Zentaimprints

Bee in the Rose.... In ancient Egypt bees were believed to be formed by the tears of Ra...the Sun God...like amber in Latvia...regarded as tears of Saule the Sun Goddess... Blessed Be the Bees and the flowers that sustain them.

Wild scented roses as a gesture of gratitude for all the love and generousity of spirit I am being blessed and showered with from all those in my life, near or far, in form or non-form - connected through the grace of Creation and Great Mystery. Aho!

'Ptah' unfolding.... When I began the journey of painting my experience of Ptah (small section of painting depicted here, with much work still underway) - one of the 'neteru' of Ancient Egypt - I didn't realise his 'sheath' was made of feathers... Much like every painting, I step into an unfoldment of what is brought forth and open myself to teachings along the way. A bit like the rest of life. I learn to breath slowly while I am painting and feel great gratitude for what h...as become more and more a practice of reflection through paying attention, and discovery. Stroke by stroke, building up the white lines (a single stroke dissapears into the background so have to go over each line at least twice - similar to the practice of living...). And patience. My mother often spoke of her experience of painting being a form of Refuge. This I too now understand - both as refuge for the spirit and a bridge into sanctity.
See More

Yesterday I sat again with one of the four white lions living their life in a nearby 'nature enclosure'. Depending on how one perceives their circumstance and what has led to it, they are members, shared by many other species who are also endangered, of a global protection program, ensuring their presence on this planet is not lost due to extinction in the Wild. And it is surely true these lions are loved, respected and cared for by all those who tend them in their zoo envir...onment. As I sat before her, on ground far from her natural endemic homeland of Timbavati in South Africa, here in Australia, on land that was once a same Continent - Gondwana - in time before our memory of time - I felt the question of what it was for me to be paradoxically supporting, what some would say, her captivity, by even visiting her - on 'display' through the metal grill of the cage she shares with her brothers and sisters. At the same time, as my heart sang out to her, singing up the lands of her true homeland where I have been blessed to walk - Timbavati - a land of grassy plains that I shall never forget, a calm was shared between us that seemed to surpass everything. Some might say I was lost in a projection of my own inner landscape, but in her presence I received a teaching in acceptance and sovereignty - from one so far far from home. And in continuing to visit her I am reminded again and again of how vital it is that she and All her Brothers and Sisters are upheld in their right of Return to Freedom - just as Nekhbet the Vulture, another of our endangered species, is also so critical in her role, to the balance of Nature and All of Creation.
See More

Me feeling joy with the ocean behind and sweet grevilleas beside... as my husband says...a 'wild child' moment. Gratitude for all things wild and All of Creation. Fragility Freedom and the flight of birds, sound of the waves and Light of the sun. Gifts of life amidst rounds of suffering and all things inbetween. Shared by us all.

Beside the Ocean....spray of pink grevillea...

Gifts from the Sea... softest tiny rainbow shell upon infinite grains of sand.

Rainbow Passing.... Every day we have enjoyed the presence of a family of Rainbow Lorikeets as they feast on the nectar of pink bottlebrush and yellow grevillea outside our windows here by the ocean. This morning I woke to discover the body of one of the lorikeets laying on the ground - She/He must have flown into the window through the night or early hours of the morning, as her eyes were still soft and shining with Light. The grief and ache I feel in my heart is not, I kn...ow, just for the loss of this precious winged one but touches into the Well of grief and fear I carry beyond this. No matter how far I walk in my life, I know this Well will be ever present. The transience and fragility of life amidst the Gift that it is in all its suffering and beauty. We are held in the Light of Creation, pure and absolute, ever Timeless and One, and yet there is also loss when one strand, one thread of the Rainbow that has touched us passes while being liberated back to Source.
See More

Have arrived by the Southern Ocean for some healing time for both my son who has been unwell, and for myself.... to take in the elements of Sea, Sand and Sun. What a blessing to receive, thanks to dear friends who offered their beach-side home while they are away. And gratitude to my husband who will visit when he can to share the love! Bliss. Within two days I have found the spirit to resume working on a painting, left aside for months. Waiting.... 'Breath of Ptah...' (small section of painting depicted only - first bare imprint) ... His mouth Open just as his Breath first moved itself through me that first day my body became an instrument for his presence - whom I now can only refer to as 'Father of my Soul'. It was a shock to experience myself wrapped tight in the remnants of muslin cloth still wound about his ancient bones and dried flesh, laying in the open crypt that still holds his body buried deep within the earth - with only my/his head and hands 'free'. His voice strong. His presence that which is only the Light of Love and Truth. That was the only way I could tell I could trust such an experience, that came unbidden, like nothing I had ever before known. Life-affirming Love like the brightest of Suns pouring forth unconditional and absolute. There are many ways one might perceive such an experience, judge it, dismiss it. Call it what we may. But as His Light, and that of his consort Sekhmet, or more timelessly 'Mehit', continues to shine and light up my psyche, I can only give Thanks and offer to keep listening, and use All my Senses. And get on with painting.
See More

Torso with coral and pale rose glass.... One of my mother's resin torso's...created by her over thirty years ago - in a spectrum of pink through to crimson reds and purple....each polished smooth by hand once they were turned out of the rubber molds...the variations within each torso a world unto itself. She taught me such reverence for beauty, both in the simplicity of a flower, the colour of the sky, to the creation of something that took hours, weeks, months or sometimes years to perfect.

One of the greatest gifts received from my parents, both of whom passed within 11 weeks of one another this year, despite being divorced for 36 years - was their creative vision as artists. Just before my father's burial I came across an essay he had written in which he expressed that his bronze interpretation of Demeter - Spirit of Nature (also known as 'Mother Earth'), was one way he was able to express his belief that "our relationship with nature is sacred - it is our connection with the Great Spirit." This sculpture stood on a stone pedestal in his garden for more than a decade, cast in the 'lost-wax' technique, of which he was master. Today, I light a candle in honour of my father Antony Symons, and the Spirit of 'Mother Earth'.

Sharing StarLion blog....!

StarLion... She came to me in a dream and opened a journey that continues to awaken my world. She calls out 'We share, each and all, Sovereign right of return to Freedom. Remember! The Infinite Heart of Creation moves within us all. Arise and be the Light within my eyes!' First introduced to the world as StarLions in her book 'Mystery of the White Lions', I honour the courage of Linda Tucker at www.whitelions.org and all those across the world who with such visionary Lionhearts continue the incredible work of protecting and raising awareness for Lions and all of Creation on this beautiful planet.

If you feel moved, please join us in enabling Beloved Elder Mama Margaret's journey back home to her ancestral Gabarnmang.

Simple pleasures. Today I picked wild freesias in memory of my mother and grandmother, who introduced me as a child to the joy of gathering little bunches found in the bush or roadside scrub, during the brief time they emerge from beneath the ground in Spring. The fragrance of wild freesias have the most exquisite perfume. My favourite scent ever, always. If anyone knows of a EDT or EDP that captures the fragrance of freesias....please let me know! 'Antonia's Flowers' is the one I have come closest to, but I am always searching for that quintessential bottle that may yet be out there in the world of perfume...!

My great Gratitude to Valerie Barrow today for her gift of shining Light through the Grace and vastness of her Being - your lovingkindness and gentle skill is supreme. Gratitude to my husband Mark also, ever holding me strong, and everyone in my life whose love and generosity of Spirit uplifts and blesses like the warmth of the Sun.