musings – Sherri Jean McCulloch

July 1, 2021July 1, 2021

When Too Much is Coming Down the Pipes

Covid, variants, residential school tragedy and trauma, heat dome suffering and deaths, fires, smoke, unmarked anniversary’s

It’s time to look for the beauty again.

Ten Simple Things I’m Grateful For Right Now:

1. My people. Every single one of you, and all of the love you continuously share with me.

2. Air fans. Workhorses that run as long as there is electricity.

3. Electricity

4. Toothbrushes. Clean teeth help to immediately improve my morning attitude.

5. Cold, clean tap water. Hot is nice, too.

6. Windows that open and close. Options are such a privilege!

7. A clean, crisp, high quality white sheet or two. Pure pleasure.

8. A gentle summer rain. I enjoy getting caught outside in one.

9. Mobility. My legs are strong.

10. Garden fresh produce. There’s nothing more nourishing.

What’s on you right now list?

June 21, 2020

There’s Always A Silver Lining…

We just need to remember to look for it!

November 5, 2019November 8, 2019

Opportunities and Collecting Art

I’m number 32, as seen in the art edition; Home and Garden Magazine UK. When a ‘magical’ opportunity shows up in your life, what is your first reaction? For me, this is what seems to happen: 1. Joyful surprise and excitement. 2. I check it out quickly but thoroughly. Hello, Nancy Drew! These scammy days, everything needs a thorough checking out. 3. I pay attention to the possible winning details of the offering and then weigh those against what I’ve been thinking, wondering, wanting and, of course my financial means. 4. I say yes when everything lines up, without too much delay. 5. I wait in joyful gratitude without second guessing my decision because I did the due diligence groundwork and because I believe every ‘yes’ to opportunity opens my world just a little wider! I’m sharing this because, I believe the world is a much better place than it’s being ‘painted’ of late. Yes, there are huge, maybe even insurmountable problems, and yes there is pain, but the goodness and love I have seen in the people I’ve met in every place I’ve ever travelled to, and the beauty I can find in even the blandest of vistas, makes me think the lens we are living our lives through needs a thorough cleaning. The ‘human condition’ allows us to chose our ‘side of the sword’. What side have you chosen? I used to think we had doomed ourselves and most other species. It hurt my soul. It hurt my psyche. Thankfully, I was provided the opportunity to polish and shine my lens. Now, I completely understand Dostoevsky’s prophesy, a prophesy that has long intrigued me, spoken by the prince in The Idiot. “beauty will save the world” So ….be beautiful… love. Be loved. Beloved. Open to magical opportunities and say yes when you’ve done your due diligence. Buy art. Collect art. Train your eye.

Without art, without that trained eye, there is much less beauty available to you in the world. And, you are surrounded by it!

If you’d like to add a piece of my art to your collection, developed or developing, email me, Sherri Jean McCulloch, at roxgroandmink@gmail.com

May 20, 2018May 24, 2018

10 Ways To Be Happier With Your Decisions

‘Essoyes’ Acrylic on Vintage French Linen – unframed – 27 1/2 ” by 26 1/2″

Say Yes While Keeping No In Mind – You said yes to the apple but it doesn’t mean you said yes to the core. You said yes to folding laundry but it doesn’t mean you have to waste you time yessing on exactly matching corners. You said yes to dinner and a movie…you get my drift.
Say Let Me Think About It – If there is time before you have to decide and you are honestly considering a yes, actually thinking about it can provide clarity to both you and the other party. This gives you time to consider your boundaries and what aspects of the yes could become nos. Communicating your boundaries clearly can even alliviate the need for no. Be careful though, this is also a stall and avoidance tactic. Beginning with an “I am interested, let me think about it.” will be better received, especially if you follow up.
Make The Decision Without Expectations – I call these heart decisions because they are always YES and nothing can get in the way of them. These ones take you to places that you’ve never imagined and those you have dreamed of. Saying yes like this can never leave you disappointed.
Make the Decision Whole Heartedly – Never second guess it. When your head goes there, and it might, go right back to why the yes or no was right for you in that moment.
Say No With Yes In Mind – This is all about the timing. Sometimes it has to be no in that moment and you may feel some regrets as a result. That’s okay. Reminding yourself that a yes could come at a later time helps to create calm. You are not closing the door forever.
Body Knows -This is a resounding, intuitive, boundary decision that is always a NO. You feel it in every cell of your being before your head tries to trick you into saying you should because. This is not the same thing as the mind saying no because of fear or anxiety. If you can’t tell the difference, begin paying attention to how the back of your knees feel in fear or anxiousness. It’s usually nothing. It’s usually all gut and chest. In a body knows situation even the backs of your knees will tingle. Listen to the backs of your knees. Listen to the body. Say the NO. Thank the body for it’s wisdom. Never second guess this.
Systems Thinking – Even when we think we’ve made a bad decision, we can find happiness in it. Thinking beyond yourself to see how it affects others will usually reveal some compassionate goodness. Every decision affects more than just you. Thinking widely about the others touched by it will always give you a reason to smile and a reason to forgive yourself and move forward.
Mindfulness – A decision is always made in the past. Shrug it off. Let it go. You have now. Breathe.
Passionate Decisions – You have to have tenacity for these; the tenacity that comes from big dreams and relentless passion and often, love. Think crazy glue. Wear it, pronounce it, believe it, carry it, stand by it, sell it. Never sway from it…until you get ‘there’ and only you know where ‘there’ is. When you make a passionate decision, and you call it that, everyone will forgive your pitbull like grip on reality so you can really dive into it. Never regret these decisions; they happen to help us learn something.
Don’t Waffle – When you do this repeatedly it makes you feel bad inside and it makes you appear untrustworthy if others know about it. Nobody wants that. Say yes or say no and stick to it. Kick your doubts to the curb!

