The Maker's Space

This marbled ornament represents the billion thoughts in our brain on a daily basis.  We started our session by writing down any thought that came into our heads.  After 10 minutes, our papers were covered in a colorful array of words and designs.  This showed the complexity of our minds. This year, we have been using art to help us explore the topic of our identity.  We are taking excerpts for the book, "Who God Says You Are - a Christian understanding of identity " by Klyne Snodgrass. [All quotes in this post, are taken from the book.] The chapters in the book are organized by 9 facets of our identity: You are your body, You are your history, You are your relations, You are your commitments, You are your actions, You are your boundaries, You are an ongoing process of change, You are your future, and the one we are discussing now, You Are Your Mind. "You are indeed your mind.  You are the result of how you think about yourself.  The internal self-interpreting, s

When Your Child Feels Stuck November 14, 2019   By: Jen Coursey   Category:  Parenting   Comments: 0 This morning I was driving the boys to school and we started sharing some of the things we appreciate. Creating appreciation on the way to school is a rich tradition our family started  3 years ago . On this day, it was Matthew’s turn to start off expressing his appreciation. When I asked him to begin, he said, “Mom; I can’t think of anything I appreciate.” I knew it was time to get creative.  When we cannot remember something positive to enjoy or we struggle to think of something good to appreciate, it is often a good indicator we have fallen out of relational mode. Our relational circuits  are dimmed and offline . (1) While reflecting on the people, moments and things we appreciate tends to be a good way to help us shift back into relational mode, there are times we are so far offline that even  appreciation alone does not do the trick  . Here is when we need a littl

We are taking excerpts from the book "Who God Says You Are" by Klyne Snodgrass, "A Christian Understanding of Identity." In September, we explored Interactive Journaling where we imagined what God would say to us as we come to Him when we have something on our mind, full of joy, or full of something disturbing.  You can read the 5 statements that we wrote on in the September 2019 post of Interactive Journaling. This year, in every medium that we use, we will use art to help us explore the topic of Identity ...Who are you? [Everything below are excerpts from the book above by Klyne Snodgrass.] Identity is the sum of everything that pertains to us and shapes us.  Identity is that sense of being and self-understanding that frames our actions, communicates to others who we are, and sets the agenda for our acts.  Identity drives life, and it provides the energy and motivation for all else. Who are you and what made you who you are?  More, importantly, who should

This week I found myself with a day to myself in our Capital!  So I decided to "feed my soul" and visit some museums all by myself.  {See the series How to Feed Your Soul, #1 in this blog,  https://www.themakersspace.us/p/how-to-feed-soul-and-live-more-creative.html  } Below are some things that caught my eye and things that I noticed  during my time without schedule or agenda.  After spending so much time with my new puppy Ike, the break was so welcome and the free time never felt so free!  First spotted the Capital, on my way to the National Gallery of Art. Inside the Gallery, a pause.... There was a special exhibit of Verocchio, one of the fathers of the Renaissance in Florence.  His students were many and went on to found their own studios and own careers....like Leonardo DaVinci, Botticelli,  and Ghirlandaio.  He was such a hands on teacher, many of his works have blurred lines where his works stops and his students begin, the sign of a self-l