Heartsong Studio

 

Does lack of training and talent, or the risk of making a mess hold you back from realizing your full potential ?
Are you afraid of getting it wrong ? See if you ever mistaken a map for a journey, in this article by Celeste Varley.
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“Do you ever mistaken a map for a journey ?”
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Have you ever planned a dream vacation ? Did you get a handful of
maps and brochures from a travel agent ? Then you may have
researched flights you could afford, and then places to lodge when
you got there.

Brochures set out an array of places you want to visit -
museums, galleries, seasides, resorts, natural settings,
old cities, market places.

Then came the actual trip to get to your chosen spot. If you had
never been there before, how did the reality match your
expectations ? Can a map hold the local smells and feeling of
warmth from the sun, or bite of bitter wind ?

Is your goal to follow the map, or is it to have an adventure,
to experience the foreign atmosphere, or to share the ambience
of a distant milieu ?
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When you set out to make a work of art, the “map” would be the
technical rules — how you handle the type of media you’re using,
for example. The rules are predictable, and safe.

The journey would be your process of feeling your way to find
what lies at the heart of your response to a concept or idea.
All things you cannot predict.

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An adventure isn’t guaranteed to be safe; that’s what makes it an
adventure.
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The rules are only to assist you in getting there.
If you make a picture composed of examples of perfectly followed
rules, it will look quite dull, like a two dimensional map.
It will also be safe and without risk.

I think you would be quite disappointed to arrive at a cardboard,
flat “play town” if you went on a vacation to the map of your
dreams. You would want the flesh and blood reality, with all the
local sights and sounds of a throbbing, exotic city or a wondrous
new landscape.

Do you cling to maps or rules like security blankets ? What is
holding you back from realizing your potential are self-imposed
limitations.

All the limits that seem to come from outside, like lack of
schooling, no talent, or any number of other variations are
only affecting you with your permission.

Limitations are like driving along, looking in the rearview mirror.
What’s gaining on you ? What’s hunting you down ? Is that a
police car about to pull you over ?

You know what is written on your rearview mirror:
“Objects in mirror are closer than they appear.”
So are your self limitations closer than they appear, especially
when you deny their existence, by blaming them on something outside
yourself.

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What is an antidote to the compulsion to follow the map instead of
your heart ?
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Making connection is what guides you safely to get to the heart of
anything living and breathing.

To make the connection which can free you from “map clinging”, go
inside, and look within your heart. Your heart is the doorway to
your Source. Sit or stand comfortably before you start making art.
Take stock of how you’re feeling. Don’t try to change what you
feel, or fix it. What if it were all right to be how you are,
physically and emotionally ?

When you are intimate with your feelings, ask to be shown what
beliefs lie beneath them. Do you feel, for example, that if you
don’t follow the rules, you will be wrong, or a bad artist,
student, or person ? Do you think you will “make a mess” or lose
control without a map for guidance ?

Staying in your heart, ask yourself : Are these beliefs actually
true ?
It isn’t necessary to force your way past any beliefs or fears, or
to deny their existence. They are there for a long time, and their
purpose has been to protect you. So, hold them with respect.

What is your actual goal here ?
Where do you want to go with this project you are starting ?
Can you shift your focus from your fears and limiting beliefs,
though they appear larger than life ?
While holding and cradling your fears, shift your focus to being
open to surprise.

If you can receive the support from your spiritual Source, to
follow your heart’s longings, then you can receive what you lack.
Solutions which are right for you are waiting within for the
asking. With practice, this becomes easier, because it’s the most
natural way for you to function.

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Any journey begins with a single step. Being patient with yourself
is a good place to start. Ask for help from within, and be willing
to be surprised at what you receive.
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Did this article help you to let go of your map for awhile ?

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If a friend sent you this article, you may not know about my free
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Celeste Varley
“Oh! for a horse with wings” -Shakespeare
Let our hearts sing and take flight!
celeste@heartsongstudio.com