Love and Acceptance

Today I am moved to write about a topic that I feel pretty strongly about.  It involves separateness and elitism, but more than anything else this blog is about love and acceptance.

In my mind/world anything that creates separation between yourself and another human being in the way of you seeing them as different and/or 'less than' yourself is not a positive thing.  I choose to believe there is no better or worse.  That these ideas are created by man and are an us-them mentality that is antiquated and was once needed for survival.  From racism to the religious "my way is the right way and the only way" which has resulted in so many deaths and condemnations, us-them thinking seldom has a positive outcome.  This is, of course, separate thinking at its most extreme and worst:

http://clg.portalxm.com/library/keytext.cfm?keytext_id=198

Luckily that extreme type of separate thinking is not very common.  Instead we see a lot of day to day types of behaviors...people avoiding others because they are a different religion, feeling uncomfortable around each other because of perceived differences, etc.  "I am better...I am right..."

I think it is only when we start to see the oneness in us all, to accept each other for who we truly are and find what we love about one another that the world will see positive changes.  Separating yourself from another is essentially caused by fear.  Fear rules much of our lives, sadly, even though there isn't really a need for it most of the time.  It was initially there for survival.  To give us that adrenaline kick we needed to run away from something dangerous or to remove our hand from fire (this might still be a good thing lol).  The more we can get to the root of the fear, the better.  Why am I angry with so and so's beliefs?  What is the real, buried reason underneath it all.  Usually the most extreme reactions we have to something can unlock the largest blocks we have in our way of thinking and give us the greatest freedom.

We seek safety in many things...finding others with similar views who support our beliefs without question is one of them.  But just because someone else supports what we think doesn't make us 'right'.  Honestly being right about something is a man created ideology much like time.  And really what is more important anyway...being 'right' about something?  Or showing love in your life.  Being a loving friend.  Being accepting of other people.  Loving them for who they are even though you may have different fundamental beliefs about living.  Feeling the bliss life has to offer when you are comfortable in your own skin and therefore comfortable with everyone around you.  To truly heal the world we should be accepting others and bridging the gaps, not creating more separation.

Personally I embrace everyone's religious preferences.  Anything that brings them close to divinity sounds good to me because I too have felt that wonderful feeling of being close to divinity.  I actually feel it every day through prayer, meditation, and simply being alive.  And if religion just isn't someone's thing then that's cool too, because I'm most interested in loving them for who they are as a person/being.

Let us not get so used to our created and perceived labels of ourselves and others that we forget who we truly are underneath it all.  That we forget who that being is without a religion label or a race label or our employment label.  But instead let that person be:  kind, loving, accepting, authentic, real.  If more of us could find a way to do this the world truly could become a 'better' place in 'time'.  But who am I to say that?  I am just another person, another being that is part of the whole...no different.

I will close with some quotes and recent artwork:




Gossip, public, private, social — to fight against it either by word or pen seems, after all, like fighting with shadows. Everybody laughs at it, protests against it, blames and despises it; yet everybody does it, or at least encourages others in it: quite innocently, unconsciously, in such a small, harmless fashion — yet we do it. We must talk about something, and it is not all of us who can find a rational topic of conversation, or discuss it when found."

-A Woman's Thoughts About Women (1858)

"A friend loves at all times, and kinsfolk are born to share adversity."

-The Bible, Proverbs 17:17

A friend is one
To whom one may pour out all
The contents of one's heart
Chaff and grain, together,
Knowing that the gentlest of hands
Will take and sift it,
Keep what's worth keeping
And blow the rest away.

-Dinah Craik, in A Life for a Life (1859)

“Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.” -Carl Gustav Jung

“The tendency to turn human judgments into divine commands makes religion one of the most dangerous forces in the world.” -Georgia Harkness

"Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgement that something else is more important than fear."

-Ambrose Redmoon

“If you judge people, you have no time to love them.” -Mother Teresa of Calcutta

'Autumn Amore' original painting by Amber Elizabeth Graff. This is a large painting two owls snuggling on their favorite maple tree branch as leaves fall all around them and the sun sets over the quiet lake.

Owls are associated with Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom and foresight as well as being considered insightful, wise, protective, and mystical creatures.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/83341396/autumn-amore-large-original-painting-24

'Into the Plum Cosmos' 16" x 20" original acrylic on gallery wrapped canvas painting by Amber Elizabeth Graff. This is a painting of tree branches reaching past the plum clouds and into a starry cosmos.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/82605240/original-surreal-art-16-x-20-acrylic-on

'Royal' 16" x 20" original acrylic on gallery wrapped canvas painting by Amber Elizabeth Graff. This is a painting of a close up royal blue peacock displaying its vivid feathers.

