Interview with Clair Senses Teacher Ann Melanson

I am an everyday, ordinary person like you, who happens to be in touch with her intuitive, psychic ability. I have to put one foot in front of the other everyday, knowing that I am here for a greater purpose.

My greatest area of opportunity is remembering to ask you permission to voice the messages I receive after I have met you. I get random messages about different people all the time, sometimes the timing is not so great, like in the middle of making dinner for the family, and the angels are quite adamant that the messages are delivered then and there, so off I go to send an email or text message to someone or another, while the purpose at hand becomes postponed. Angel messages are always full of love, hope and beauty, I think, why wouldn’t you want to know what the angel’s messages are for you?? BUT… I understand that not all of you are ready to hear these messages…so I have learned to not just blurt out that your grannie says "Hi" from the other side… or that you have a bit of a dark side you have learned to overcome…, or any other such message I receive upon coming into your energy field.

More about Ann: Ann began her career working as a free-lance makeup artist/esthetician working with such names as Schwarzkopf, Christian Dior, and CBC Television. Knowing that her life was destined to encompass a spiritual theme, an opportunity presented itself to obtain her Reiki Level II through a well-known Reiki Master of the Usui tradition. Using her gift of intuitive ability, she continues to enlighten many people using methods such as Angel Card Readings, Psychometry, Reiki, Past Life Regression Therapy and Chakra Balancing. Ann believes in the empowerment of women, and the expression of individuality through love, understanding and enlightenment. She shares her living space with 3 children, a life partner, and many furried and feathered outdoor friends. Ann can also be found at www.wisewomanuniversity.org/melanson/

Wise Woman University is a sacred distance learning environment for the reweaving of the healing cloak of the ancients. Ann is a Wise Woman Mentor of Clair Senses Soul Therapy. Within this 4 week course you will learn how to listen to the daily messages from the Divine through opening your 4 major Clair-Senses and putting them to use in your daily life.

CLAIR SENSES SOUL THERAPY COURSE GOALS:

1. Learn how to interpret a 3-card spread for a reading by using the Clair-Senses
2. Develop your strengths by trusting the messages you receive
3. Bring about positive changes in your life by acting on the Clair-messages
4. Understand the power of intention

FIVE THINGS THAT MAY BE BLOCKING YOUR INTUITIVE GUIDANCE

1. You need to be grounded, and clear-headed. Meditation, breathing, focusing on rising above your fifth-sensory world to raise your vibration. Having a quiet mind is key to receiving Divine messages of wisdom and love. Spend time outdoors with Mother Nature. Continue to nourish your body with fresh fruit and veggies, drink nourishing infusions to clear your body's filters of negative energy.

2. You are not asking for help! Your guides/angels/higher power cannot interfere due to the law of free-will. You need to quiet your mind, and ask for your messages from the Divine to be delivered with love and clarity, and in the highest good of all involved.

3. Your questions/prayers are being answered but in unexpected ways. Open your clair-senses and be patient while the Universe works out the details. Be aware of your sixth sense by asking yourself: what do I hear (clair audience), what do I feel (clair sentience), what do I know (clair gonizance), and what do I see beyond the physical (clair voyance).

4. The answer you seek offers challenges that you are not ready for yet. The message you seek may require confidence, maturity, courage beyond what you have mastered to accept and move forward with. You may not be ready to take action. The messages may also be delivered from different sources over time allowing you to digest the information in a way that allows you to cope. Sixth sensory living and spiritual growth go hand in hand so let go and have faith and your answers will come.

5. Your living space is muddying up your aura with clusters of clutter and unnecessary objects that hold negative energy. Clear away your space, donate items of value that hold negative energy whenever you see or hold the item(s). No matter what the monetary value, it is not worth giving up your psychic health for. Clean up and clear out your drawers, closets, cupboards and storage areas and you will experience a feeling of lightness and well being. In doing so, your clair senses will have an open channel to your sixth sensory living.

Links for Ann:

www.newmoontherapy.com

www.wisewomanuniversity.ning

www.wisewomanuniversity.org/melanson/

Awaken Your Divine Feminine Creative Fire

The Divine Feminine Fire by Teri Degler

Today's Creative Soul Spotlight is on Teri Degler, author and co-author of ten non-fiction books including The Divine Feminine Fire; Creativity and Your Yearning to Express Your Self.

Teri will be my guest in the Creative Soul Circle this month (September 2011) where she will be available to answer all your questions. The Circle is a women-only support group and social site that is free to join.

