Risk - The Joy Diet

My art studio and the beginning of Painting #3 - "Stasis"

This week we're taking risks as part of the "Risk" Chapter in our Joy Diet Creative Blogger's Book Club and I have started painting again after a long hiatus of about one year.

My "Desire" (Chapter 3) which had not yet been identified (actually, it was deliberately kept private) is being revealed brushstroke by brushstroke as I explore emotions and intimacy within my marriage.

Each day that I paint I feel these emotions deeply as I express them on paper with paint, ink, water and pastel.

I risk exposing myself and my inner world to the world-at-large feeling raw, vulnerable and accountable as I begin "Journey into Intimacy" a new series of large paintings (4' x 5') - partly abstract, partly symbolic and very expressive.

"You must do the thing you think you cannot do." (Eleanor Roosevelt)

You can read more of my Joy Diet posts here.
You can still sign up for the Joy Diet Book Club here.
Painting #1 - "Finding My Wings" and Painting #2 - "Arrow of Pain"

The Joy Diet Begins

Welcome to week 1 of our Creative Bloggers Book Club (The Next Chapter) started by Co-Active Coach, Jamie Ridler of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. You too can join in on the fun as we come together to post our discoveries chapter by chapter! The book for this session is called The Joy Diet by Martha Beck PH.D, life coach and monthly columnist for O:The Oprah Magazine.

This book is NOT about dieting as in food intake. It "contains instructions for a different kind of "diet," one designed not for the body, but for the soul. The Joy Diet is a list of ten behaviors you can add to your way of living and thinking to enhance every day's journey through the unpredictable terrain of your existence."

Menu Item 1 (Chapter 1) is "Doing Nothing" for at least 15 minutes a day for 1 week. That part starts up this coming week, but today we're just introducing ourselves and outlining our hopes and wishes for this journey.

So, a bit about me: This is my third Blogger's Book Club adventure - the first book we blogged about was The 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women and the second one was Wreck This Journal by Keri Smith. So far it's been a great excuse to read inspirational, fun books and to force myself to actually partake in the exercises within the book, plus it's always fun to blog along with other creative types too.

Now the Real Work Begins - a Lefty Drawing

This time around I hope to gain some inspiration for my own upcoming Lefty Oracle inspired e-book and e-course. Like The Joy Diet it will also have chapter by chapter activities and exercises designed to enhance, amuse and challenge folks to live a soulful, passionate and truly intuitive life.

Donna poses as a Lefty at Main Beach, Laguna Beach, CA

I am not a life coach, per se, but a psychic-medium and soul reader. I do not follow and track my client's progress over time, but instead give my clients a push and the encouragement necessary to live a soulful life by tuning into their intuition, spirit guides, the ancestors, the planetary cycles and the healing power of crystals and stones.

I resonated with Martha Beck's writing because she immediately took things to a soul-deep level with humour, intelligence and practical wisdom intertwined.

So, if you want to join in, it's never too late, but you will need to find a copy of The Joy Diet and sign in here on Jamie Ridler's The Next Chapter Book Club site.

Here is a link to Jamie's first Introductory post plus a welcome video and links to everyone else who has posted about Part 1 - The Joy Diet - Intro.