Mailer 12 Soul Treasures Discovering the depths of our
precious inner beauty
through SoulCollage®
KaleidoSoul Kindred Spirits
Members Newsletter
Issue #74 August 27 , 2007
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Quotation of the Week
Ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds of the air,
and they will tell you;
or speak to the earth, and it will teach you,
or let the fish of the sea inform you."
-Job 12:7-8
| Inner Journeys with Anne Marie Bennett
Integrating the Practice of SoulCollage® into Your Daily Life
  Spider Woman
No, it's not what you're thinking. I haven't suddenly sprouted eight legs and the ability to spin my way through thin air, saving lost orphans and rescuing good citizens from burning buildings in the process.
What has happened is that I've been sighting spiders for the last several months, and failing to really pay attention. The first few times I saw a spider, it was in our bathroom, over the window by the bathtub. I've never seen a spider there, I thought to myself as I went on my way, forgetting about it almost immediately. But it was not to be forgotten. Because it stayed there for a few months. And the more I saw it, the more I wondered.
As a passionate SoulCollager for the past two and a half years, I now know something about paying attention to messages from the animal world... something that I didn't know before: if we pay attention, they have messages and gifts for us.
So I started paying attention. And the more aware I became, the more I started seeing spiders everywhere. I mean, everywhere! The kitchen sink. The bathtub. Several locations on our front porch. Almost every spider I saw was in some stage of spinning a web. One had even caught a juicy little fly for breakfast! Last week I saw a very small one on the other side of my car window, while I was driving down the highway!
At first I just thought it was all a strange coincidence. Then I started thinking I should look up Spider as an animal totem and see if I could receive the message. But I kept putting it off. I've never really liked spiders, and frankly, it was taking all my energy to not kill them like I used to!
And so a few days ago, I did look up some information on Spider to see what messages they bring to us. I used a few of Ted Andrew's books as well as the Sayahada site. And in reading about this marvelous little creature, I've lost my initial dislike, and believe I've found another kindred spirit!
Now I'm off to journal about what Spider really means to me in my life right now, and to see if I can weave my own life into the web that was destined for me!
Reflection/Activity of the Week: Make a note of any animals that you've been seeing lately. It's all about awareness, and paying attention! Perhaps one of these animals you've been seeing is one of your Animal Companions. Perhaps it simply has a message to share with you. Make a promise to yourself to be open to whatever gifts the Animals want to give you.
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| Soul Friends The Voice of a Different Kindred Spirit Each Week
 Julia Field
Seattle, WAI first encountered SoulCollage through an exhibit that Seattle facilitator Noelle Remington organized in 2003. Seeing the beautiful framed images and reading what the cardmakers had found in them struck a deep chord in me.
I've been a graphic designer for many years, and was instantly captivated by the notion that I could make something that was deeply meaningful without needing to have any idea what that meaning was. How refreshing! I dove headlong into this intuitive way of creating - I must have made 20 cards before I ever even read one.
Since then I've had many opportunities to share this magical process with others in workshops, and I especially love to invite people to create cards intuitively. I think it's a radical (and courageous) act to give our thinking brains a rest and be guided by our creativity and intuition.
One of the gifts of SoulCollage for me has been working with aspects of myself that I would consider "dark." I have created cards for She Who Gets Depressed, Paralyzed by Indecision, and The Inattentive One, among others. "The Inattentive One" came along after I had a car accident a few years ago. It was my fault - I rear-ended someone because I wasn't paying attention. Fortunately no one was seriously hurt, but I was very angry and upset with myself and was also scared by my capacity to be so inattentive. I came home and made this card, which I immediately slammed down on the table and could not bear to look at for days. After a while I was able to peek at it; gradually I came to appreciate the beauty in it. Eventually I was able to befriend it, and embrace it as a part of myself with something to offer. Now when this card comes up in a reading, I ask, what am I not paying enough attention to? It has never steered me wrong.
Another gift of SoulCollage is the pure joy of creative play and discovery. I think this accessible process taps into something universal. Last year I had the opportunity to share SoulCollage with men in prison, and this experience reinforced my belief that we all want to make something beautiful, to find meaning, and to share it and ourselves with others. Seeing their delight was my joy.
I have come to count on my SoulCollage cards as a direct link to my own inner guidance. In readings I don't usually get the exact details of what to do, but I consistently get a fresh perspective and a firm nudge in the right direction. And I always feel lighter! I am in awe of how SoulCollage guides us to what we already know, illuminates the darkness, and helps us embrace our wholeness.
Please visit my website.
Here are 3 of Julia's favorite SoulCollage cards:
The Inattentive One
Suit: Committee I am one who is fractured, not all there; my eyes are open but I am not seeing. I am one who is groping blindly; my mind is on a thousand other things. My gaze is not where it needs to be. I can't see what I am looking at. I am one who is whole even in my brokenness. I want you to wake up and focus your attention.  First ChakraSuit: Companions
I am one who is grounded and connected -- with myself, with others, with spirit, in community, with the world around me. I am supported by ancient roots and lift my gaze to the heavens.
After creating this card, I learned that the Prairie Dog epitomizes the idea of community. This card invites me to see and appreciate how I am grounded in community, and to participate more fully and open-heartedly. CroneSuit: Council
I am one who finds joy wherever I go. I seize the moment - I ride the merry go-round wearing hose and pumps, because that is how we encountered each other. Play is in my heartbeat - a way of being, a way to connect with the world around me. Life is a grand adventure.....
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| SoulCollage Expressions
Idea of the Week
When I'm making cards, they don't always come together right away for me. Sometimes I have to let them sit and "incubate" until the images let me know what's next. I use a thin rubber band to attach an image or two of a "card in process" to a mat board and then set it on a small plastic or metal easel I get from the dollar store. This way I can see it while I'm going about my daily business and it stays in the front of my mind as it "percolates."
