What's it really mean to dream? ii

This is one in a series of posts in which Trish attempts to dissect the purpose and meaning of dreaming; of looking beyond what is to what if~
Working my way towards the answer myself....and here's the part II-dream I put on paper before me~


Back to my original post, my intent from the start of this search and query.

I'm risking.
I'm tossing my dreams out there.
Not to get responses. Not to hear the naysayers-neither the
encouragers.

I'm dreaming in pen and ink so I can see it
so I can live it
And so I can be it.

I'm tossing my dreams out there.
out here.

'Do the hard work to find a superior answer'

Dream part two
Monastic
introspective
introverted (look up the true definition before you judge)
contemplative
lifestyle-
or something as yet
intangible,
and similar~
that lives in this
sensibility
realm.

That's all I know.

Dream bigger than myself,
unattainable in who I am alone,
unclear on how it fits into where I am
what I do
who I support
and where I look to be going.


But that's it; dream part ii:
to explore and pursue.

I've heard tell it can fit into
a 'real life'.
I've never had a real life
so I look forward to seeing how it
fits into my life....
truth be told,
it's already lurking
around the edges....

If Doris Day can do it.
in love. trish

monday musings #6

What would you plan to do if you knew God would resource you?

in love. trish

sunday sermonet #4

There's a difference between what's in your account and what's in your possession; learn to make proper withdraws.

in love. trish

sunday sermonets #2

etremely fearful

apprehensive

a little anxious and really intrigued

mildly nervous but really excited

quietly confident and really joyful

The Art of Thinking Brilliantly. 

Choose today to be your 17 minutes of mind changing
in love. trish

sunday sermonets~

A Thought to Keep
Let us remember that the proverbs are not simply pithy phrases. God has given them to us to teach and correct.

Perhaps, pick one proverb to find understanding in this week~

in love. trish

right now

what if you place is right now?

  If life began right now? In this moment?

If it wasn't about yesterday,

or tomorrow,

but just right now?

That God put His finger on your life so as to have you right here, right now?

How would right now look?
in love. trish.

June 16, 2012

I had grandiose ideals here; to write a loquacious post on the beauty and magnificence of my husband of two years. But instead I have just one definition-

Trish and dabomb John :)

John: Yahweh is gracious! (to me)
in love. trish

Life in art: buffing encaustic

Hem of His robe

To get a good shine and to reveal  depth in encaustic it is essential that you buff the surface of your painting. This can not be done when it is still warm or just newly completed but must wait until the (waxen) layers have had time to settle and cure. It is not done just this once, but frequently, at regular intervals throughout the life of the painting. As is the case with all works of art they must be cared for, tended to, cleaned and even repositioned in order to be used and appreciated to their full value. As glass covered watercolors need Windex and a rag; acrylics need feather dusting and assemblage a sometimes vacuum, so encaustic takes well to a buffing.
There is no need to be rough or course in this cleaning; encaustic is most receptive to a soft, nonabrasive cleaner. It's beauty and depth is most clearly revealed through a gentle application of this nonabrasive attention. If having been left for a long duration unattended to, it may take a time or two of this cleaning in order to reveal its true depth and potential, but notice increased pressure or hand in the stripping away of accumulated layers will not effect it nearly as well as this gentle hand applied more frequently and with intention to stripping away the accumulation in layers: As they accumulated so they must be removed.
It is this beautiful attention to consistent attention that will reward the most beauty, value and worth from your encaustic painting. Of course it is durable enough to withstand long periods of neglect, after all its very nature is one of ancient invention and creative largess. But never will you find the best it has to offer coming from neglect or ignorance of this type; so prescribed regular attention is always preferred-with benefits far outshining the investment of effort put forth to maintain its beauty. And know, as you establish this routine of regular attention, care and maintenance along with cleaning, the work of it becomes more and more easy. You find yourself, if not enjoying the task of cleaning away accumulation, at least finding no extreme difficulty in coming to it as a routine in your regularly scheduled living.

Come here to Me

 It becomes not so much cleaning and maintaining as renewing and refreshing. Care for your work of art to its fullest with these simple, achievable guidelines and it will give back to you a lifetime of abundant joy and pleasure~

in love. trish

I paint in my hotel room~

more to come! not done with 'hem of his robe' series, but entering into this 'Nehemiah 8:17' :)))

I paint in my hotel room. When traveling for long periods of time I can't control the need and often-times break out the wax.

I am cautious! 

I open the door;

start before housekeeping comes around to sniff out my idiosyncrasy;

protect the beautiful laminate furniture (read the sarcasm :) with paper grocery sacks before beginning.