An Interview with Teri Degler

Web: teridegler.com,
Blog: blog.teridegler.com
Fan Page:  Facebook

What fears did you break through to write this book?

The biggest fear was that – in spite of having had nine other books published -- I couldn’t do it. I simply would not be able to pull it off. And then – as I tell the story in the book – I completely collapsed in fear when the arrangement I had with my former publisher fell apart. I realize now that part of the reason I had so much trouble with this was that, in my mind, having I had a major publisher for the book validated it and validated me in some way. I didn’t have the inner faith in my self or in the book that I needed.

Do you have any advice for women struggling with fear?

In The Divine Feminine Fire I talk about the battle between divine love and fear and the fact that love is always capable of conquering fear. This love is the active power of the divine. St. Hildegard von Bingen called this fiery power Caritas or Sophia. The ancient yogis called it Shakti – the cosmic divine feminine. But the important thing for those of us who struggle with fear is that this inner power is accessible! It is embodied in each one of us. We simply have to tune into it – through prayer, meditation, creativity exercises like the ones that are in the book – and allow it to flow through us. Like any spiritual practice this requires practice!

(Unfortunately, trying to summarize this makes it all sound a bit glib! Fear is part of the “unenlightened” human condition; it is something we face continually and meet on different levels as we grow and progress. This is certainly true for me at any rate!)

How does it feel when you’re ‘in the flow’ of creation?

Although I imagine this experience is different for everyone, it is no coincidence that we use the word “flow” when we refer to these types of experiences! There really is a sense of something – call it a force, an energy, whatever you will – flowing through you. For me, when I am really writing at the deepest level, the world around me fades away and nothing exists but images conjured up by what I’m writing. It feels like I am floating in time and space. It is also very blissful. For me this is connecting to the divine feminine – the creatrix of the universe and the creative force within each one of us. But there is also a lot of work with writing – for me that’s when my inner divine masculine comes into play – a constructive critical side that edits, rewrites, and rearranges so the work is as clear as it can possibly be.

(I want to make it clear at some point that I believe the Divine – God, the Absolute, the Great Spirit, whatever you want to call it – is beyond gender. It is neither masculine nor feminine. However, I also believe the Divine exists in terms of an inner divine masculine and divine feminine and that the Divine expresses itself in this kind of polarity throughout the universe. Indeed we experience life itself in terms of polarity – male/female; light/dark; yin/yang; positive/negative electrical charges, and on and on…)

When you were younger what did you want to be when you grew up?

Nobody has ever asked me that before! I wanted to be a singer because my older half-sister had a wonderful voice and I idolized her. But after being demoralized by music teachers who told me I couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket I gave up. Fortunately, I also love to draw and was quite good at it so I turned my sights to becoming an artist. A year of being an art major in university convinced me this wasn’t the right path for me. Now I realize that it was the yearning to express myself that was the important thing. According to interpretations of the age-old yogic texts, this deep-seated longing can be thought of as the voice of Shakti – the cosmic divine feminine – propelling us along the path of spiritual transformation…

How has writing The Divine Feminine Fire transformed your life?

Exactly in the way I describe in the answer above. The ancient yogis described Shakti as what today we could call an evolutionary force – we can also think of it as a sort of spiritual transformative “energy”. And there is only one spiritual transformative energy; it doesn’t matter whether we call it kundalini-shakti, jeng chi, dumo fire, or Holy Spirit – it is the fire of the spirit within that transforms us and brings us closer to the Divine. Writing a book about ancient women mystics and seemingly ordinary, everyday women today who are experiencing this transformative power in their lives gave me a chance to really focus on that very same force and to really feel and experience it in my own life.

Teri Degler

How can we, as women best contribute to this crucial time in human history and can you share some real life examples from your own life?

We simply need to express this force in our lives – whether it is in our creative expression, the creative thinking we bring to solving either our own problems or the world’s, or the hands-on work we do to make the world a better place. Mahadevi – a medieval yogini – described it as being filled with the “precious juice of grace”. Once filled with this grace she then poured it back into the world in the form of her writing and in the efforts she made to ease the suffering she saw around her.

In the book I talk about four steps involved in expressing this force. First, be able to recognize this power. This is why I describe the divine feminine from the Hindu, Christian, and Jewish traditions in the book – so we can know her and know how she works in our lives. Second, we need to practice sitting with/simply being with this power – we need to be comfortable with holding this power in our bodies. Third, we need to listen to what she is telling us – really hear the guidance that is being given to us. Then we can come to the last step, which is allowing this precious juice of grace to flow upwards, outwards, and onto the world which needs it so badly.

