Life purpose and vocation; I sometimes wonder how they are related.
Sometimes I hear life purpose described simply and clearly, like this quote from notetoselfphilosophy.com:
Note to Self:
“What is my purpose in life?” I asked the void.
“What if I told you that you fulfilled it when you took an extra hour to talk…
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Featured Artwork: Mandala Buddha, acrylic on paper, 36"x24", 2012, Tejal Murray
Over the last few blogs, I’ve been exploring Stephen Cope’s The Great Work of Your Life in a general way with examples from my own life. Today, I’m going to dive more deeply into the teachings by profiling one of Southwestern College’s graduates.
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Hello! My name is Beth Lykins, and I am a current student at SWC. I am starting my final quarter of my first year in the Art Therapy and Counseling program, and I wanted to share a student’s perspective of life at SWC. I am attending part-time, so I generally take two courses per term.…
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In my last blog, I talked about the intersection of dharma (our sacred duty in this lifetime) and flourishing at midlife.
The issue that typically arises from someone exploring dharma at midlife is fear. Fear that they’ll have to throw away most everything they’ve created and worked for in order to follow their dharma. Sometimes,…
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I'd been exploring the intersection of Stephen Cope's book The Great Work of Your Life: A Guide for the Journey to Your True Calling, and Martin E. P. Seligman's book Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-Being in relation to a blog series when this photo quote by Brené Brown came across my Facebook feed.
I think she hit…
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Missed Part 1 or Part 2?
Part 3 - The Way Through: Relying on Intuition and Faith
In The Great Work of Your Life, Stephen Cope describes the way he has come to see intuition at work as we navigate decisions at midlife. He describes an 8-step process that is co-creative; it includes both our…
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Missed Part 1?
Part 2 - The Terrain: Navigating the Transition
Midlife is a time of transition; a time when we are asked to put our mind in service to our heart. It's a time to serve ourselves and the world by embracing what is ours to do, and stepping onto our dharma path. This…
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Part 1 - Living Your Dharma
As spirituality goes mainstream, there is much talk about “living your dharma”. But what does that really mean?
René Guénon, in Introduction to the Study of Hindu Doctrines defines dharma as “the essential nature of a being, comprising the sum of its particular qualities or characteristics, and determining, by virtue…
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We are asked to look within ourselves in our first few classes here at SWC. This process varies from person to person. For me, it has been an incredible opportunity to work on some issues I had thought were already worked through. It only goes to prove the cyclical nature of self-exploration and personal growth.…
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The recent crop of counselors and art therapists from Southwestern College commenced on November 7, 2015 at the James A. Little Theater at the New Mexico School for the Deaf in Santa Fe. It was a beautiful ceremony unlike any other I have attended, and being a former college professor myself, I have seen quite…
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Students at Southwestern College show mastery of content in creative ways.…
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I have had the honor of watching the power of art therapy first hand, in my personal life recently. I asked my husband if he would mind if I shared this story, and he told me to go ahead, so I would like to share it with you. It is a true testament of how…
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Santa Fe is awesome as a grad school destination and city. Check out a few of the honors awarded to "The City Different" below (read the entire "Best of Santa Fe" Chamber of Commerce post here detailing many more awards):
Santa Fe was ranked #2 City for Art Vibrancy by the National Center for Arts Research and…
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“Interesting how you are only using a black sharpie marker in your art today,” says my art therapist, as she gently points out my visible tension with perfectionistic, black and white thinking….…
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Come Undone by Laura Schoff
I feel with such a passion that art has the capacity to heal in many different ways. It has been my support, my processing, my guide, my inner world displayed. Without this art, I may have not have completed my first classes at Southwestern. A year and a half(ish) ago,…
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Influenced by archetypes and art therapy, Sprout explores the interplay between the unconscious and conscious parts of the psyche. …
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by Debbie Schroder
Program Chair for Art Therapy/Counseling Program
It doesn’t really surprise me that as we approach the eighth week of the quarter, I’m finally able to spend a little time putting together an image that contains mandalas created by incoming art therapy students, during orientation. The quarter has been full – of teaching…
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"Wholeness for humans depends on the ability to own their own shadow." -C.G. Jung…
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by Debbie Schroder
The gardens on campus are lush and the temperature is hot – it must be Portfolio Review time!
Every year we ask our art therapy students who are moving into 2nd year, to bring in at least three pieces of art created during first year. By looking at their art and hearing…
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In April, 2014 a call was made: "Archetypally speaking, who is showing up for you lately? What mentors, thieves, medicine folk, or tricksters are asking you to speak their name, embody their abilities, and artfully express the connections you have? Please, answer the call, create the art, embody the voice that wants to be heard…
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by Karen Stefano Ed.M., M.A., L.P.C., NCC
How can you unwind your body and mind, listen to the inner stirrings of your spirit, and supercharge your creativity? It’s easy. Tissue Paper Collage!
Mythologist Joseph Campbell said, “The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are.” The truth is that our culture is motivated,…
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Photographing the beauty of New Mexico. …
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by Jessica Callaway, LPAT, LPCC, ATR-BC
I didn't know what to expect when I decided to go to Haiti. I realized when I was on the plane that I was partly, or mostly, going for selfish reasons. I was excited to practice art therapy and teach yoga in an environment I had never experienced,…
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I am a big fan of reusing materials into new forms. Broken bits glued together to make guardians; Torn fabric to make new yarn or a rug; Old shoes into a Journey; Or large boxes into castles. After reading, Endangered Threads: Socially Committed Community Art Action, by Janis Timm Bottos (2011), I knew that there…
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Southwestern College Santa Fe, NM