 I find it MUST happen!~

A month is a long time to go without putting brush to bord except to demonstate and inspire.

An attendee to my Asheville, NC workshop stated that these paintings spoke 'a happy person painted me!' 

I am thrilled to embrace that assessment; 

and post them in gratitude to my hubby, John Tod Govaert, this Valentine's day;

5 years ago we met on our nervous first date. 

3 1/2 years ago we went our separate ways to

'find a deeper something

that was missing'.

2 years ago we found our way

back

having discovered the missing, 

and that we were both in it.

To many more years of Valentine's day 

filled with happy paintings~

in love. Trish

laundry

I am looking forward to a doing a big heaping load of wash. 
How warped is this?!

I have been traveling for three weeks now and have not done a single load of laundry.
Ew.
I am a bit disgusted myself as I write that~
I've done the traveling thing; washing in the shower a few necessities and hanging to dry over the hotel shower curtain rod...

But not doing laundry isn't my point exactly;
it's the looking forward to doing laundry.

Now that is not something you hear very often....

Especially from a mom of four boys!

To be honest I am craving after a lot of mundane tasks and common place stuff right now:

Eating with a metal utensil...

from a non-disposable container...

Using a curling iron...

Wearing my slippers...

Curling up on a couch...

Cooking-even if just to scramble eggs for Patrick!

 

All things I take for granted regularly when home.

 

All things missed deeply when traveling.

I can't help but draw a parallel in this craving and looking forward to~

I imagine God feeling that way about me. About every human.

Introduced to Him at birth through Catholic baptism, Sunday school and regular church attendance-

I was among those aware of Him;

taking for granted He was part of this world,

part of my life. 

 

I traveled through my growing up simply aware that He was a something, a someone, who was always there. 

Like my silverware, dishes, slippers and cozy couch~

He was just there. 

I never thought what it could possibly be like to not have Him just there....

like the washing machine...or silverware drawer. 

Always there.

 

yet life always had a craving; a longing; a 'something missing'...

 

a 'looking forward to' in which I had no idea what I was forward looking to~

 

Then I went through a period of life-travel; 

traveling onto 

a new way of doing normal,

a new way of doing me. 

And in it I recognized and began to appreciate once again the 'everyday' and 'common place' that I'd been taking for granted.

And I began to look forward to getting home and finding it

embracing it

appreciating it. 

Doing a load of holy laundry!

 

Drawing me so far in that now, 

in this new way, this new 'common place'

I never take for granted,

I'll never be able to take for granted~

I'll never be allowed to take for granted~

But only savor and relish the feel

~metal fork instead of plastic

~china bowl instead of cardboard

~cozy couch instead of pilled-up pillows on desk chair...

 

God relationship rather than God awareness.

 

He's keeping me close by keeping me craving. 

He's not risking my becoming complacent to His presence now that I've fully flung open and shouted through the walls of my heart,

'I'm home!' 

 

The delicious smell of Tide with bleach will not go unappreciated.

The tactile beauty of my Calphalon soup pot will be embraced anew.

My tender traveling toes will slide into cushioned slippers with delicious bliss. 

 

As the love and companionship of my God is each day is delighted in

and looked forward to~

 

My God is in each and every every day

~Reminding me of His pervading and ever-present position.

 

Never letting me fall into routine or take His presence for granted~

delighting in the work-dare I call it such-

He keeps me always craving after,

looking forward to

the little, under appreciated, often overlooked creature comforts of modern life.

 

And in the by and by of this not only better understanding His love and care for me, 

but also His determination

-with a small smirk of delight on His face I believe!-

to never let me get comfortable without appreciating the Comforter~

I might even do two loads. 

And fold it all....ahhhh....

I love my God.

in love. trish

Giants win again!

Did you know your greatest adversary, your giant of confusion, difficulty, testing, is also a giant of blessing, grace and miracle? 

It's true. 

I have proof once again~

Just as in my post Orlando Magic!, God has come  in with a small, precious miracle once again. 

Blowing me away mind you! Is His grace to always be in the small for me? 

If this is so, let it flow! 

(Once again forgive me all you sports fans for purposefully titling this post with the Superbowl favorite; Go Giants! Yes, I am a fan....but it was too perfect to pass up!)

I recently heard that the word for giants in the bible, is in some cases translated 'great'. 

As is the case of Goliath whom David conquers~

Great.

Not something we usually think of when imagining giants. 

Let your mind loose for a moment and humor me for a moment....

