Category: Creativity

When was the last time you walked the beach alone?

When was the last time that you prioritised time for you to breathe deeper again?

As Women, as Mothers and as Creatives we spend so much time giving out to others, we spend so much time in spaces where we are in charge, responsible and giving our attention to everyone else’s needs.

I am learning that if I don’t prioritise time for me, time to reflect, time to escape, time to renew then everyone around me suffers.

I have spent many times in my life in near burnout. I am an empath to the extreme. When I walk into a room, I really feel what is happening in the whole room. When I sit and listen to someone’s story, it is like I am carrying their experience. When I say yes to doing something, I am extreme in my commitment to its execution. I am loyal, I am constant in my pursuit of contribution and I feel so damn big.

All of these things are the reason why I need to get away. I need to prioritise time with people who feel like I feel and are looking to live a life of purpose.

It is difficult for me to prioritise money and time to make this happen annually. It is difficult to arrange babysitters for my kids and say yes, knowing that my life shifts and changes so often.

But honestly, if I don’t no one else will.

We launched our inspire creative retreat today and I wanted to invite you.

The exhausted, the confused, the strung out and the somewhere in-between.

I wanted to extend my invite to those who sometimes don’t fit it, to the ones who feel forgotten and the ones who cannot see beyond their washing piles.

To the successful, to the writer, the painter, the singer and the musician. To the one who feels unable, to the one who is sick of being overlooked, to the one who has been silenced and the one whose been told they are redundant.

To those who feel too old, to those who feel too big, too loud and those who feel too much.

Click on this link and have a read of the weekend we have prepared.

Just

For

You

 

One could say I am a serial internet poster. My online footprint could be found by even the most novice of searchers but for the first time last night, I questioned my love affair with all things online and breathed a deep sigh of “what has our world become?”. Edward Snowden, has confused us.

My husband and I were invited to the State Premiere of Snowden, at Luna cinemas, Leederville. The movie opens nationwide this Thursday, 22nd of September and is one of the best movie releases this side of Christmas.

Academy Award-winning director Oliver Stone seamlessly combined the real life footage of Edward Snowden, a polarising global figure, who mid-2013 took down the American government, with a documentary team and the guardian media from a Hong Kong hotel room.

Snowden, an everyday, boring, computer geek, uncovered a glitch in his personal integrity whilst consulting in his role for the NSA. He slowly realised that the work he was employed for, was secretly enabling the American Government, to spy on everyday citizens, without their knowledge.

He is considered a real time hero for some and a national security traitor for others. Snowden now lives in exile in Moscow, Russia. The film had us enthralled from beginning to end.

As we watched this true story unfold, we uncomfortably turned off our phones and disconnected our entangled lives online. Across the cinema, I saw phone after phone being turned off, as people realised the intrinsic nature of our online search ability.

We drove home and took a deep breath from the intense story of our culture, and reconsidered our opinion of this story of an everyday hero.

Maybe it is okay that our security and lives are monitored for safety, protection?

Wait, what, our every move is monitored and weighed, sifted, by the government?

The discussion in our car was brilliantly confusing.

No matter which side of the fence you sit, this film will leave you reconsidering how you interact online and the culture of the world that we live in. I’m not sure if I am ready to call Snowden my hero yet, but I am thankful that he has made me engage in a conversation that matters around our online culture and the pervasiveness of its impact.

This is sure to be a film must see this Spring and one you will want to buy a pack of band-aids for!

Amanda Viviers

www.amandaviviers.com

As a mum of two pretty wild littles, I am often overwhelmed with the task at hand. My two-year-old is the one who goes over to the iPod and plays DJ at her ballet class. Then this morning after class we went to the local cafe and her tutu screamed as she lay on the floor demanding ice cream and attention from all.

The life of a Mum is one that is called to servanthood. It is a life of humility, making hard calls and often it is one of sheer embarrassment. I walk this very fine line of wanting my children to be wild and free, yet civilised and secure.

My husband works every day with youth at risk. He says to me often, the main reason why these boys are off the rails is because they have grown up with no discipline and boundaries. Boundaries make kids feel safe and children who have grown with strong boundaries and fierce rules grow into teenagers who know how to deal with the ebbs and tides of emotions, that adolescence brings with it.

The problem is, I want my kids to find their voice, I want them to learn to say no, I want them to be able to stand up for themselves, but at the same time have respect, be kind and stand up for the underdog.

