Have you ever had an "accident" happen when you make a SoulCollage card?

Has a picture ever slipped?

Have you ever ripped an image when you were trying to glue it?

Or has there ever been a bit of text that you just couldn't cover up easily? 

I have learnt that by "letting go" and letting it happen however it is "meant to" that the messages I have received have gone deeper than the messages I would have gotten if I had succumbed to my need to "control" my card making processes and tried to fix the "mistake" 

In my card called "Hurts So Bad" (left), the head of the man with the megaphone ripped off accidentally as I was gluing it down. I made this card after the suicide of a workmate and this ripped-off head came to represent my conflicting anger, sadness and helplessness.  This ripped-off head helped me to acknowledge the confusing emotions I was experiencing and also to begin to express myself more clearly. Some of the statements about this figure include: 

• "I am the one yelling to try and get someone's attention and help them.  I am the one who hurts so much I feel like I could "explode" 

• I am the one who is sick of trying so hard with no result. I feel helpless.  I've been yelling so hard my head flew off!!  But all that effort to no avail. 
  

• I am the one who is now angry!  I'm yelling my head off! I'm angry that you can't hear me.  I'm angry at the wasted lives of the depressed.

This accidental rip really helped me tap into and express some powerful emotions that I don't think I would have gotten to if this "happy accident" hadn't occurred.

Another example can be seen on my "Vulnerability" card where a "ball" of glue got trapped under the image leaving an unsightly mark on my image right on the throat of the central figure. This taught me a very important message about expressing myself. 

This "mistake" has drawn my attention to my throat, and my issues with feeling vulnerable and scared of communicating exactly what I think for fear of being rejected.  It has also helped me to see that part of being authentic is putting myself out there, whether I am "perfect" or not.  Both of these are key issues for me in being vulnerable AND true to myself!!!!! 

For me, learning to let go and see what happens in my SoulCollage cards has taught me lessons that reach further than just my SoulCollage deck.  I am learning to let go of the need to control all aspects of my life.  I'm learning to wait and see what happens and enjoy the gifts that "happy accidents" bring into my life that wouldn't be there if everything was perfectly planned in advance. 

So the next time you have an "accident" while making a SoulCollage card, I dare you to not try and fix it, and instead... see what lesson you can learn from this unexpected gift.