Offering you a creative practice to begin your new year!

A new year, a blank slate,
a gift set before you.

Before you begin anew,
take out your paint,
your colored pencils,
your markers —
Dab a golden crisp fingerprint
in the center of your paper.

This, a symbol of your connection with God.
God, the centerpoint of your life.

Now,
(close your eyes)
consider your past year
Has there been difficulty? Trial?
Of course. But friend,
here is where you become a miner.
Go ahead.
Put your cap on, the one with the bright light.
Let it help you look, let it help you sift.
Soon you’ll see golden flecks shimmer, these,
the way God has blessed your past year,
weaving divinity through
friends — family — work.

What goodness do you remember?
Quite possibly an unexpected gift,
a new friend made, a soulful conversation.
Do you recall holy nudges
to care for yourself through
healthy food, long walks, prayerful rest?
Maybe glistening memories of
an animal encounter, a colorful landscape
will arise as you ponder.
 This,
the hidden sparkle of God’s Spirit
on your path,
only visible when you take time to look.

Now, dream yourself into 2018.
What goodness do you bring to offer?
Who is your three feet of influence?
What is the weight you need to let go of?
Where do you see the divine twinkle in your new year?

This is the year of your adventure with God.
Beauty awaits you. An invitation (just for you)
is at your fingertips. Watch the color unfurl.

My friend,
it is time, (open your eyes)
take the colorful materials before you.
Go forth and create
your connection with God in 2018.
Use the colors your drawn to.
Shapes that are meaningful.
Words that bring hope.
Is a symbol sprouting?
Respond to the moment.

Be gentle with yourself.
There is no judgement at this table.
This practice has nothing to do
with your drawing ability, but
simply an exercise of
love and connection.

Beloved,
let yourself go.
See what manifests.
Maybe a bit of magic?
Something playful?

Whatever it is.
It is good.
It is from your core.
An outward expression
of your inner dwelling.

Connecting the past
to the gift of the present
taking you into your
beautiful future.

Happy New Year,
dear friends.

I hope each of you has found some time to rest and renew over the holidays. I have gladly welcomed 2018 and am looking forward to a fresh year! I’ve had a lot stirring over the last few weeks, so you may notice a few more posts coming from me in the next week or two and then it will head back towards a weekly post. A few little updates about my website: First, what I love about a blog is the organic process and how it changes over time. One thing I continue to tweak is the byline after Soul Kindling. I’ve changed it yet again to “A Weekly Spark for Your Creative Spirit.” This feels right coming into a new year embracing my creative spirit over many years of dormancy. I believe as I continue to write for this upcoming year, you’ll see my posts head more towards creativity centered on the divine. This will manifest as writings/art on Beauty (in our ordinary days), Creative Practice (your spiritual practice doesn’t have to be boring!), Encouragement (every creator needs encouragement), Healing & Restoration (processing grief through creativity is necessary), Holy Days (I love to approach Advent and Lent from a creative stance) and Sacred Feminine (the diva of your soul). You’ll see each of these now has a category, so if you are looking for encouragement, you can click on Categories and you’ll find posts of that nature! As always, if you are feeling your inbox is too full, feel free to unsubscribe. Thanks for journeying along with me on our creative adventure. Peace, Ally
P.S. A big thanks to my family who playfully created with me through this exercise and allowed me to post their work.