The Past, the Present, and What Comes Next...

In expressive arts therapy, we are always working in the present.  The here and now is the only real medium we have to work with, the only place where thoughts, feelings, and behaviors occur.

This may seem strange, especially if you are dealing with past traumatic or childhood issues.  But even if you're talking about "the past," you are doing it in the present.

Our memories and emotions associated with the past should not be confused with the actual events that took place.  A dozen people could have been in the same room at the same time but would all tell a slightly different story.  The only thing that matters now are the imprints they have left on us--our views and beliefs of that memory, and all that arises from those beliefs, that still affect us now.  The imprints of the past, if they weren't with us in the present, they wouldn't be having any influence, and would make no difference anyway. The past is gone. The imprints...the way we carry the past IN THE PRESENT is the only aspect of the past that holds any relevance.

There are those who may say, focusing on the present is a shallow form of therapy; it doesn’t get to the “heart” of the issue.  But being fully present in the moment, in full awareness of the emotions and memories / values/ beliefs associated with that moment, wherever they originally came from, being with those feelings, allowing them--not just allowing them but allowing them to move through you, to become transformed into something else, into something beautiful--is some the deepest processing we can do.

Expressive art therapy expands and envelopes all cognitive processes, including ruminating over the past, day-dreaming in the imaginal world, kinesthetically feeling movement, taking in tastes, textures, sights and sounds through our senses, and whatever else may be going on in the present.   First you become aware, you experience fully without judgement, and then the transformation begins, the transformation of inner experience into outer expression, the transformation of confusion into insight, of disturbance into joy, of resistance and fear into openness and possibility, and of the artist / client / explorer who is changed and made new.
 

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Posted by mothermoon at 08:12 PM

heal thyself

The International Art Therapy Organization started a gallery, asking for art as a response to the following questions:

Does art therapy impact peace and sustainability on the planet? 
How do art, peace, and sustainability intersect? 
Does the creative process of art making resolve conflicts? 
Does art therapy build and sustain community?


Is art therapy a "green" practice?

Which made me start thinking about the meaning of the word peace.  It could be the opposite of war, like not killing each other, not fighting, agreeing to set our guns down for a minute.  But I have a more immediate, visceral response. Inner peace.  Peacefulness.  Sitting on the front porch on a summer night when the air is finally cool.  Holding my coffee mug looking out the window on pristine snowy wonderland.  Or me, thouroughly immersed in the art-making process.

So what does art have to do with peace?  Can they even be separated?  Peace is an aesthetic experience.  It is flow.  It is timeless.  It is something we may touch for a moment, depart from, find again--over and over again.  It is there waiting for me to close my eyes, take a deep breath, and remember...

But then these harder questions.  How does it impact the larger community?

Ritual from the beginning of human civilization, whenever that was, surrounds art-making.  Costumes, painting, dancing, music, moving together, decorating, celabrating.  Again, how can you even separate the two?

Does it resolve conflicts?  I don't know.  Depends on if you like my art or not.  Is it green?  Can it be recycled?  Are some things worth leaving a "footprint" for?  No matter how many pictures I make, I can always make another.  Ultimate renewable energy source!

All I know is that if I want to go out there and try to help people resolve conflicts, I had better be finding and holding peace within myself first.

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Posted by mothermoon at 08:43 PM

Why Mother Moon?

I've had several people ask me already about the name of my art therapy practice, Mothermoon.  I chose this name intuitively, because the moon represents to me the sleeping / dreaming world of the Unconscious, whose language is symbol, metaphor, and art.  Many great works of art have been inspired by dreams.  Many insights have been reached through unconscious means, seemingly out of nowhere, but always with that feeling that "I already knew this somehow."  The moon is rich in its heritage of myths, stories and rituals that continue today through the common practice of Astrology.

In Astrology, the moon rules the emotions and senses.  The moon is cyclical in nature, and reflects the cyclical and transitory nature of our own emotions, the primary fuel-source for art creation.  The moon also typically represents the feminine, and internal, personal issues.

Information about Astrology and the moon from First Principles: Symbolism of the Sun and Moon by Therese Hamilton. 

Some words associated with the moon, that are also closely related to expressive art therapy are:

intuition, illumination, psyche, cycles, transition, emotion, perception, progression, mystery, wonder, shadow, balance, and renewal.  Taken from Symbolic Moon Facts.

A separate article could be written from each of these words, as they are so integral to the process of expressive art therapy.  Reading through them, you can get a sense of what you might experience as you progress from session to session, and even within a single expressive art therapy session.

The full moon can represent a state of wholeness and self-realization (from meditation on full moon, symbolism and self-realization by Sadiq Alam) the ultimate goal of expressive therapy.

I am more personally connected to the symbolism found within the Jungian archetypes.  Jung called the moon "The Great Mother," symbolizing "Matriarchal Consciousness," or sympathy, wisdom, spiritual transcendence and growth and fertility ("Quite a moon!": the archetypal feminine in Our Town.)  As a typical Cancer, ruled by the Moon, I find some of my greatest joys and fulfillment through making my home a safe, nurturing, and beautiful place for my family.

But the most personally meaningful symbol of Mother Moon comes from a sweet little story I made up for my daughter when she was a toddler and having nightmares.  I told her, when she was frightened, she could look out her window at the moon, Mother Moon, and know that she was there watching over her.  This story / symbol actually endured throughout much of my daughter's childhood, helping her through times of stress and anxiety.

I will finish with a poem called The Mother Moon, by Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888)

HE moon upon the wide sea
Placidly looks down,
Smiling with her mild face,
Though the ocean frown.
Clouds may dim her brightness,
But soon they pass away,
And she shines out, unaltered,
O'er the little waves at play.
So 'mid the storm or sunshine,
Wherever she may go,
Led on by her hidden power
The wild see must plow.  
As the tranquil evening moon
Looks on that restless sea,
So a mother's gentle face,
Little child, is watching thee.
Then banish every tempest,
Chase all your clouds away,
That smoothly and brightly
Your quiet heart may play.
Let cheerful looks and actions
Like shining ripples flow,
Following the mother's voice,
Singing as they go.

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Posted by mothermoon at 09:27 PM

The Shadow Self

We all have parts of ourselves that we consider ugly, shameful, or “bad.”  We may not even acknowledge these aspects are a part of our personality, but we certainly notice them in others!  The problem is, unless we can really acknowledge these “less than desirable” parts of ourselves, they are able to exert their controlling influence, hidden, in the background.  The process of discovering and accepting these parts of ourselves can sometimes be very frightening and upsetting, but extremely empowering.  The surprise is almost always, these parts of ourselves we thought we needed to work so hard to keep hidden are some of our greatest assets.  Anger, for example, is considered a negative emotion because it can cause so much damage.  But anger can fuel great causes, can give you the courage to stand up and say no more to an abusive person / situation, or join a cause to help others.

Expressive therapy is the perfect way to explore these shadow-assests, because art allows you to approach subjects that would normally be too uncomfortable to talk about.  Art allows you to maintain what is called "therapeutic distance," where you can see something from a comfortable distance, but not get too caught up in it and emotional about it.  In other words, Expressive therapy allows you to take a step back, and see what you are really working with here.  In this case, art can help you see yourself for who you really are, all aspects of yourself, and appreciate and understand yourself in ways you never imagined before. 

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Posted by mothermoon at 11:09 PM