There are examples in the book of women who did this. Anya, for instance, came up with an extremely creative and exciting way to start a big environmental movement in her home town. And right now one of the other women whose earlier story I told in the book is in India working passionately with the Global Peace Initiative of Women to create an international, interfaith centre aimed at helping to bring the values and wisdom of the feminine into contemporary spirituality and society.

What is the most important message you would like to convey through your book?

This is directly linked to your question above. This transformative spiritual force – that is embodied within us! – is transforming us and we can use that power to transform the world. And I absolutely believe it is our responsibility as human beings – and especially as empowered women! – to do just that.

Who or what do you find yourself returning to over and over again to inspire your Divine Feminine creativity?

Personally I really love to keep reading the age-old yogic and Tantric texts that describe the transformative power of the divine feminine. But I get much of my day to day inspiration from the women I’ve met and continue to meet who are doing incredibly inspiring work in the world. I tell one these women’s stories in each issue of my newsletter: http://www.teridegler.com/newsletter.html. I’m also posting their pictures, a bit about why they are inspiring, and their websites on my new Face Book community page, and I’m in the process of starting an “Inspiring Women Inspiring Women” page on my website. So everyone can check them out and get inspired!

What is the most difficult part of following your creative passions?

Fear. It seems I have to keep coming back to this and facing new levels of self-doubt every time I face a new challenge.

What advice can you offer to women who are seeking to reignite their Divine Feminine fire?

The four steps above. Learn to recognize the divine feminine. Become ever more comfortable holding this great power in your body. Listen to what it is telling you. Express it. (And, remember, you can’t express it if you don’t create a certain amount of time and space in your life for doing so!)

When you look back on all the research, writing and interviewing you did for The Divine Feminine Fire, what one thing stands out the most, as if it’s been burned into your memory for all time?

That this divine feminine force is real – that the active power of divine love is real – that the “light within” is real – and that they are all the same thing!

What is your next project going to be about, can you give us a hint?

I am thinking about writing a book about the spiritual journey I’ve been on – it has had painful, heartbreaking moments and many really whacky, funny moments too… I would be very nervous if this were going to be a book about “me” – but I think it could be me as a writer being a sort of “lens” on the spiritual journey from the late 1960s on – and a way of sharing the absolutely amazing people I’ve met, things I’ve seen, and experiences I’ve been blessed – and, admittedly, sometimes tortured! – to have had. But there are about ten other books I’d like to write too!!

About Teri

Teri Degler

Award-winning writer Teri Degler is the author/co-author of ten books including The Fiery Muse: Creativity and the Spiritual Quest (Random House of Canada). A long-time student of yoga philosophy and mystical experience, Teri has taught workshops in the United States and Canada and made numerous media appearances. Her freelance writing has appeared in Family Circle, More Magazine, Today’s Parent, The Toronto Star and many other publications. Her latest book, The Divine Feminine Fire: Creativity and Your Yearning to Express Your Self, recently became a #10 Amazon.ca Bestseller in two spiritual categories. See www.teridegler.com

Psychic Medium & Documentary Film Producer: An Interview with Jamie Best

This month's special guest in the Creative Soul Circle is a good friend of mine,  Jamie Best who is both a psychic-medium and a documentary film  producer.  To speak with Jamie personally, please check out the Circle Soul Circle where you can connect with women-of-like-mind such as Jamie and many more special guests for in-depth conversation.

Tell us about your role in making a film.

Originally I was contracted to do writing on the film The Spirits of Bourbon Country. As the project progressed, we found my abilities as a medium came in more handy and my role changed and I actually was in the film sharing my experiences on camera with the many spirits we encountered. We have a small team, so my duties also included lugging around equipment and running a camera from time to time.

What films  have you been involved with so far?

I've been involved in one completed film; The Spirits of Bourbon Country. This film is an in depth look at three of the most famous haunted locations in Bardstown, Kentucky, USA. We delve into the history and film our investigations of the locations. I'm currently involved with a cryptozoolical film in production titled The Spottsville Monster: Kentucky's Bigfoot.

What is your favorite and least favorite part of working on a film?

My favorite part is interviewing the people willing to share their personal experiences with us. I love meeting the people and hearing their stories.