As a Mum, I wrestle these same extremes in one morning of motherhood. The life of a Mother is a life of servanthood. We always have something to do. I don’t often sit and think, what shall I do today. I sit to rest after world war three has erupted in my loungeroom and I am like, what shall I do first; The washing, the vacuuming, make lunch, lunch is finished, the dishes, scrub the floor, now dinner…The list is endless.

Then I know how much I need to look after myself and how self-care is imperative in the life of a Mum.

How do I prioritise self-care, so I don’t scream my face off at those around me, whilst living a life of vegemite covered clothes?

How do I satisfy those desires of freedom and the wildness that grows deep within my uniqueness, yet not act in a way that offends and draws attention to myself?

I want to express my truth, the parts of myself that not many get to see, but at the same time be kind in the way I walk my days. Not only do I want that for myself, I so desperately want it for my children.

Finding ways to bring boundaries and discipline into my every day, but having the wisdom to know when they need to be thrown into the wind and dance freely as they whisk away.

I think routine, accountability and boundaries are important for both adults and children alike. If we spend our days with no rules, with unlimited choices and with no tasks at hand, we become extremely unproductive and unsatisfied.

The opposite is also necessary as well. We need days where it doesn’t matter if the dishes are piled by the sink, we need to walk away from the lists, the demands, the emails and the opinions of those around us and surrender to the call of the wild.

There is this part in every single one of us, that needs attention and care. It is a fragile voice that is asking for expression, there is a part of us that needs time to develop and arrive. When was the last time that you stood and faced the sea and screamed your heart out not worried whether anyone was watching? When was the last time you did something for the first time and your stomach landed in your throat? When was the last time you stayed in your PJs all day and ignored every single task?

Find your wild.

Find your routine.

Allow both of them to form your security and stretch.

We all have a part of us that desires freedom and release.

We are all calmed by boundaries, rules and opportunities to find peace in the path.

We are all called to live a life that serves another.

We are all designed to self-nurture, re-energise and find a place of peace within.

The question is never what part belongs in my life today.

The question is what part of me has not found its place recently?

Do you spend so much time looking after others that you are unable to look after yourself?

Do you spend so much time caring for yourself that you are unable to look out for another?

Wild.

Free.

Secure.

Civilised.

They all can coexist.

They are often in competition with one another.

Sometimes little tweaks can make all the difference.

What is a little tweak you have made lately to help these two competing parts of us be friends?

Amanda

I believe there are two types of people in the world and I have found the two definitions of the word “moral” can quite succinctly define them.

1. Standards of behaviour, principles of right or wrong.
2. A lesson that can be derived from every story or experience.

We have the rule keepers and those who look for the why of the rule; the story seekers.

The rule keeper, guardian, and officer for the wellbeing of the world.

The beckoning cloud of shame becomes a favourite tactic of the rule keeper. When they raise their eyebrows and tut their tongue they reinforce the absoluteness of the morality they have been endorsed to preach. The rule keeper, guardian, and officer for the wellbeing of the world, can often be found poised at the end of their keyboard awaiting an online misdemeanour, where their warrior keyboard ways, must inflict their judgement and infringement notice. The problem with the rule keeper, guardian, and officer for the wellbeing of the world is when the black and white judgements they have so fiercely preached, hit a little close to home when someone close by, breaks their heavily controlled borders. When our friend the rule keeper is brought into the place of chaos and change, their hearts and lives become entwined in the reality of their moment and the distinct lines they have drawn.

Then we have the story seeker.

The story seeker, walks carefully upon the earth, knowing the fragileness of its inhabitants and surroundings. They may have been once the rule keeper, but they realised that mess and tragedy befall us all and often there are no rules or boundaries that can fix the state of their today. The story seeker looks for the proverb that is hidden under the soil of a tree, they seek the wisdom found in the folds of their elderly neighbour’s cheeks. They seek the lines of the tracks of those gone before and seek out the direction they have travelled rather than the boundaries of the steps. The story keeper walks softly with compassion and is ever able to step into another’s shoes. They seek the insight of another’s point of view and take the time to unpack the complexity of every human’s plight. They know that lessons are available in every single life and not one life is ever a lost case. That we are all a part of the writhing mess of humanity, seeking purpose and direction.

Morality is a word that is often wielded as a mark of maturity or significance.

I, myself am drawn to the story seeker.

I believe that every single life is full of love and lesson.

I believe that every human has the right to choose their path without being beaten into conformity.

I believe in beauty in the ocean, a poem that speaks in a sunset and the cradle of a mother’s arms that invites humanity to a dance of trust.

I believe in you.

Your ideas.

Your strength.

Your purpose.

Your delight.

I choose number two.

Drawing grace from the chaos.

Speak again soon,

Amanda