pennyreillyartistbeyondthegate

Emptiness…

As the season draws to an end; summer, fading into autumn, we find a place inside to prepare for the emptiness that winter can tend to be.

If we are uncomfortable in emptiness… filling it with anxiety or restlessness, we will naturally refill the space with the same content… so rather sit in the empty until, by choice, embracing the magick of change, we renew the space with our deepest needs for wellbeing.

Nature doesn’t stop… she breathes in and out in cycles and seasons… we take her in with every inhale and release her again, taking into our body all it needs before letting it go. This can be applied to life in so many ways. When we are filled with anxiety, we forget to breath and so our bodies are depleted. Sitting in nature we can refill and reenergise ourselves on every level… it’s not just food we need to fuel us.

Wellbeing is something we have greatly misunderstood, I feel… thinking through things instead of feeling through things… or a better yet, a balance of both. We cannot think straight if our adrenals are on overload… it’s our fight or fight mode that can leave us exhausted if not addressed with appropriate rest. We clear so much that clogs our system through breath… nothing fancy… just deep belly breathes and when we do this in nature our brain/mind/body all respond, to give us the sense of letting go, even when we’re unaware what we’re letting of.

Does a tree, mourn it’s leaves when first they change colour and shed or do they feel relieved of the weight on the bough?

I am empty

…with what, will I refill

health, wisdom, joy

…a new skill?

Why am I empty

…because I have overflowen

and in the inner garden

…dry grasses grown

Do I wish to remain empty

…is there nothing left I need

is there new abundance waiting

…a new seed

Will I fill the emptiness

…or wait for it to grow

then, by choice, fill it

…let new seeds, self-sow.

Walk softly… find your centre in emptiness… Awen /|\

Penny

Autumn… nature’s art

Senses stir, ruffled fur; a bird floats on a thermal, lifting its wings.

A breath of air, a scent on the wind. A salty tang, an ozone explosion.

Fragile leaves, a changing song. A sultry breeze; ripples on a pond.

A falling feather, forgotten bones. A place where one feels the need for silence.

A chill on the skin… ancestral walks with kin.

Trees whisper words, no longer understood

in the forgotten language

found

…in the dappled light

…in the sacred wood

…in the dreaming pool

…of life

As autumn creeps up on us, fragility is obvious in the landscape, alongside great abundance and the clear light of a changing season.

There are moments in a day when things become translucent…when light falls specifically on one blade of grass, a water droplet, a bee’s wing, ripples on a pond, a fragile leaf… the world slows, stills… and the white noise of the world, falls away.

All that is left, is the ebb and flow of life… a heartbeat song.

Walk softly… let things flow towards and away… Awen /|\

Harvest time, Dahlia time. Wild berries abound in the hedgerows; elder, blackberry, hawthorn and rowan… picked when ripe, they leave stains on fingers and lips.

Chestnut and hazel, begin to show prickly green and crunchy brown casings, hiding their magical fruit within. It’s always a battle for even a few as possum, currawong, raven, gang gang and cockatoo are all alert for the right moment of ripening.

Rosehips form on the rump of fading flowers, holding their seeds close in the waxy pod… soon they’ll become syrup and balm; the former for sweet treats rich in vitamin C, the latter for soothing, dry tender skin.

Wild berries will become syrup for the pantry, (a wee drop in a honey mead, warmed through, is a winter delight for the circulation), jams, relishes, fruit tarts or macerated to make tinctures for the herbal apothecary.

Nothing is wasted and only just what is needed is taken, leaving food for hungry maws and mouths.

Walk softly… let things flow towards and from… Awen /|\

Welcome to the studio beyond the gate…

Hello and greetings!

Many of you know me from my former website, blog and through my daily posts of art, photography and poetry on Facebook and Instagram.

Life moves in strange ways and after being hacked by persons unknown, my whole presence, both here on my new website and on social media, will change radically to match.

It is an opportunity for change however, and to be grasped fully, much like grasping the nettle, it has stung dreadfully, losing years of work to a fraud and a thief, nevertheless I’m making it my rallying cry to move forward.

Life is a moment and in that moment, all moments exist. Life can appear fleeting or be forever in full consciousness. There is no separation between who we once were, in the scheme of things, are now or will be “one day”, for all is now.

Soon, I will outline my plans for the future, which will include introducing a few additions such as teaching mixed media techniques, creative journalling and a little of my philosophy on country life and self sufficiency.

As the saying goes… watch this space.