My least favorite part is how long the editing process takes. I'm not too involved in the editing process, so I get impatient waiting for the result of our filming expeditions! I'm always excited to see it put together.

What are your future plans in films?

I hope to continue being involved in documentary film making, mostly in the paranormal genre. It's a topic that interests me and is close to home since I've been having these types of experiences since I was a young child. It's fantastic for me to get the stories of these types of experiences out there! And to know (and to let others know) we're not alone having these events occur in our lives.

What is your ultimate dream movie project?

I don't really have a "dream" project. Which ever project is on the table at the time is always the best one I could be doing!

Do you prefer the term 'movies' or 'films'?

I usually refer to them as films because they are documentary style and 100% true and accurate based on the evidence provided to us as a team. Whenever I hear the term "movies", I think more of the entertainment industry. While our films are entertaining, they are also informative.

What originally got you into films?

I have a friend who belongs to a paranormal research team that I belong to who had done documentaries previous to me getting involved. He followed my blog and enjoyed my writing style so asked if I'd be willing to write for his next film. But as I said, my role in the film changed as the project progressed.

Links for Jamie Best

Spirits of Bourbon County: Film credits Film trailer

The Reluctant Medium

Inspired by Stones: Interview with Cynthia L. Green

The styles of designs I choose are commonly organic in some way because I have always been drawn to botanical arts and to soft and natural things like flower petals and leaves. When I was a young girl I would go down to the creek near my home in Houston and clean the waterways with a stick I picked up along the trail, collect crawdads and daydream.   I have an undergraduate degree in Biology that included studies in ecology, biological sciences, animals and insects etc., and this brought me closer to nature.  My early experience in graphic arts and advertising also had an impact on my style. I am inspired by all kinds of art; ancient textiles, antiques and anything handmade or creative from contemporary “steam punk” to the filigree wrought iron fences in New Orleans.

My designs are inspired by the stones that I collect; their color and texture stir up images and shapes.  Sometimes it’s hard not to have a hodge-podge of different styles because the stones can take me in completely different directions. My designs range from graphic and abstract to crazy and dark or soft and feminine.  As a result, I often have to decide ahead of time to focus on a particular style, otherwise my collection might confuse the viewer, so staying focused is important and sometimes challenging.

I grew up in an artistic environment and worked in museums as a young adult while going to art school.  I appreciate all kinds of styles and mediums, which explains why my designs can be a bit scattered and why I might get bored with a single style. I think most artist’s styles evolve over time anyway.

I have to be in the mood to create, but I love to keep my hands busy.  I get inspired by ancient Chinese or Eastern Indian arts and textiles; anything unique with movement, history and significant cultural meaning. For instance when I found an ancient Chinese painting of kimonos, it inspired me to create a line of silver lotus pendants. Watercolor paintings and natural botanical pictures take me back to that “day-dreamy” state from childhood. I hope to invoke that spirit in my designs whenever I can.

I begin working by sitting at my table and looking at all the stones in front of me.  I grab the first one that moves me or one I’m most drawn to.  Some stones are so big that I have to be in the mood to create “big impact” pieces with them.  Sometimes I just sit and start designing without any hurry to start the metalwork.  In any event, I begin by selecting the stone or stones and then outline its shape in my sketchbook.  I usually know if it should be a ring, pendant or brooch right away – oftentimes just from my own preference of how I’d like to wear it.  I then start to draw around the shape trying different ideas. When I hit upon something just right, I’ll keep working it until it comes to fruition. Once I start the metalworking process, the designs often evolve to something surprising that I didn’t expect.

I like to work with metal and enjoy sterling silver because it’s so malleable and shiny. I started with copper and silver mixed with gold wire that I added for effect, sometimes literally sewing the metals together. I really have come to prefer Argentium® sterling because it is so soft and bright, but it is more expensive.  In any event, I’m always trying new metals and like to layer and mix them up.  Additionally, I have used copper enameling to add texture and color to the mix, or just some green patina techniques on the copper. My current trend is moving away from copper and working mostly with layers of oxidized sterling silver.

