July's Theme is Spirituality
Our July theme is Spirituality, chosen by our Jeddah chapter, and illustrated by Bayan Yasien.
Spirituality is the search for our deepest values and meanings, something that touches us all. It is our yearning to peel back the curtain on the world we can see. The word comes from the Latin spiritualis, meaning “of breath, wind, and air.” It comes so naturally it might as well be breathing.
Spirituality can be found in meditation, in science, in holy spaces, in music, in community. We locate the sacred in the stars that guide us home, our capacity to love both kin and stranger, the divine that gathers in the kitchen dustpans and the forest groves lit by fireflies.
Through spiritual practice — be it by prayer mat or paint brush, microscope or movement — we seek answers to the eternal questions: How should a person be? How might we find meaning in the mundane, and purpose through great pain? How can we repair the world?
We asked you to share stories, images, and other artifacts that speak to what “spirituality” means to you. Your submissions were sincere and deeply felt. Here’s what you shared:
🧘 Meditations on Spirituality
Caring for the welfare of animals is my spiritual path. This Painted Turtle is a rescue and she is living her best life in our pond. I learned to move at “turtle speed” to befriend her. How grateful I am that she trusts me, and I’m able to spend time with her every summer before she goes deep into the mud to hibernate. Cross-species relationships are magical. I hope to inspire others to slow down and meet other species at their pace. - Kimberley Thompson, from the small village of Flesherton on the Boyne River in Ontario, Canada
The theology of Hip Hop is a spiritual experience and “Pray” is an example of my spirit speaking through ancestry, lived experience, and pre existence. - Ramel J. Wallace, Host of CreativeMornings/San Diego, U.S.
Spirituality to me is something of a mystery, something you cannot see nor explain. It’s the same with the woman in this drawing, whom I cannot identify, but she still intrigues me and I want to find out more about her. - Natalie Arsenow, Brussels, Belgium
For me, spirituality is anything that touches and soothes my soul. It’s understanding, compassion — and I can feel it purely through music. I’m sharing these two songs (“Citizen of the Planet” and “You Owe Me Nothing in Return”) because Alanis Morissette gets spirituality the way I think I do. - Laura Dincă, Romania
“Presence”
The presence of emotions or fatigue
cannot reduce my Presence
here, now.
I am allowed to take up space,
and they are allowed with me,
without shame or sadness
to stopper them
or stutter me.
This is healing, this view of Presence
as a whole experience—
instead of a piecemeal version
perhaps more palatable
but less authentic,
lessening me, dividing me—
the practice of Presence must
include every bit of who I am,
or it is not Presence.
- Katie Rose Rouse, Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S.
Spirituality means coming in contact with and sitting with the divine in me. Because the Divine is within us and those around us. - Harriett Grant, Canada
Spirituality is understood as the inside life, and it belongs to the person who lives it and, as something not material, is attached to something superior or a divinity. As the quote goes, the Bible says we are created as the image of God. When I see the mirror I see God’s face and if humankind looks at the mirror, they also see God’s image, God’s face, God’s reflection. We are all beautiful and wonderfully made and beloved; so spirituality for me means (as a plastic artist) the reflection of God’s image, God’s love, and that is why I use a self portrait to represent it. - Jessica Zimmermann de Landa, Peru
It’s when my soul aligns with many galaxies. It’s when my dreams design my reality. It tugs me when I stray. When out in open water I kick, scream and flutter, until I realize I am wearing a life jacket . There is peace among chaos. In angst, I raise turmoil but when I trust, there lies a clear path. Here, In this space I use my freedom to love , as it promised it loves me back. With it, I can break the chains of the strongest steel and follow with the most vicious winds.
I am a child and it treats me as such. Knowing I am ignorant it It provides the answers. Knowing I am blind it clears the road. Knowing I am deaf, it sounds the alarm.
Limitless and bountiful as it walks just ahead just me, guiding me, even when I am terrified of the direction. I am light. Without it, I’m heavy, know one will see me. So I keep it, because this is what feels natural. I am marvelous, I am safe and free. I am connected.
- Jane'a C Brady, U.S.
I use tapping everyday to connect more deeply with my body and spirit. - Amy V. Cooper, Austin, Texas, U.S.
There is so much going on in the world, and it can be difficult to keep dreaming when we feel so much uncertainty. I’m sharing this sensory guided hypnosis audio because I want to inspire hope and support folks to keep dreaming about their lives and the beauty they can create for themselves that already exists inside of them. Sometimes we just need a little help sparking that inspiration again. - Lauren Best, Winnipeg, Canada
Expressing spirituality and our journey is an important part of my art. This painting is a reflection of the story of a modern day Job from the bible. - Terry Followell, Bloomington, Indiana, U.S.
Spirituality is what makes us feel like a Human. When we resonate the frequency of our soul with the Universal one, then the feeling of being spiritual will be clear and we will be able to go with the flow.
Our Soul is where unconditional love, unending forgivingness, compassion, harmony, peace, and joy reside. While we nourish our body with healthy food, we shall do the same for our souls with positive meanings. - Nilufer Narayani, Bodrum, Türkiye
Energy Art reminds us to change our thinking, and brings us back into alignment with how we want to feel. This in turn opens us back up to creating what it is we want to create more of in our lives. - Sophie Taggart, Australia