Peacocks are symbols of beauty, prosperity, royalty, love, compassion, soul and peace.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/82912244/original-royal-16-x-20-acrylic-on-canvas

'Rainy September' original acrylic on canvas painting. This is a large painting of a silhouetted woman in a Victorian dress holding her umbrella in the blue September rain.

Rain is a symbol of nourishment and renewal, royal blue symbolizes royalty and the night sky and aqua blue is a universal symbol of hope and health.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/81977507/large-original-painting-rainy-september

'The Poem Tree' 16" x 20" original acrylic on gallery wrapped canvas surreal painting by Amber Elizabeth Graff. Against a purple sky crossed by a blue river of clouds, the poem tree blows. Are they blossoms? Lights? Who knows. But either way the poem trees' many sparkles and wispy branches inspire poetry and song.

Painting is adorned with over 40 genuine Swarovski rhinestones for a beautiful light catching effect.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/83521468/original-surreal-art-16-x-20-acrylic-on

Friday Quotes, Thoughts, and Sunflowers

A few inspirational quotes for Friday:


"To hell with circumstances; I create opportunities."
-Bruce Lee


"Dont wait for your ship to come in, swim out to it."
-Anon


"There are some people who live in a dream world, and there are some who face reality; and then there are those who turn one into the other."
-Douglas Everett


So lately I have been seeing sunflowers everywhere.  They seem like kind of a life theme right now.  Shane and I have a literal 'field' of sunflowers growing right near our place and we pass them every night when we go for a walk.  Not only do they grow in the field, they grow through the cracks in the sidewalk.  I almost always have to just touch one as we walk by each night.  Their beautiful yellow faces turned to face the sun entice me.  I had sunflowers on the mind one recent day while going to get the mail and what should be in my mailbox?  The Reader's Digest my Grandma sends me...with a huge sunflower on the cover.  Lol!  So I had to look up the symbolism of these beautiful flowers:

Sunflowers turn to follow the sun. Their open faces symbolize the sun itself, conveying warmth and happiness, adoration and longevity. (www.teleflora.com)


I feel like I am turning to face the sun in two ways in life right now (well okay maybe three):  following my heart with painting, learning to love and trust more deeply, and trying new self improvement things like yoga and reading Gabrielle Bernstein's books.  And the warmth, happiness, adoration and longevity parts...well you can't beat that!


So I have been busy painting, living the artist's life, living frugally and enjoying every second.  Every painting teaches me a new type of technique.  I guess I learn best by doing, thus the self taught thing.  I have added so many new painting ideas to my handwritten journal lately.  It seems I can't paint fast enough to satisfy the pool of images flooding through my mind all the time.  Here are a few recent paintings:

'Two Peacocks' original large 24" x 36" acrylic on canvas painting. This is a large painting of two peacocks sharing a tree branch and looking at each other, their feathers entangled and a gentle breeze in the air.

Peacocks are symbols of beauty, prosperity, royalty, love, compassion, soul and peace. They can also be symbols of protection and immortality and are considered sacred in India and China. They are almost like mythical phoenixes as they regrow all new feathers each year. To me, peacocks are so beautiful that they seem to be fantasy creatures not of this world. Perhaps that is why they are my favorite subject to paint.

'Otherworldly Blue' original acrylic on canvas painting. This is a large painting of a surreal aqua sky and water scene with floating trees.

Trees symbolize strength and antiquity and aqua blue is a universal symbol of youth, fidelity, hope and health.

'Orange Colored Sky' original 16" x 20" acrylic on canvas painting. Named after the jazz song, this is a large painting of a tree silhouette against a vivid orange sky. This painting is inspired by an actual sky and tree I saw one afternoon when I lived in Arizona.

Trees represent strength and rootedness and the color orange is a symbol of love and happiness in Asian culture.

'One Blue Night' original large 24" x 36" acrylic on canvas painting of a white and cobalt blue peacock resting on a branch with a purple moon and cobalt sky and water behind it.

Peacocks are symbols of beauty, prosperity, royalty, love, compassion, soul and peace.

'When Love Takes Flight' original large 24" x 36" acrylic on canvas painting. This is a painting of two large hearts sharing a pair of wings, tied together with a red ribbon and flying together into the sky. Backdrop of a sunset, gilded trees, and other winged hearts flying or dangling from tree branches.

Winged hearts represent love, joy, freedom, and flying up toward the Heavens. They can also represent the soul and spiritual growth.

'Earl Gray Day' original painting by Amber Elizabeth Graff. Acrylic on 16 x 20 canvas. Painting of a gray day with a woman in a red dress and umbrella dancing in the rain.

Named for my favorite flavor of tea and love of rainy days. Rain is a symbol of nourishment and renewal.

Wishing everyone a beautiful Friday and hopefully some sunflowers too!