Back to Back Issues Page
KaleidoSoul Inspiration, Issue #002- September 20, 2005
September 20, 2005

Welcome!

Greetings and welcome to our first official issue of the KaleidoSoul newsletter. It is truly heartening to see how many of you have already visited KaleidoSoul and signed up for this e-zine. We hope to fill each issue (and your life) with inspiration, challenge, and delight. Whether you are new to SoulCollage™ or already immersed in the creation of your deck, we’re glad you’re here!

Today in the course of my morning errands, I felt like I was being followed by dragonflies. They were in my garden as I left the house, in my face (literally) as I walked into the doctor’s office… and on my windshield as I drove home!

For many years now, the dragonfly has been a symbol for me of transformation and transition. Sometimes I see them in abundance, and sometimes months go by without a trace of one. But today they were out in full force, soaring in and out of my vision, iridescent wings shimmering in the morning light.

May we allow SoulCollage™ to transform us from the inside out, so that we are able to grow into the beautiful, whole, shimmering selves we were born to be.

I wish you peace and joy on your journey,
Anne Marie


To see this newsletter as a web page, please click here.

Contents of this issue:
Contest Announcement
What’s New at KaleidoSoul?
Swimming In With Anne Marie (if you're new)
Diving Deeper With Karen
Readers’ Card Gallery
KaleidoSoul Recommends


Contest Announcement

Through the Looking Glass. Artist: Lis G, Massachusetts

Name this newsletter….PLEASE!!!

As you can see above, the name that I chose (KaleidoSoul Inspirations) is too long for the title box! So I’m asking for your help! You may enter as many times as you like. Simply send your ideas to me at Annemarie@kaleidosoul.com.

First prize winner will receive:

Other winners:

If I decide to use one of your suggestions as the title of a newsletter column, future e-book or e-course, you will receive a FREE Gentle Reminders series of your choice!


What’s New At KaleidoSoul?

Integration. Artist: Susan W, Massachusetts

First of all, when you visit the KaleidoSoul homepage, you will see a new headline. It used to be Your SoulCollage Playground. We changed it to…. well, you’ll have to see for yourself!

There is a new series of e-courses called Gentle Reminders, which were created to soothe your spirit and gently nudge your soul into new beginnings. Right now there are 3 series: Refilling Your Artist’s Well, Soul Conversations, and Coming Home To Yourself. One of them is just right for you! Take a look!

On the Free Stuff page, there’s a new e-course, Sunrise Concerts, on celebrating life and living joyfully.

There are 5” x 8” precut mat boards on sale in the KaleidoSoul Shop, and a new essay NO Is A Complete Sentence.

You might also want to check out the all-new Art Gallery , as well as the Using Your SoulCollage Cards page to get your creative juices flowing even more!


Swimming In with Anne Marie

Hi! I’m Anne Marie, the creator of KaleidoSoul, and a SoulCollage™ facilitator in Massachusetts. (That's me on the left, not the woman in the pool!) If you’re new to SoulCollage, then this column is for you!

No matter how you found out about SoulCollage, you’re no doubt as intrigued and curious as the rest of us when we first started. If you’re wondering where to begin, here are a few suggestions:

  • Start collecting magazines- any kind will do. If you don’t have a lot at home, simply send out an email to family and friends. Most of them throw away (or hopefully recycle) their old magazines, and will be delighted to give them to you instead.
  • Spend oodles and oodles of time going through the magazines, rippin' and tearin' out pictures to your heart's content! One of the keys to going really deep into the process of SoulCollage is having an overabundance of images to choose from when you start making cards. Mae West said, Too much of a good thing is wonderful. I believe this applies to images for our SoulCollage cards as well!
  • Read the KaleidoSoul page about the creative process.
  • Take advantage of the 34% discount and purchase the book SoulCollage, by Seena Frost and begin reading it at your leisure.
  • Find a SoulCollage Workshop near you, or sign up for the Introduction to SoulCollage Online Workshop and get started today!
  • Join the KaleidoSoul Community today. It’s free, and the best way to stay in touch with others who are practicing SoulCollage.
  • And don’t forget to take it slowly, and trust the process.
  • If you’re new to SoulCollage and have questions you would like to see addressed in future issues, please send your question to Anne Marie


    Diving Deeper with Karen



    My name is Karen Mann and I’m a SoulCollage™ Facilitator from Melbourne, Australia. This monthly column is for those of you who have already made some SoulCollage™ cards and are ready to start exploring them.

    What Does Being Creative
    Mean to You?

    Today, when I drew a SoulCollage™ card from my deck, I drew my "Creator" card which is a member of my Council suit. Drawing this card got me thinking about what being creative means in my life.

    I believe that expressing our creativity is such an important part of living! When we are creative we are connecting to our innermost selves (and to others) with our own special spark of uniqueness.

