art as meditation

There is an art form called zentangles (to learn more go here: zentangles.com). The basis of the idea is to make doodles in an intentional meditative way.

I wouldn't say I do "actual" zentangles, but I've been doodling zentangle-like doodles and mandalas in a meditative way. It's incredibly relaxing and I've been making some beautiful artwork. I wouldn't say it's wall worthy, but it's filling up my journal nicely.

I spend some time every day in quiet contemplation, trying to quiet my mind and just listen. I'm successful in varying degrees. I often find my mind wandering in the oddest directions while I'm trying to still it. Honestly, it can be a little frustrating. I have, however, redecorated my bedroom, renovated the basement, created new story lines for my writing, etc. When my mind starts wandering, I try to bring it back to what I'm doing. (What can I say? I'm still a work in progress - actually I always will be. Isn't that comforting? That I don't ever have to be perfect. I just keep moving along One Day At A Time, one step at a time.) This art form has given me another form of meditation to work on quieting my mind and I find the my mind doesn't wander nearly as much - it focusing on the art.

I love my life - really. I'm so blessed to have the kind of life that allows me to follow my passions. Yesterday and today I've been obsessing a bit about meditative art and so I've put off my writing (another passion) to work on some art. Unschooling my children gives them the same freedom. The girl (my daughter) has discovered zentangles too, so she's been watching videos on Youtube about them and practicing the art form. The boy (my son) is watching Murder She Wrote because he just loves murder mysteries (Nero Wolfe and Hercule Poirot are a couple of his favorite tv series too. Now if I could just get him to read Rex Stout and Agatha Christie.)

I've been very relaxed the last couple of days and feeling very focused. My brain is getting a workout - one of the many reasons I love art. It may look like I'm "wasting" time, but the reality is I'm working with my imagination and exercising my brain.

If any one is interested and would like more information you can check out the website above or check for videos on Youtube. Of course I'm also more than willing to show you in person if you live nearby or chat about it in the comments here or on Facebook.