Crow Hill Conversations

This Crow's Caw was started in November of 2005.  5 years of squawking my thoughts and someone a few people out there have subscribed. I know...most of you are family and friends...and I am so thankful for your love!



Crow's Caw isn't going away, AND I do want to let you know about my newest adventure.  I am still coaching full time with MAPS...AND I have launched a small creative professional business.  Crow Hill Conversations (Graphic Recording and Facilitation) was born in my spirit and has come to fruition over the last 11 months.  It is both a professional service and a personal expression...and so my blogging will be mostly there for now. 
I'd love to invite you to subscribe to 2 things over at Crow Hill Conversations:  The blog feed either in a reader or via email delivery and ....

the JUST BE Newsletter.  This newsletter...or E-Zine (electronic magazine) will come out only once a month and have articles about living a BEING first life...a life of heart first...then the head and hand. 

It will promote, creativity, relationship, possibility, energy, spirit, balance, and frankly, the CONVERSATIONS that bring meaning to my life...and hopefully yours.  Here is the link to join the list...and look for the first newsletter to come out in December of 2010!~

What conversations bring meaning to your life? Email me...or post over at Crow Hill...let me know. I'd like to connect to you.  Who knows...maybe your conversation and a visual recording of it may just end up on the site! 

Love and many thanks.....
Allison

just sayin'.....

...infinite.....INFINITE love and gratitude........

my 2nd Chakra Dream Chart

Well, here it is. At home, in my art space....my first inspired wall chart. This is a personal chart inspired on Monday morning by reading this from The Chopra Center April Newsletter. 

Below are a few notes about the chart and then a few notes about what I learned about technique as I completed the work. 

Dare to dream has always been a personal mantra of mine so the core word DREAM really popped out when I read the newspaper.  As I saw each of the subtitles. DIGEST, REST, EXERCISE, AWAKEN and MEDITATE...I KNEW I had to draw what flashed before my mind. 

I centered it around an image of the 2nd chakra:

The Sanskrit name for the 2nd chakra is "Svadhisthana." This word means "dwelling place of the Self."

I am generally open here and resonate with the image and the concept. The emotion associated with the 2nd chakra is passion & the element for the 2nd chakra is water.  Yep...that pretty much sums me up. 

I found the E for exercise the most difficult section because for now it feels lost in my life.  I have every intention to re-root myself here and thus chose the brown colors for grounding.  S•T•R•E•T•C•H  &  B•R•E•A•T•H•E are my starting points in the journey. 

Regarding Technique:  

• I will always remember my early work for the dimples caused by the uneven wall I am working on right now (gotta get to home depot and buy and 8x4 foam core board). 
• I can also tell that some markers I like better than others (they tend to be the ones that bleed through and have 2 edges instead of 3).  I will practice my lettering to become more consistent with the density of my lines and letters.
•  For getting low, and staying in my body, I sat on a exercise ball.  I did find that this let me get low, stay with my core and body to the area where I was working and it allowed for a natural movement better than me shuffling across the floor.  
•  My floor- HA!...the poor beige carpet.  I've dropped a few markers, and the chalk dust is everywhere.  Sorry honey, I guess I'll get a little mini vac for my 4th beroom-turned-art-coaching-studio.  

In all...I'm in heaven.  When I started this Monday, I hooked up a USTREAM session (there are a few boring videos of the process..bad sound and apparently I couldn't be bothered to dress up or make up my face for the camera).   Today even, on a group call I used the wall and did some graphic facilitation of our topic via the web with large chart paper on the wall.  That is a whole new area...actually using this live with my clients...and the feedback from them was great.  They loved the visual tools...and so did I.