Happy New Year!

How did your Word of the Year for 2015 go? Did you have one? Have you made your final choice on your 2016 one yet? I’m kinda hovering with three which go nicely together, so I might go with a phrase. But first, let’s follow the story with how 2015 played out…

I tried to write this post repeatedly over the past 12 months – wanting to share how much having a Word of the Year was helping, how it was guiding my year. Finally, I feel I can finalise this as an overview story now 2015 is complete. #happydance

My Word of the Year 2015

My Word of the Year for 2015 was: “Know (and No when needed)”. I didn’t refer to it consciously much in the second half of the year – as things galloped towards Christmas and it was calendar and market season – but in the first half it was a useful compass that set me on a good, steady course for the rest.

What “Know” means to me:

Knowing. Yes, seeking more knowledge but also that I already know some things and can lean on them, trust them. Don’t chase the next course – I loved this timely article from Tea Silvestre which underscored what I’d suspected!

Trust what my heart knows as a good companion to what my head knows. This seems to be one of my life lessons as it keeps returning!

When necessary “No”. The classic choosing what to commit to. And what not. This would keep space for the things I want to make time for. I am actually getting better with this!

Clear the decks

Amazingly, considering how busy my part time job gets in January – I got my vision collage done quite early in 2015. I’ve included some close ups throughout this post to illustrate.

After my vision collage – collecting phase – I came back and greatly simplified before pasting anything onto the pink backing board. I got some cool quotes from a “creatives” edition of O mag that was out of date and being sold for cents at a library, like this:

 

In early 2015, my world had changed a lot since 2014. I’d come to accept what everyone else knew already: I am an artist, a creative person, a good person. I put my heart into my art. I am sensitive and creative. You wouldn’t believe the shame that was attached to those words. What a Be Yourself hobbler that has been! #latebloomer I’ve shared Brene Brown’s shame/vulnerability TED talk before. Click this if you want to watch again. Mmm, it’s good isn’t it?

50th Birthday Bold Art Project

My first plan for the year was to finish my 50th Birthday Bold Art Project. Haha, it took me from September 2014 until May 2015! Why did I think it would take just 2 months? It was a new thing. #selfcompassion

From that project have grown a lot of ideas for the next wave of art. ‘Specially people pictures. These will show up in 2016 as I’ve a bunch of lino prints in progress – can’t wait to show you! (See below about my big exhibition in September)

October update

Know what I’m doing

Know (acknowledge) what I know (experience, training) and can teach (haha, this has been an ongoing mental table tennis, to-and-fro discussion for so long!)

Know what I don’t want (see above, to make time for the big YESses)

Know what I like (sovereign)

Know what I can do

I fully expect future major and gradual re-groups but want to acknowledge, recognise, appreciate the shift towards more alignment & quality of life, showing up daily, weekly.

Remember the pic in my Birthday Bold Art Project 50 paintings of the Shoes of Sincerity? Such shoes = a good way to walk forwards. They sprouted from a concept in Heart of Business by Mark Silver, and blossomed into a crazy art fashion item!

We moved house in 2015 after 17 years and will again in 2016. Here are some of the ideas that guided us.

We’re using these 4 words as touchstones as we make decisions on the eco dream home we’re building: Colour. Comfort. Spaciousness. Quality. We’ll see how that plays out. There might eventually be photographs :D

I enjoyed this Word of the Year Podcast with Pace & Kyeli Smith. If you listen to the recent one, however you’ll hear that 2015 didn’t play out as they’d expected!

Do you choose a Word of the Year, or a phrase, a colour, a poem or a something else? Have you got a 2016 one? Would you like to see my 2016 vision board / collage? Or are you not into this kind of thing? What do you like to read about here? Answer any and all of these questions below in the comments section or Hit Reply if you’ve received this blog post via email.

Love ya!
Talk soon,
Love Meg x o

 

 

PS Did you see the kind words that feisty mystic mermaid Kyeli sent me?

Meg’s art is so amazing: bright, cheerful, colorful, deep. I follow her on Instagram, and her work never ceases to bring such light and smiles to my life. I purchased the original of “Mermaid’s Tail”, and it got to me super fast despite there being like a gazillion miles of ocean between us. It graces my mermaid wall, and is truly a joy to behold every single time I look at it. I feel so grateful to have her work in my life! ~ Kyeli Smith

PS2 Click this to check out [read about] my first solo exhibition in 20 years! Click this to join in by sending me a photo for the slide show!

PS3 There are 2 spots left in my art workshop this Saturday, bookings close on Wednesday February 3rd. Here’s what a workshop attendee from last time said:

“What a relaxing afternoon!  Escaping into the ‘art zone’, with Tangerine Meg’s expert demonstration and guidance we all created our own unique art.  Great ’therapy’, really enjoyed it and learnt some new skills too!”
~ Karen, Adelaide, SA