 

Imagine if you will traveling across the country, checked bags stuffed full to the 50 pound max, carry-on bursting with last minute 'must have's' and personal suitcase not full of clothing and toiletries as much as more supplies with which to capture the workshop participants full conversion to the amazing medium of encaustic...

here in you have me! 

Loaded down with all the goods to inspire~

Now imagine this same loaded down traveler, coming directly from the aforementioned Orlando Magic! debacle-turned-blessing, 

arriving at the next destination,

only to realize the much needed, can't pull this off without it, main material  for teaching had inadvertently been substituted with a worthless counterfeit! 

How dare the universe continue to challenge and mess with my determined goal to inspire! 

How dare.....

My giant?

A mis-shipped box of supplies.

In Orlando, an untraveled supply case. 

Way back in time-my first encaustic workshop ever-an ill wired electrical circuit and many blown fuses...(note I teach with 'stations' now!? At the time a giant I thought had me beat, but by determinately fighting against, look at me now!?)

Why, or rather, How? you ask...

Standing against each one, each giant, just at my right hand, always going before me~

My God. 

No longer deniable.

Incapable of being written off as coincidence. 

Beyond accepting as my own certain efforts.

My God. 

Small miracles.

In my travel-weary haze my mind raced over the options available; tucked away in the small mountain community of Saluda, NC at the delightful Random Arts  just hours away from the starting gun for a six day immersion between here and Asheville, how was I to find this much needed supply?!

All panic aside, 

all past performance squelched (yes, I've been known to perform a good panic...), 

I did the obvious and made a few phone calls. 

Then I did the necessary;

prayed.

trusted.

determinately believed my God was WAY greater than this little ol' giant~!

and went to bed :)

Guess what? (Need I say it?!)

It worked. It works. He works!

Saving you the nail-biting details of the hours between determined decision and miracle performed, let it be known that 11 wonderful women got full-on waxy on Thursday February 2nd in Saluda! 

And 11 more will do the same today. 

And 15 more will do so, twice over, in Asheville for the next four days....

God did more than perform a miracle to swell my heart with gratitude,

or once again firmly establish me in the blessings of determination of trust, 

and obviously save my hiney! 

He also extended this blessing to each and every participant for this six day tour~

as well as, I hope, everyone finding their way to this post. 

It was with bold confidence I told my God I would tell all who would hear me of His great grace in my life through this small miracle. 

So I tell. 

And swell. 

With blessed trust~

And a quick nod to the UPS driver :)

 

So I say bring on the giants. They may look like unconquerable beasts, but I will forever think of them as 'great'- 

great blessings~

I don't care how boystrous and immovable you make yourself out to be; my God will always stand taller, bolder and more determinately at my right hand than any puny giant any day~

in love. trish

(thank you Marianne for singing this song while painting :)

Orlando magic :)

I wrote this letter in an email to just one; then realized God deserved a bigger expression of the grace he washed over me in these turn of events.

So, I copy and paste here for whomever finds their way to it: Putting my light in the window so to speak! :) God is this good.

in love. trish.

I'm learning just how beautifully, and blessedly, God is in the little things.

I have believed that God only shows up in the big things; cancer cured, pregnancies realized, funds funded, sins forgiven.
I had this notion that in the little, day to day events, I was on my own. That I had to figure out which venue to seek out, how to package and promote the kits, who to ask to teach at my retreat, how to go about encouraging my boys to faith in Christ.
Yet I am coming to see He doesn't expect this solitary, independent striving of me any more than He expects to me take up a scalpel and perform heart surgery (this is, need I say, not in my bag of talents :)

In the past few months I've heard sermons and read devotionals and begun to pray to God for my every need, my every presence, my every moment. I am learning that to believe this way is not to burden God, but rather to bless him. It is in needing him that faith is expressed; and this is what God asks of me-to be utterly and relentlessly faithful, nothing more.
The bottom line reality of this is, God himself is establishing me in him; not the reverse~What a relief and an incredibly profound blessing...

