All Souls Day

All Souls' Day by William Bouguereau

All Soul's Day (sometimes called the "Day of the Dead") is always November 2 (November 3rd if the 2nd falls on a Sunday). In Western Christianity, All Souls' Day commemorates the faithful departed. This day is observed in the Roman Catholic Church, churches of the Anglican Communion, Old Catholic Churches, and to some extent among Protestants. The Eastern Orthodox Church observes several All Souls' Days during the year.

My beloved grandmother Annie Casey Niland died on All Soul's Day in 1981. Tradition has it that if you die on this day you go directly to heaven. I still miss her terribly.



My beloved Grandmother Annie Niland
(she was in a play called The Girl of the Golden West)

The Roman Catholic celebration is based on the doctrine that the souls of the faithful which at death have not been cleansed from venial sins, or have not fully atoned for mortal sins, cannot attain the beatific vision in heaven yet, and that they may be helped to do so by prayer and by the sacrifice of the Mass (see Purgatory).

All Souls' Day is also known as the Feast of All Souls, Commemoration of all the Faithful Departed. The day purposely follows All Saint's Day in order to shift the focus from those in heaven to those in purgatory. It is celebrated with masses and festivities in honor of the dead. While the Feast of All Saints is a day to remember the glories of Heaven and those there, the Feast of All Souls reminds us of our obligations to live holy lives and that there will be purification of the souls of those destined for Heaven.

Traditions and Customs
Visiting a Graveyard for a Picnic
Decorating Relatives' Graves
Remembering and Praying for Departed Souls
Giving Orphans Food, Clothing, and Toys
Leaving Doors & Windows Open on All Souls Night

Symbols
Any Symbol of Death
Any Symbol of Fire
Old Testament Typology Foreshadowing All Souls Day
All Old Testament Examples of Fire
All Old Testament Examples of Purification

The official Latin designation Commemoratio omnium Fidelium Defunctorum, on which this last name is based, is rendered more literally in Portuguese Comemoração de todos os Fiéis Defuntos and many other languages. Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos or de los Difuntos) is used in Spanish-speaking countries, and Thursday of the Dead (Yom el Maouta) in Lebanon, Palestine and Syria.

info from...http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Souls_Day
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01315b.htm
http://www.churchyear.net/allsouls.html

wordless wednesday...

art as prayer...

art for me is prayer...it is allowing the energy to flow through me to create as no one has before me and as everyone has before me...creation is the moment i am most present in my life and at one with the universe...Cre8Tiva in Cre8Topia!

morning ritual at the beach...

i am filled with joy and peace after my morning ritual at the beach...this is one reason:

my first glimpse of the sunrise this morning...

a couple was taking pictures with their cell phone...i captured them...

the breathtaking awe...

i often take these little snaps of beach treasures i call nature vignettes....i take them as i find them with no arrangement by me...here are some from this morning: click to enlarge...

metallic moods of the sea...

as an artist i am sensitive to the changes in color around me...last week the atmosphere was very blue...and the temperature was very cold...my morning photos were very blue...consequently my mood was blue...but this week the temperature warmed as did the colors and my spirit shines...the atmosphere took on a metallic glow and the following are the photos i captured...

platinum morn

golden morn

silver morn

bronze morn

copper morn

i can feel the change about my world at this time...this shining aura surrounds me and my spirit is brightened...i carry this out into the world...

Meister Eckhart wrote, "As thou art in church or cell, that same frame of mind carry out into the world, into its turmoil and its fitfulness."

One persons's rut is another persons's ritual...

i love my morning routine...the ritual of heading to the beach just minutes after i awake...to meditate, pray and be with my God in the place i love so dearly...on this day, my 58th birthday, i share with you my morning ritual and the images i see...

first i cross the dunes...

"One man's rut is another man's ritual. We need to honor and respect all the ruts, routines and rituals that people employ as they travel down the road of life. The ruts give them comfort, the routines keep them young and the rituals remind them that they are not alone." -Dwight Curry, How We Behave at the Feast

then i follow this path through the sea oats...
often i pause just on the other side of this path at the top of the dune to sit in prayerful meditation...

then i walk along the shore until the sun rises...and i stop and watch the new day open...giving thanks for the blessings i have and ask to earn my daily bread...

i love to watch the birds soar among the clouds...and dare to imagine how it would feel to spread feathered wings and ride the thermals...

i pray that you take the time to create a morning ritual and that we always allow one another the space to enjoy our morning routines...

ghosts and panic attacks do not make for a good night's sleep...

ghosts and panic attacks interrupted my sleep last night...yuk!!! at 1:50 am i awoke terrified, with a full-blown panic attack...have not had one for a long time now...then at 5:50 am, i was awake petting the dog, my kitchen light came on and went off...and the motion detector light came on...for some time now the light in my bathroom will turn on when nobody is in there...i joke about there being a ghost...is it a joke? or is it my guardian angel?

so i was on the beach by 6:30 this morning...it was still very dark and i walked in the light of the moon...my reflection on the wet sand beneath my feet...

6:30 am walk

the great blue heron was the only other being on the beach at this moment

i walked on in silent prayer...wanting some comfort...and i remember...when life seems to be 'falling apart' things could actually be 'falling together'...

i keep reminding myself that i am safe, and my situation is under the perfect control of Divine providence and universal order...i try to only infuse loving thoughts and emotions into the situation to ensure that the highest possible outcome flows effortlessly to and through me...adapted from Dorren Virtue

the sunrise

how big you 'perceive' a problem to be may be actually BE the problem...