    As you are interested in SoulCollage™, I imagine that one of the ways you express your creativity is through collage. There are however, so many other ways of expressing your creativity.

    Mary Lou Cook says,

    Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun.

    You may enjoy cooking, or gardening, or carpentry, or doing hair & make-up, or dancing, or singing, or storytelling…. The list goes on. I believe that whatever you enjoy doing, whatever makes you feel alive, is something that you need to do often. Allowing yourself to be creative is one of the most important ways of truly nurturing yourself.

    My SoulCollage™ Creativity Cards

    The Creator (Council)

    Bright Side: I am creative. I have many ideas flowing through me. Don't discount any ideas. Enjoy the excited feeling. Nurture your ideas; nourish them, allowing them to bloom. Believe in your creative essence & share it with others.

    Shadow Side:Sometimes I think too much! One idea leads to another and I try to capture everything, instead of letting go! Then my head gets too busy! I also put lots of pressure on myself to achieve & to meet my inner visualisations.

    Fragile Creativity (Committee)
    Bright Side:Sometimes my creative process is slow & I feel fragile. I require patience & gentleness to birth my projects. Sometimes it doesn't flow like I'd like it to. I need to let go, relax & nurture myself. Not all creativity is like "lightning bolts" crashing! Some creative endeavours require more trust & less haste.

    Shadow Side: This card feels like it is a reminder that "good things come to those who wait!" I can sometimes be impatient & not wait for ideas to take their time "gestating". I need to practice not rushing things.

    Questions to help you
    dive deeper into your deck:

    You may wish to use these questions as prompts for journaling about your cards and/or you may wish to share some of your discoveries and thoughts with the KaleidoSoul Community.

    • Can you find one or more card(s) in your deck that represent your creative self?
    • Is there more than one aspect of your creativity represented in your deck?
    • What suits do these cards belong to?
    • What are their positive aspects and their shadow sides?
    • Above are examples of Creativity cards from the Committee and the Council suits. How could you represent some aspect of creativity in your life in your Community or Companions suit?

    • Have you learned anything new about the creative aspect of yourself by representing it in a card?
    • If you haven't made any cards about your creativity yet, what has stopped you? Can you give yourself permission to savor and honor some of your creativity this month with a SoulCollage card?

    If you’re feeling creatively “blocked,” check out What Stops Us From Being Creative” where you will find solutions to this challenge as well as helpful reminders about how creative blocks happen in our lives.

    I'd like to end with a quote that reminds us about the connection between our soul and our creativity.

    If we fail to nourish our souls, they wither, and without soul, life ceases to have meaning. The creative process shrivels in the absence of continual dialogue with the soul. And creativity is what makes life worth living. --Marion Woodman

    Karen Mann is an artist, art teacher, Lifestyle Coach and yoga and meditation teacher. Karen is a SoulCollage™ facilitator, and was trained by Seena Frost, the creator of the process. Karen has been working with SoulCollage™ cards for 2 years & facilitates a variety of SoulCollage™ Groups as well as working with individuals. Karen is based in Melbourne, Australia. For more information please visit her website, Flying Colours Creativity or email Karen at info@flyingcolourscreativity.com.au.


    Source Card. Artist: Elaine V, Massachusette

    Reader’s SoulCollage
    Card Gallery

    As promised, we are featuring at least four cards in each issue. Click here to see this month’s featured cards. These will be permanently available at the KaleidoSoul website on the Gallery Page, accessed from the left nav bar on the home page.

    Please feel free to submit one or more of your SoulCollage cards for possible inclusion in a future issue and/or in the Gallery. You can submit your cards by sending an email to the editor.


    KaleidoSoul Recommends

    3rd Chakra Elephant. Artist: Susan W, Massachusetts

    The movie An Unfinished Life, in theatres now, is a remarkable story of individual lives. It is a creative story of weakness and strength, of cowardice and courage, of endings and beginnings. There are so many layers to this film... and every SoulCollage suit represented!

    We also recommend reading
    Sark’s New Creative Companion,
    and The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron.

    Creativity Portal is a wonderful website chock-full of articles, activities and links all guaranteed to get your creativity flowing again. For a lot of fun, check out their Imagination Prompt Generator.

    You will find all kinds of wonderful creative gift ideas, and ideas for stimulating your own creative generosity at Isabella.

    And last but not least, check out Sharry’s Blog. It’s full of more information about SoulCollage, and there are more cards to look at as well!

    SoulCollage™ is a trademarked process
    created by Seena Frost. For more information on Seena, the origins of SoulCollage, or SoulCollage Facilitator Training please visit her website www.soulcollage.com.

    All articles on KaleidoSoul and in this ezine
    are copyrighted
    by Anne Marie Bennett, 2005,
    unless otherwise noted.
    Articles may be reprinted
    by permission only.

Back to Back Issues Page