daily self regulation and self discovery art
pause. breathe. check in. finding our centre again
read below to find out how to join in
#thedailyartwalk #veryhumanregulation #selfregulation #selfregulationskills
When I was a kid, my brother and I made a rope swing in the oak tree in our front yard. My brother later broke his arm on it but that’s beside the point.
The main memory is:
we made it
it was ours
and it felt both frightening and exhilarating
climb high and out onto the tree branch
grab the precariously woven in wood
JUMP
and fly
to freedom
If you slipped, you’d plunge to the ground
bang a knee or elbow or side of the head
roll three to seventeen times
and get up laughing with the joy that only “I did it” can bring
and run back to the tree to so it all again.
It was ours
we made it
and my brother‘s arm healed and is now a fun childhood memory of exhilarating joy
and passion
and childhood “success”
Today, after metaphorically banging my head against a brick wall trying to get a work task done and growing increasingly stressed, I decided to give my brain a good rest and reboot and off I set on my daily art walk.
And the universe met me with a world filled with sun filled delight and wonder. Colours, shapes, patterns, surprises and downright weird is all around us if we just look. I had a ball. And then I came across this swing in a park I have passed possibly 300 times and never even noticed it was there - too busy focused on the bigger park on the other side of the road.
And not only did I have fun honing in a photographing it, but I momentarily reconnected with me, the daring child who would jump from a tree limb to feel the air and the power soar through me.
Isn‘t it amazing that this comes just as I am grappling with a big step on the personal recovery front (stay tuned - more on that later in the week)?
The message is always there, whispering softly (or blaring loudly) … we need only stop for a moment and listen …
or take ourselves on #thedailyartwalk 😉
by Kendall
One small walk for my feet and a giant leap for my recovery journey
#thedailyartwalk it’s a thing!
join the daily “challenge” (don’t love that word but it is kind of fun too, no?). And it’s as easy as committing to going for a wander each and every day and picking one thing, just one thing, and then photographing it or drawing or painting or scribbling or splotching or singing or dancing or writing or all and sundry or whatever entices you or excites you today. Make it ART. And let the whole experience serve you - to centre, to ground, to check in, to notice, to feel, to engage, to interact, to anchor, to invigorate, to enliven, to calm, to whatever it is you need to do TODAY. If you’re feeling brave, please share your version in the comments or on your own social media - don’t forget to us the hashtag #thedailyartwalk so we can find each other. Join our private community if you’d like to really get posting and sharing in a safe space.
Another option is to simply wait for our pic each day and then riff it - let it inspire you to create something that is yours with our piece as a starting point. We have one friend who has taken our daily leaves and made collages, pipe cleaner leaves, sketches and even polymer clay sculptures! How awesome is that?
How We Go About It (IF you’re looking for some more guidance)
We go outside (fresh air) and pay attention to nature and other details in the world around us (focusing tool). Each day we select one item or snap a photo with our phone and bring it home. On days we can’t get out, we investigate and pay new attention and find something in our home. We then select the medium that most matches our mood or that we feel will be the most regulating in that moment and we set to work drawing or photographing or sculpting or writing or singing or dancing or all of the above (regulating our nervous system and bringing ourselves back on line through hyper focusing)
We set an alarm for 20 minutes (our containment) but you figure out what works best for you. Sometimes a quick 5 will do; other times it feels like we need half a day, doesn't it? We do often repeat this exercise several times through the day when it's a real doozy of a day. Smile
Remember - there’s no good or bad or even in between! It’s all about process and experience and ANYONE and EVERYONE can do that.