---from Kindred Spirit Cheryl in IL |
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| Kindred Spirits Members' News
 Making the Most of Your KaleidoSoul Membership
Keep track of all your Member Benefits on the Kindred Spirits Home Page.
If you ever forget your password, please send a reply to this email.
Special Discount for Members Only
ONLY 5 DAYS LEFT TO SAVE!
Wise and Wonderful: A Guided Exploration of the SoulCollage Animal Companions Suit- All-new e-course focusing on your chakras and your animal totems. Members only save an additional $5 off of the half price discount... just sign up before August 31. Also included with this e-course is access to a special Yahoo Group set up just for SoulCollagers who are working on this material.
Please go to your Members-Only Shop Page now to find out more!
Upcoming Tele-Playshops
September
Dialogue With The Mysteries:
SoulCollage As a Journey of Mythic Discovery
Presented by Robin Cooper-Stone, MFA,
SoulCollage-Facilitator-To-Be in Virginia
Seena Frost has said that the Council suit and Companion suit make up "the larger story." What is this larger story, and what does it mean for our lives? In this tele-class, we will be discussing our SoulCollage cards as the revelation of the "hero's journey" we have undertaken and what the stages of this journey are. We will also consider the potential value of reading certain myths to enrich our SoulCollage work and our participation in "the larger story."
We will also discuss what Seena Frost calls "the local story," the Committee and Community suits, relative to our own personal mythologies. To paraphrase William Blake, "We must more consciously create our own myths or be enslaved to the myths of another." Towards this end, we will be answering questions with the potential to open new vistas in our SoulCollage work.
Robin Cooper-Stone, M.F.A., taught The Heroic Quest in freshman composition courses at theUniversity ofAlabama. A few years ago, she took a workshop with Dr. James Hollis, author of Tracking the Gods: The Place of Myth in Modern Life. She is one year into her personal SoulCollage journey and will attend the SoulCollage facilitator training in Maryland this October. She lives in Virginia with her husband and two children. Date: Monday September 24, 2007
Time: 7 pm EST (one hour)
Save the dates now. All of our tele-playshops are FR*EE for members, always! And remember, don't worry if you can't attend... we'll be recording them and you can listen to them anytime in your Member's Only Audio Library. Upcoming SoulCollage Retreats  All Things Bright & Beautiful- April 10-13, 2008 in Essex, MA. You asked for it, you got it! A three-night retreat focusing soul-ly on the SoulCollage Animal Companions Suit. If you're longing to bring the wisdom of the Animals into your life in a creative, personal way within the safety of SoulCollage.... please join us! More details are on your Members Only Retreat Info Page. And sign up (make your first payment) before August 31, and you'll receive a very special Gratitude Goodie Package including: * a pack of 50-60 animal images * a 2008 Soul Colors calendar by Anne Marie * a 5-pack of handmade note cards by Anne Marie
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| Soul Nourishment
Resources to support your inner work as you dive deeper into your beautiful soul
 Books: Living Your Best Life, by Laura Berman Fortgang. The basic premise of this wonderful book is that we already have the answers inside of us, especially when it comes to the question of what makes us happy. Laura helps you get in touch with your own personal inner compass so that you can live the life you long for and deserve.
Unexpected Miracles: The Gift of Synchronicity and How to Open It, by David Richo. Slim volume, but overflowing with stories, examples, and insights from psychology, religion and poetry. The topic of synchronicity, and the miracles this brings, is not one often found in books. This beautiful, practical book helps us to recognize these precious moments of synchronicity, and also to learn how to say "yes" to them more often.
Artsy Collage, by Victoria Weber. This is a beautiful book that really will get you started on fun ways to use collage in your art. There's some great ideas here that you can use for SoulCollage card backgrounds too!
Music:
Djin Djin, by Angelique Kidjo. Kidjo has been opening for Josh Groban on his current tour and her music is divinely inspired, with an African influence. This newest CD of hers will have you smiling, singing and dancing in no time! By the way, djin djin is a bell that sounds at daybreak in certain parts of Africa.
Websites: Fractal Art - beautiful images of fractals by artist Vicky Brago. Thanks to Kindred Spirit Rita in Ontario for passing on this site to our Members.
Spiritual Cinema Circle- Movies that will warm your heart, expand your mind, and stir your soul.
Zena Moon- Hand dipped colorful candles and creative gifts for the spirit. A friend recently sent me a candle from this site and it's beautiful!
Women's Words- written by women for women. Having a hard time getting your voice heard? Let this site give you a helping hand!
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 Soul Treasures is brought to you by KaleidoSoul, Spinning the fragments of your world into wholeness and beauty through SoulCollage.
SoulCollage® cards are made either from one's own art or from images found in materials which have been bought by or given to the SoulCollage card maker.
These collaged cards are used only for the cardmaker's own inner exploration. SoulCollage cards are not sold, traded, bartered, or copied (except as a back-up for the cardmakers own use) as is stated in the Principles of SoulCollage®.
Where SoulCollage cards are available to be seen by others,
it is for the purposes either of demonstrating the SoulCollage process
or of sharing the cardmakers' inner process in the context of community.
SoulCollage® is grateful to the artists and photographers
who make this deep awakening process possible
and in all ways SoulCollage® seeks to be respectful of their rights.
Published by KaleidoSoul.com
and Anne Marie Bennett.
Please do not reproduce or forward this newsletter in any way.
Inner Journeys, copyright 2007, by Anne Marie Bennett.
All rights reserved.
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