Mantra and Mandala

Movement from one place to another can be physically exhausting and emotionally challenging especially after childbirth. It is difficult for two people to come to terms with a new phase in life, without examining the activities that is/was fulfilling, when beginning to raise a healthy child. NUTS AND BOLTS: But geese louise being a good momma while trying to maintain what you once were is next to impossible! For the past several months, I've dealt with being uprooted while remaining nurturing to myself and to my baby. Nurturing to myself has always meant creative expression via art or writing. But I've found that I didn't have time. The baby was a bit colicky and I had minimal help. Emotionally, I was going through post-partum depression, mourning the life I've left behind while trying to deal with the physical havoc of pregnancy. Anger colored my depression. Exercise was healthy but still unfulfilling. Then I began to meditate and sporadically practice yoga. Finally, I created a mandala. While painting this object, I began by not knowing my focus. It took several weeks to simply set up the brushes and prime the wood, and designing the pattern, because every few minutes I would have to run back to the next room to see why my baby was crying or complaining. Eventually, I got to a point in the process where I could do what I was doing next to him, so he could see my colors. Seeing me paint slowly calmed him down. There was an acute moment of peace and serenity when I realized my mandala's focus was on "health and wellness and happiness" and what this means to others around me. My god but that was a magical moment! There was a lot of chaos and insane amount of upheaval for people that kept me frozen in that particular space. What tied me to unhappiness literally unraveled. And my efforts for health and wellness blossomed in a matter of one day!! I was accepted to one of the best nursing programs in the country in what seems to me as a miracle. I'm now studying in the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill School of Nursing. My new space of "health, wellness and happiness". I am a firm believer that even if you don't know your intention, creating a mandala can help you gain clarity and can harness spiritual forces. As part of the act of spiritually releasing a mandala, I'm giving this piece away. (unfinished on this photo)

xo,

jem