Message Treasures

What message comes through this collage today?

There are words: Treasures--a new life--love every day.

There are images: leaves--circles--spirals--buttons--ribbons--flower--stamp--odds and ends--wings--a partial wisdom face--statue--dragonfly.

There are textures, colors, even a bit of black and white doodling.

What message comes through this collage today?

Love every day is the wisdom I see.
Love every day is the "seed."
Love every day creates growth--a colorful flower from leaves of black and white.
Love every day reveals treasures and a new life that begins in each moment that we. . .

LOVE
EVERY
DAY.

--Vicky Lynn :o)

"Treasures"
Collage Journal Page
Copyright © 2010 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Another Life Stamp Completed!

I am posting the artwork I created and the poem I wrote for another Life Stamp. (Life Stamps are a way to commemorate special events in a person's life. The link takes you to the one I made for Michel.) Ironically, the Life Stamp I just created is a gift for another woman who is celebrating her 60th birthday next month.

I painted the abstract before I scanned it into Photoshop to add the collage elements. The name of the painting is "Windows into Unseen Worlds." To me, the background painting was the woman's Soul and the collage elements are the windows into the Unseen Worlds that exist within her.

As I was working on the collage in Photoshop, the words "The best is yet to be" flashed through my head. Those words became the theme of the Life Stamp and the poem.

The Best Is Yet To BE

For many years
Your love you shared,
You gave yourself,
You showed you cared.
Always there
To offer your hand,
To listen, to comfort
And to understand.

But forever present
Deep inside:
A precious treasure
In your Soul abides.
This wondrous gift
Is Who You Are:
A wise woman of Grace,
An Eternal Star.

Just like the sun
Your Star shines bright;
No doing required,
Just BE the Light.
And always remember:
Your presence is enough;
Your Soul holds the key;
As you journey through Life
The best is yet to BE.

As always, the message is for me, too! The Universe is generous that way.

Here is the finished Life Stamp:

--Vicky :o)

"Windows into Unseen Worlds" Acrylic & Graphic Collage
"The Best Is Yet To BE" poem
Life Stamp
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Long time...no blog!

Life (and death) has been happening since we moved to our new apartment on June 1. Besides some glitches in our move and the apartment we chose, Michel's uncle died on July 5. Literally, he dropped dead while mowing the lawn. Then, on July 28, one of my friends who has been living with ovarian cancer for several years departed this plane. (The entry "Finding Grace" is about this wonderful woman.)

Michel's uncle Marcel left behind his wife of 40 years whose birthday was also in July. The collage shown here is part of the Life Stamp I made to commemorate her 60th birthday. Here is the poem I wrote that illuminates the collage. Enjoy!

--Vicky :o)



The Valley of the Butterflies

In the Valley of the Butterflies
My Love waits there for me…

With eyes that see who I am:
My glory and my worth;
With strong arms to support me
As I journey on this earth;
With caring thoughts to soothe me,
To calm my wild mind;
With tender words to comfort me
When no peace can I find.

And though I always thought
My Love was the loving man I knew;
In the Valley of the Butterflies
I made a wondrous discovery
That I now share with you:

All that I admired in him—
His strength, his love, his care—
Are the qualities that I possess
Reflected in Life’s mirror so fair.

And so it is with everyone
Who walks this path with me;
Each is Life’s reflection of My Love:
Of Who I am and Who I decide to be.


Valley of the Butterflies, collage and poem
Copyright © 2009 by Vicky Lynn Macchione

Bonne Fête Michel!

Yesterday was Michel's birthday. (He's my boyfriend.) I have been so busy making cards for other people, packing for our move on June 1, and finishing up a course at the local women's center that I hadn't had a chance to make him a card or buy him a present. (I did order his favorite cheesecake as a birthday cake.) ;o)

So late Sunday night--or rather early Monday morning--I decided to make him a card (shown above) and send it by email. Because I was starting at the last possible minute, I chose a collage I had used for another card a couple of years ago. Next, I found a Rumi quote that seemed to fit with the collage, both in the meaning and how the words could be placed perfectly on the collage. Then, I decided to include a poem.

Writing the poem was an amazing experience. I have rarely had a poem flow out of me so easily. I was so tired and yet the words and rhymes marched through my mind and appeared on the page as I typed. I was so grateful to God!

Michel seemed very pleased with the card and the poem. He said something interesting, though. He mentioned that the card looked like a mini-Life Stamp. (A Life Stamp is something I created and designed to commemorate a special event in a person's life.)

So I decided to see if I could change the card into a Life Stamp. Again, the process flowed so effortlessly. Here's the result:

For me, this Life Stamp created itself. Said in another way: God/the Universe really wanted me to create this Life Stamp for Michel! And, I learned a few valuable lessons along the creative path:

1. Simple collages (this one only has 3 elements--flowers, picture frame, eye) can still have profound meanings.
2. Letting the words flow is more important than listening to my inner "word" critic.
3. Sometimes (maybe all the time (?) and I have not been aware of the fact!) the art creates itself.

Happy Birthday, Michel!

--Vicky ;o)

Birthday card and Life Stamp
Copyright © 2009 Vicky Lynn Macchione