"Spirit Bear" © 2011    ~   acrylic mandala by Carol E. Fairbanks

 Alone and Silent

                  There are times when I need to be alone and quiet, conversing with no one but my own thoughts.  It is a good thing I am this way, because it is a perfect time in which to paint and draw.  The only company I need in these solitary spaces of my life is my cats, who luxuriate around my studio as if they were on vacation.  Maybe they are!  Being in the presence of my right brain energy, while I create, moves my cats into a state of being that most yogis would be envious of.  They rest in the present moment as if that is all there is... and many agree that they are right!  Author of The Power of Now, Ekhart Tolle, was once quoted as saying, "I have known five Zen masters in my life, and they have all been cats!"  

So while my kitties purr, I paint, not knowing where my painting will take me. It's a journey of the heart and soul that moves me inward to the depths of memory lost to my conscious mind.  In my painting, the "polar bear" part of me is going within to the smallest place of my awareness, where where my consciousness expands far beyond the reaches of the Universe. 

And just what is a "polar bear" part of someone?  To the Eskimo people, polar bears embody the living spirit of the North at the top of the world.  They consider the polar bear a shaman, a liaison with the spirit world, who keeps the wisdom of the ages.  The Inuit people also looked to the polar bear for teachings on how to hunt, navigate, and survive in the Arctic.  Author, Ted Andrews says in his book, Animal Wise, "When polar bear travels into (your) life, (or painting!), a new and powerful spiritual journey is about to be undertaken with the potential to awaken (your) greatest abilities in all extremes of life."

When I paint, the logical, informational part of my brain takes a well-needed break, and my intuitive, imaginative side takes over.  Since I wasn't consciously aware of all of this information about the symbol of the polar bear, I find it curious that it seemed to appear in my painting without my previously planned intention.  Does this mean I am about to embark on a powerful spiritual journey?  Maybe, maybe not.  But I do believe, in light of all the changes that are going on in my life right now, it is worth contemplating that possibility.