Processes such as chasing and repoussage, soldering, cold connections etc. can be learned by anyone.  On the other hand I think everyone, or every artist has their own technique or personality which makes their work one of a kind.  In art class everyone will have the same assignment but each person will create something different, which is what makes art so great.  Having said that, I have developed my own technique that I haven’t seen much anywhere else, that brings out the natural colors in copper.  You can get fantastic colors by “tickling” the copper with a torch flame.  It happens fast and can be overdone so that’s why I think “tickling” describes it best. The result is a rainbow of iridescent, organic colors that come out in the metal.   I find that mixes of purple, gold, blue and pink work especially well with amethyst and turquoise – the trick is preserving the brightness in the metal.  I tried different varnishes and lacquers which appear to help, but copper tends to tarnish over time bringing about its own unique patina.

I think most of my customers are interested in the ‘out of the box’ designs I create.  I don’t use templates or create pieces that you could find in mass-produced lines.  I find the “un-ordinary” seem to be sought after most – free flowing shapes and unexpected combinations of stone and metal, without creating something to complex that you wouldn’t wear it often.  I want the new owner to have some connection with the piece they’ve chosen; kind of like adopting a pet. For instance, I had a gal fall in love with a poppy flower pendant that I created with a fossilized sand dollar (or “sea biscuit’). She bought it immediately and later told me a story about a sand dollar she found as a child with her father when she lived on the East coast, and how the pendant reminded her of that moment which was dear to her. When she told me her story, I knew I had created that poppy necklace just for her, even though I didn’t know it at the time. This kind of response has happened on a few occasions and that kind of feedback is when I get the most reward.

Cynthia L. Green CLG jewelry designs http://CLGdesigns.etsy.com

Craft for Misfits: An Interview with Michelle Riley

This month's special guest in my Creative Soul Circle is Aussie Artist Michelle Riley of Threefold Designs: 'Craft for Misfits'. Sign up here for the Creative Soul Circle ~ it's free! Interview with Michelle Riley

What aspect of creating your art do you find the most enjoyable?

The design and execution of my art is the most enjoyable to me … especially stitching!

What originally got you started?

I went to Art School after high school, but although I knew I wanted to be an artist, I hadn’t found a medium I ‘clicked’ with.  It was only afterwards that I was inspired by the designs of Kaffe Fassett, and realized that needlepoint was the medium that suited me.

Who has inspired you the most creatively, and why?

The aforementioned Kaffe Fassett (www.kaffefassett.com), who is a creative and colour genius!  I am also inspired by hearing stories of other artists who have made a living doing what they love.

How did you decide what medium to work in?

I’m not sure why needlepoint struck a chord with me – I think it’s because wool is so earthy, grounding and textural.  I also like the fact that needlepoint isn’t considered ‘cool’ – it’s a challenge convincing people that it can be ;)

What message, if any, do you want to convey with your art?

To be honest, I’ve never really thought about conveying a message at all … I just do what makes me happy, and what is aesthetically pleasing to me.  If others love it, then that’s fantastic!  I do like to encourage people to learn cross stitch though.

If you had to choose a fruit or vegetable to describe yourself, what would you choose and why?

Rambutan – it’s weird looking, some people really love it and some people really hate it!  And yes, I can be a bit spiky at times ;)

If you had to choose one other medium in which to display your creativity, what would that be and why?

Woven tapestry!  This is what I am studying at the moment (in my second year of a 6 year diploma), and I hope to create one-of-a-kind pieces that complement my needlepoint kits.

What advice do you have for others who are just starting to develop creatively?

Seriously, just do it!  Don’t sit there thinking ‘oh, I’m not good enough’ – get out there are do what makes you feel happy!  Don’t worry about what other people think – the judgement is only as relevant as the judge ;)

What role does spirituality play in your creative life?

An enormous role!  My designs are ‘given’ to me by particular entities that want to make themselves known to me.  My very first design was Moon Phases, and I did this when I started studying Astrology.  Other designs came about after I was ‘visited’ by entities wanting their portraits done … for example, Hathor wouldn’t leave me alone until her design was done.  One day I set it aside to do something else, and the whole frame came crashing down (I still don’t know how!).  All was well when I started working on it again!

Do you have any business or marketing tips for other artists/crafters?

I’m probably not the best person to ask, since I’m still learning this myself!  If anyone reading this has any suggestions, I’d be glad to hear them ;)

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

Life is all about doing what makes you feel good!  If you are thinking to yourself ‘I’d always like to be trying that’, then get out there and do it – you’re never too old, or not good enough to find your passion in life.

Michelle's Links: Threefold Needlepoint Shadowplay (Michelle's goth/dark wave radio show)

Each month in the Creative Soul Circle you'll meet a different guest and have an opportunity to interact with them in person. The Circle also features a Moon Musing Group; a support group for women.