So I have to tell you my story: there's more to it-the 'before I even left' decisions that play into this whole picture as well-but for the sake of wearying your eyes reading :), I'll start with the actual trip that began last Thursday-

I left Seattle in the midst of the snow storm-ending up being just one of two flights to get out after my initial flight was cancelled. I flew through Chicago instead of Denver and the connecting flight waited for me (and four others) for almost a 1/2 hour so we could get on. Then, arriving in Orlando 6 hours later than originally planned, I was told the Enterprise counter would be closed, but to go to Alamo to get my rental. As my weary legs carried me through the rental car que, sans my supply cases that managed to stay behind in Seattle (yes, this too was a grace of God because he knew I would be too weary to drag them through the airport, so why not have SW airlines deliver them to my hotel room the next day- just in time for my Saturday workshop to begin?!), I saw a lone body behind the Enterprise counter and asked, 'are you really here?!' (yes, I was a bit delusional at this point :) after a giggle, she helped me through my rental, knocking $140 off the cost of my measly economy rental just because she could (and because I cringed at the $370 price tag she quoted).
Out at the booth to get my car, the employees were joking and looking forward to going home; I quipped 'let's get this chick her car and get out of here already!' they laughed, then proceeded to give me the car of my choice..for my economy price. Being told the BMW was finicky to drive :), I opted for the Infinity and am now driving a luxury sedan in Orlando for 11 days!
( I am still having trouble embracing this gift; silly me!)
Then! my Orlando workshop was at 5 when I flew; I arrived to find it up to 7-my Mt Dora was at a measly 7, and has now climbed to 15 with three more emails contacting me with interest.

Why, you ask, do I outline the events this way? Why do I feel so strongly that I need to share this with some bodies?!

I prayed; no, it seems too 'proper' to state it that way: I talked to God as I awaited the verdict of my delayed, then cancelled flight that morning. 
I walked with God. 
I simply said 'help me God' (over and over and over between the mixed thoughts and emotions rolling in my brain) and walked and listened. 
I spent the better part of my entire time at Seatac (arrived at 4:45am, departed at 2:30) walking and praying that simplest of prayers; 'Help me God.' There was no other way.
Alas, there is never any other way....

And, at the risk of not giving all these 'little things' proper credence, I know they all came to be because of the fact that I set my heart and mind to DO IT!-I'd been vacillating between getting myself back home and cancelling entirely as I was milling among the throngs of complaintive and concerned fellow travelers that swarmed the ticket counters-after all I had 'barely enough' students to make it worth (my) while, and it was a terrible time to risk travel....
Something came over me though; a sudden assurance and sense of determination; I would do it, even if I had to sleep in the airport overnight. 
I was committed and I would be steadfast. It is in this determination that I trusted unwaveringly in God's hand in it and his promise of everything working for good. I truly felt that even if I were to go down in an ice covered airplane, God's great good would be working; not the worldly assessment that it was pure, foolish folly to choose to fly in a storm.
 
If something can truly turn on a dime, this is the dime; that certain, consuming sense of determination. I have felt it just a few times over the past few years, but the more I do, the more confident I become and the more faith I embrace. 
And, the more closely and assuredly I walk with God in each and every decision, moment and move.
He comes through.
Always.
In spades :)
So gloriously worthwhile and blessed; in just this-the small things. It's that good :)
And oh! It's 80 degrees and sunny~
with a bursting heart,
trish
'Do you live expectantly? Do the little things excite you? Do you imagine the improbable and expect the impossible? Life is full and running over with opportunities to see God's hand in little things. Only the most sensitive of His servants see them, smile, and live on tiptoe. Chuck Swindoll

I painted myself a picture

It is my birthday. I am 45 today. I painted my self a picture. And it is beautiful. I will do it again; over and over. I will paint my self a picture~until my last breath thank you God almighty.

when one door closes~

through the open window

ancient way

unfinished; do I get rid of the small white imagery? is it too distracting? (Still listening to this one and the following~)

take away the bold fabric? edge with same turquoise panpastel so as to unify? remove text altogether and just allow the plaster, scraffito, wax and eventual panpastel to speak? (first two attempts at working large 24x24 in this series~)

mertle

imprint

tomorrow

in love. trish

day 25

25
come near to me 

Significant as I get closer to home; off to Northern California today...home in 6 days after 27 away....in love. trish.

4 hours~

of walking on Thanksgiving. 

I visited the tourist areas, I saw flea markets with things that made me smile.

and trinkets that brought back memories from another life.

and trained hands busily working the effusive sand into fabulously, fragile masterpieces.

I walked along a long stretch of well cared for beach front

with Senor Frog and his friends harkening to the pocket books on one side, 

and patina'd, weathered sculptures and  bright gardens holding court 

before sandy beach and ocean on the other.

And I didn't take pictures...

I imagine these places are cataloged into thousands of trip journals and portfolios throughout the world.

I didn't take pictures until I began to get lost in the streets and stairs of the city.

And then I couldn't stop 

at the marvel and wonder of what the PV'ers get to experience every day if they choose to. 

The architecture is a wonder and delight.

And grounding. 

I walked for four hours.

And found my feet again~

in love. trish