When fear comes, expect the opposite...faith to rise up. When symptoms attack your body, expect the opposite-God's healing power. When sadness attaches itself to you, expect the opposite-joy to flood your being. When lack comes in, expect the opposite-God's provision. When confusion comes, expect the opposite-God's peace. When darkness covers you, expect the opposite-God's light on you. -Martin Riding

the heron on my way back down the beach...my companion in the first light of day

"In the words of an old Irish prayer: Three wishes I ask of the King when I part from my body: May I have nothing to confess, may I have no enemy, may I own nothing! Three wishes I ask this day of the King, ruler of suns: May I have no dignity or honours that lead me into torment! May I not work without reward before Christ! May God take my soul when it is most pure!" -Sacred Space

a surprise when i looked at my pictures

i had captured a dragonfly purely by Divine accident

a gift to remind me that even when i feel alone...i am not alone...

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i am expecting a miracle...

i joined the FUN-ellenge with Heather Picken

join us here:

http://summitforwomen.ning.com/page/i-create-miracles-funellenge

the glory that is to be revealed to us...

in times of severe stress and stormy seas, i remember my faith...

"Then the rainstorm came over me; and I felt my spirit break. I had lost all of my belief, you see, and realized my mistake." -Seal, Love's Divine, Seal IV

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. -Romans 8:18

i am rejoicing and in deep gratitude this Sabbath for i believe that the current circumstances of my life are to build my virtue and teach me patience and trust...my life lessons...i told a friend this week that i had become fearless...and for this i am most grateful...

Sabbath Song...almost every Sunday I post about my sacred life, my faith, or my spiritual walk...I invite you to write your own song on your Sabbath...please take the Sabbath Song badge below and use it on your blog...


i am moved to share about my religion this morning as there are many myths about Catholicism...one that always pains me is the misconception that Catholics are not saved...we are baptised as infants and confirmed at the age of 12-14. Confirmation, in the Roman Catholic faith, marks the coming of the Holy Spirit into your heart...the completion of our Baptism. This is the time when we accept Jesus as our Saviour...similar to 'being saved' as in the Protestant faith.


this is what i believe: The Holy Spirit is the bond that links God the Father with his son Jesus...a link of love and communication that never sleeps...each of us is a child of God through Baptism... sisters and brothers of Jesus...i view every human being as my brother or my sister and treat them with the love and respect i have for my siblings..as with my biological siblings, sometimes it is easier to do than others.

when God looks on each of us, he sees in us the image of his son...there is an unbroken stream of love and communication binding us to the Father...and that stream...that bond is the Holy Spirit...even though, at times, we feel like we may have lost that connection...


much of the time i do not feel like a temple of the Holy Spirit...yet it is when i feel unholy and unable to pray that the Holy Spirit speaks for me to the Father “with sighs too deep for words” (Romans 8:26).


as i grow older, i realise that prayer is not about finding beautiful words or petitioning for our needs...nor is it about making speeches to our Lord...but rather tuning inward toward the Spirit of Jesus...who is always there, linking me to my heavenly Father...one of my most special memories is the day I realized that my prayer had transformed from a monologue into a dialog...it was an awakening for me...and my prayer life has been richer and more fruitful as a result...

i begin each morning by the sea where "the glory that is to be revealed to us" is revealed to me...one tiny tidbit at a time...i spend almost two hours in meditation and prayer...i am blessed to be able to have this time in this beautiful setting that is revealed in my photographs...life is good...thank you God for giving me the circumstances of my life...

i rarely get political...but i have had no health coverage for over a year and no way to get the medications i need for many months now...but the health care thing has cause much dissension between some of my friends who really believe that we will be pushing their grandmothers into an early grave and that Obama is like hitler because he can energise our youth...all i can say is Lord help us... read this for the best topic i've seen on the whole debacle.... and i beg you don't believe everything you hear on faux news...

seaside sketches....the zen of temporary art

temporary art as meditation...

i am not able to take my usual morning walk because of my broken foot...but i can sit by the sea and let the water soothe my foot and my soul...this morning i started sketching faces with my cane...

i named my sketches the zen of temporary art... for the present, i will be doing temporary art as meditation...there is something very fulfilling about sketching in the sand...i am aware of the impermanence and it will only last for a short time...yet it feels so freeing...as i continued i felt myself become very present and centered...peaceful and lifted...

Leonardo da Vinci was one of the greatest painters of the Italian Renaissance. He painted the Mona Lisa with her mysterious smile and his legendary interpretation of the Last Supper. He didn’t [produce] a lot of paintings because it took him so long to paint a 'great' painting; he was very careful and precise, and was always looking over his shoulder to make sure no one was copying him. He even went so far as to "mirror write," writing everything backwards, which was easy for him since he was left-handed. Though most of his research and discoveries were great, he did not publish them, but we still have accounts of his great genius. -myhero.com

da Vinci did not know if his work would last...does any artist really know...temporary art is very gratifying for an artist because you can always return another day and create again... NYC has Temporary Public Outdoor Art Guidelines for goodness sake...

i have always been fascinated by Robert Smithson's Spiral Jetty (below)...

Spiral Jetty, 1970. Robert Smithson, Great Salt Lake , Utah

prisonphotography.wordpress.com

the Spiral Jetty is Robert Smithson's monumental earthwork at Rozel Point in the Great Salt Lake, Utah...completed in April 1970 it is 1500 feet long and 15 feet wide...composed of basalt rocks, mud, water and salt crystals...it juts out from the shore and coils into luminous red water...it is temporary because it has disappeared and then re-emerged from the lake over the past decades.

how do i get paid for this art?

in sand dollars of course...

have a blessed day...

my gift...my mission...

i have been given a great gift...in return i have a job/mission to do...

From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more. Luke 12:48

the mission?