformative shifts in consciousness (personal and collective).
Truly food for the soul, our support of the Arts is essential to our personal and our collective survival.
For these reasons and others, I have committed to featuring the work of gifted local artists on the cover of The Wave, along with information (on the inside front cover) about featured artists and where to view and purchase their art.
This issue features the art of Sacred Geometry, uniting science with
spiritual power to lift our vibrations, and the vibration of the planet.
In the Nov/Dec issue we’ll feature art that inspires us to forgive ourselves and others, to have compassion for all, and to unite as one to bring peace to our hearts and to the world.
Stacey Leigh Mohr Editor, Publisher
I encourage local artists to submit pieces for consideration for future covers of The Wave. Artists may submit jpgs or Tiffs of their artwork by email to wehearyou@woctoheal.com.
Art for All
Any artist will eagerly tell you about the shifts and growth they experience from the very act of creating.
“Great for them”, you may say, “but I am not artistic. That sort of transformative experience is beyond my reach.”
To you I say Au Contraire!
Many years ago, I led experiential Mandala Coloring Evenings in Santa Rosa. Each evening was a unique and incredible journey. Participants each chose a pre-printed black and white mandala or other design, and an affirmation, (one they created or one they chose from a bowl). Coloring and meditating in silence upon our chosen affirmations brought us personal insights and revelations such as those one might experience walking a labyrinth. Toward the end of the evening, those so inclined shared some of their inner experiences and what they discovered while working with shape and color. These evenings were beautiful, joyous, freeing events for all who participated.
Marjorie Favuzzi, of Success in Hand, and I have decided to bring these wonderful evenings back! Our first Mandala Meditation Evening will be held Friday, September 11th, from 6 pm to 9 pm at Success in Hand, 850 3rd St. in Santa Rosa. You may call 707-474-2508 or 707-206-1477 to reserve a spot. The cost is $25 at the door. We provide a selection of pre- printed mandalas and other designs, coloring materials, a bowl filled with affirmations, water and refreshments.
Even if you do not join us for a Mandala Meditation Evening, I urge
you, when you are looking for more joy in your life, to work with
shape and color. Get some colorful Sculpy clay and mold and fashion
it without thought of an end product. Go to a craft supply store, stare
at the selection of colored pencils, crayons, and/or felt pens and grab a package of coloring implements that feels great to you. (Don’t put too much thought into it: Just grab what feels right and buy it.) Then get a blank sheet of paper and start making marks on it with your new coloring implements. You will be surprised and delighted with the process and what comes from it!
If art can feed our souls, then art is IN all our souls, and we are all artistic by our very nature. Finding how best to express our artistic soul is a wonderful pathway to discover The Divine beauty within each of us.
Sept/Oct 2015
3