Good luck with this everybody! Let me know if it helps.

April 29, 2018May 20, 2018

Artist Residency; Last Day

I’m all packed up. I created a lot in a month, some of it good, some of it pure process that I can toss or remake. I guess that was the point. Making. Painting.

But you know, Despite having my guard up, I was totally seduced by the beauty of the place. Ziggy Attias, the owner and conceptual lead has created an experience I have only ever dreamed of.

We artists have resided together in the utmost comfort of our own spacious, castle like rooms above shared living areas decorated in a luxurious style true to the Napoleon Trois building. The shared, beautifully outfitted bathrooms have served us easily and the studio rooms gave us inspiring views of the little valley. Importantly, the natural light was fantastic during the day and the walls and floors could be dripped on without worry.

As a surprise, we also had most of our meals prepared for us by a gifted French chef, Marie. The food was excellent and Marie was always happy working in the kitchen. It freed us up to paint and it created a jovial family like atmosphere for evening meals.

Ziggy’s house rules were few and easy to live with. Generally, any minor tasks we shared in were carried out without discussion. They just got done in a manner that was respectful of everyone’s time. With that level of respect in a communal space, it’s easy living together.

I will miss my new friends but I suspect we’ll all keep in touch and meet again. They’ve touched my heart and become a part of me. I also plan on returning to this beautiful place one way or another. It had the best double rainbow I’ve ever seen anywhere before. There was actually a golden shimmer beneath it. How could I not want to come back?

I am filled with gratitude for this experience in France coming on the heels of my retirement. It has transitioned me.

Thank-you, Ziggy. Thank-you, Universe.

February 23, 2018February 28, 2018

Things I Count On

Fingers – From time to time, even now and probably always.
Death – Despite the news about longevity and gene editing, it’s inevitable. I’m here for a period of time. I try to live accordingly.
Firsts – I love noticing a new ‘something’. I look for it in my everyday. Often I’ll call it a first out loud and it lights me up. For example, today, I’m in the bath and I notice a black spot on the enclosure behind me. It’s a spider. One of those compact jumping kind. They’re quick and it’s heading down the wall toward my head. I have a thing about spiders. It’s better than it used to be thanks to the people around me carrying them outside in their hands to rescue the leggy arachnids from me. So I didn’t scream when I saw this one. I talked to it and it stopped moving, for a second, and then came a little further down the walk. I tapped the shampoo bottle on the wall under it to try to get it to turn around. It did, until I stopped tapping. What I really wanted to do was finish bathing before the water got cold. I tapped a little again. Well, the darn thing jumped! Not onto me or anything but closer. Needless to say I also jumped out of the bath over to the tissue and flushed the spider. It’s not raining now. It’s snowing. That’s a first!
Kindness – Even when I’m feeling worn down, if I take a breath and choose to act out of kindness, more often than not, it comes back to me.
Taxes – They seem to always give back to me, now. I like that.
The Roof – Speaking of snow, a few years back we had a huge, deep snowfall, followed the next morning by very warm weather and torrential rain. We have a flat roof and it couldn’t handle the water that was up there. I remember waking up and saying to my husband…I hear a tap running. Rain and snow melt were running down the inside of walls everywhere! It was traumatizing to have the safety of my house suddenly taken away. I imagine this would be the same feeling of vulnerability people might feel after a fire or a home invasion. It was a pure pandimonium.
Birds – They are the messengers of a higher power. I’ve had western tanagers and ravens guide me in the right direction, and chickadees cheer me on. Their songs and mannerisms make me smile, and quiet the inner chatter that I don’t want to hear anyhow.
Change – It’s been a pretty intense not nearly finished lifetime. I remember thinking a half hour of Gilligan’s Island reruns in black and white was just awesome and a sixth channel, when it happened, was over the top. I remember life when I was little feeling black and white. I’m living in a technicolour world now and it’s absolutely amazing! The topics we are discussing and opening up about aren’t quiet or easy. They are loud, important worldwide issues and because of that, change is happening fast. Change is inevitable. How you view it is a choice.
Enough – I have never really experienced anything less than enough. Even that time in Europe when we were down to our last dollar and had to go a week on water, a little salt, a loaf of bread and a little olive oil, even then I knew more was coming at the end of the week. I feel so very lucky.
Mistakes – I used to hate them. Now, I don’t. Now they are just side-steps on the journey. The meaning I’d always given the word mistake: wrong, bad, or loss, stirred up old feelings of unworthiness in me and that helped no one, ever, but calling them sidesteps and noticing what they were in themselves has brought joy from new firsts, led me in new directions, and has helped me to love myself. Really, it’s all about the lessons isn’t it?