collage

Intuitive Guiding Messages

Posted by Barbara Techel
Intuitive Guiding Images
My 2017 SoulCollage card

Last year I was introduced to using twelve images, picked at random, from twelve different magazines to intuitively help create my New Year.

Initially, I was intimidated. While I enjoyed going through the meditation process for each month that led me to choosing twelve different images, when it came time to get all those images onto one 5 x 8 card fear set in. I thought there was no way I’d be able to do it.

In the “normal” process of doing SoulCollage(r) we work with an average of 2-5 images per card. I say “normal” as there is no right or wrong way to do this process, just helpful hints and suggestions. But twelve images on a card? That really did seem impossible.

But I’m happy to report I did it!!…and was quite pleased and ecstatic that I did.

Well, then I was hooked, and repeated the process again this year, which I then also facilitated a workshop at my Joyful Pause studio this past Saturday on this very process which I learned from SoulCollage(r) facilitator, Andrea Thuler who lives in Switzerland.

Above is my card I put together for 2017, which I did a few days before I taught it to seven other wise and wonderful ladies. I have to be honest and humble here…I am in love with my card!  I look at it and I can hear and see my soul with clarity, which is such a beautiful thing.

It speaks to me of my uniqueness in who I am, how I want to continue to dance more fully into who I am, how I find strength and courage from my rituals of meditation, yoga, and listening to my inner voice, how I feel the light inside me burning bright again, how my inner compass is my true guidance, and how I want to live more and more from that wild and wise person that I know I am.

But what lit me up even more was watching the participants in my workshop, half of which were new to SoulCollage(r) as they went through this process…and the revelations that it presented for them.

To watch as many began the process of letting go of what no longer serves them and finding the strength to step into who they really want to be….well, let’s just say, it was magical, priceless, and left my heart with a very good feeling, which still vibrates within me today.

I’ve walked the journey of letting go, and continue to… as like everyone else, I am a work in progress….which is perfectly OKAY…we are unfinished women, with so much more to give, finding our way to shine in this world.

One woman said of the experience, “My soul gained a little serenity today.” I wanted to weep with joy from that statement as this is the calling I’ve felt drawn to for quite some time now…

to help and encourage others to open to their own souls whispers and wisdom.

Thank you for sharing and subscribing to my blog updates.

Moving into the New Year with Ritual. I Invite You to Join Me.

Posted by Barbara Techel

Moving into the New Year with Ritual. I Invite You to Join Me.

Christmas Eve morning I awoke around 4:30am. I couldn’t go back to sleep. My SoulCollage® cards which I keep out in my writing cottage were calling to me.

I decided to follow the impulse. A half hour later I had lit a candle, had meditative music playing, and got out my box of over fifty SoulCollage® cards I’ve made since November 2014.

Past, Present, and Future was what felt right to me in picking three cards – one to represent each as a way of helping me to begin to move into 2017 which is just hours away now.

The first card I chose at random to represent past was my “Window to my soul” card which you see on the far left. The next card to represent the present is my “Ballerina/Horse” card and the last card to represent future is my “Follow your light” card.

I sat with the past card, “Window to my soul” first and thought about it’s meaning for me at this time in my life. This is what I journaled:

I am one who for the past thirteen years has been working diligently on the whispers of my soul. This has prepared me for the new work I’m stepping into.

Next I meditated on the present with “Ballerina/Horse” card:

I am one who feels taller and more confident than ever before. When I look in the mirror I like who I see and who I have become. Horse reminds me that I did the deep inner work to heal a long held wound. I now can hold my head high and dance. Horse reminds me to prance out into the world and bring my gift to others.

Lastly I tapped into the message for the future with “Follow your light” card:

I am one who reminds you that the light within you is a gift I (I being Frankie, my dog) helped bring forth in you. I’m here to remind you to never let that light dim. Use it to help ignite the light in others. Follow your own north star and the light within you will magnify out to the stars ten-fold. I am here to also remind you to not be afraid as my spirit is now one with you for eternity.

To continue a ritual that I’m feeling as sacred and true, I’m planning to choose an animal card from the Animal Wisdom Tarot card deck to serve as a guide for 2017 and an angel card to do the same, which I’ll do this evening. I’ll share those with you tomorrow.

I will be making copies of these cards, plus my SoulCollage® cards, and putting them in a visible spot my writing cottage. It will be my reminder of this special ritual and what it means for me as I move with more conscious awareness of how intuition and following my heart into 2017 will serve as the best way in which to continue to live a fulfilling and meaningful life.

If you have SoulCollage® cards, Oracle, or Tarot cards I invite you to do the same. Should you not, a suggestion would be to find a favorite magazine, hold your hand on it, eyes closed in meditation for as long as feels right to you, and perhaps posing a question on something you wish for guidance on in the New Year. When it feels right, open your eyes, and randomly open to a page in the magazine. Then work with really tuning into that image that appears and listening to what the message that image has for you. Don’t second guess yourself. Go with what immediately comes to mind and start writing it down.

I’d love to know what transpires for you, so please do leave a comment in the comment section, or feel free to email me.

I’ll be facilitating a workshop in my home studio, Joyful Pause, on Saturday, January 14th, Intuitively Creating your New Year, working with images in collaging and journling with the SoulCollage® process.  I’d love for you to join us! The class is half-full and I only have room for five more. If interested, register soon here.  

Thank you for sharing and subscribing to my blog updates.

Honoring a Pet Through Collage and Journaling

Posted by Barbara Techel
Honoring a Pet Through Collage and Journaling
My JOIE SoulCollage® card

I’m so honored to have been asked to provide an article for the monthly newsletter for SoulCollage®. As many of you know, I became a facilitator two years ago. It’s a process that by working with images and creating collages on five by eight cards that lead to self-discovery.

I was contacted by SoulCollage® to write an article on pet grief and how SoulCollage® can be of help. I believe the article will appear in the November issue. I’ll be sure to share a link once it is available.

But I wanted to share with you today the card I made to honor JOIE and encourage you to do the same for a pet you love and now may be gone. But it’s also a great way to pay tribute to an animal friend who is still here with you.

I have over fifty cards I’ve made so far and it’s always touching when shuffling the cards and choosing a card at random when one of my animal friends shows up for the day – reminding me of their presence in my life and what they taught me.

As is also encouraged in SoulCollage® after making a card, to journal with it from a prompt often used in SoulCollage® which is “I am one who.” To “step into the card,” so to speak, and listen for the wisdom the image has for you and capture that in writing.

I’m reminded today as I sent photos of my cards of Frankie and Joie, and my “I am one who” journal entries that our animal friends are always with us and that we can connect with them anytime we want – it’s just making the conscious choice to be in that sacred space of stillness and connection with them.

My JOIE journal entry:

I am one who could only stay a short time. My greatest gift to you was for me to leave my physical body so that you would come to see there are gifts in transition – whether they be in death or life changes.  Doors close and new ones open – each a portal to understanding yourself on an even deeper level. The water paw print I sent you from the other side was my way of letting you know you are on the right path – the one of living in more conscious awareness – one of pausing often to listen to your inner voice and bring that wisdom forth to share with others.

Thank you for sharing and subscribing to my blog updates.