“In each life there comes at least one moment which, if recognized and seized, transforms the course of that life forever.”
— Ralph Blum, The Book of Runes
I have reached the point of no return.
I have come to the edge of a cliff and I have to jump.
Have you ever come to such a place in your life?
To jump means to follow my heart, my deepest longings, my calling. To not jump means to follow the safer, known road.
But it’s not really a choice. My life has aligned itself so that I would come to this impasse, and I am being nudged over that cliff.
The Leap I Must Make
I must say yes to being an artist first and foremost and showing up in the world in this way.
But I have been hiding for a long time. I have been hiding behind my role as a teacher.
I love teaching, and it has been a huge blessing—a path of joy, fulfillment and profound growth.
Teaching provides a much-needed counterbalance to the solitariness of art-making. It allows me to use special gifts I have and to share what I’ve learned on the creative path. Teaching brings me into deep connnection with amazing people.
But I have allowed it to take center-stage for two reasons:
- Teaching provides my income
- It feels safer, less vulnerable, than being an artist.
Following My Dharma
I think of my dharma, my calling, as:
- To serve the Divine with all my life
- To be an artist with all my life
- To foster and care for the honoring of the Sacred in all things
Teaching is part of my dharma.
But in my teaching I have not come forward fully as myself, my artist self.
Except through my posts/essays that I share with you here, I rarely share my art with you. Nor do I share much of my own artistic journey.
This has to change.
It is time for me to step forward as an artist, to share my creativity with the world much more fully. To step out on a bigger stage.
I cannot be truly fulfilled, or healthy, unless I follow that dream and give it my all.
My Big Scary Leap
To say YES to my heart’s big dream, I am turning to a beautiful model created by an online site called Patreon.
The vision of Patreon is to bring art-makers and art-lovers together in mutually sustaining relationships.
In this way, those of us who value a world of art, imagination and creativity can cultivate that world together and ensure its continuance in these tumultuous, demanding times.
I invite you to join me on Patreon to see what it’s all about. Truly, it is a step towards the more beautiful, loving world many of us wish to co-create.
You Get Access to Things I Have Never Shared Publicly Before
Through Patreon, I will share my poems and other creative projects with you directly each month. You’ll get to see something I have never shared before, early drafts and works-in-progress taking shape.
I will share an insider, in-depth look at my creative process from inspiration and cultivation, through revision and completion.
I’ll share what I know and what I learn about getting my work out in the world, publication and promotion. I’ll share my challenges, successes and musings.
I’m so excited to get to share this all with you in our own little tribe of art lovers.
Through Patreon, you’ll have access to communicate directly with me, to ask your own questions about art-making, creativity, writing, poetry, as well as to give me input on my projects. You will be a part of those projects coming into the world.
Through Patreon, I have a chance to be the artist I need to be, to live my dreams and truly share my deepest gifts.
In the last nine months or more I have been devoting myself intensely to my path of art. I have been wrestling deeply with many questions, coming up against inner challenges, and making important discoveries. I will share about that with you on Patreon.
I Invite You
- If you would love to be nourished by first-look access to my creations,
- If you would love to be fascinated by an insider view of my artistic journey, the making of a life in the arts,
- If you would love to shout yes to my stepping out in the world as a poet and all-around creative being…
Please join me on Patreon.
To a world of beauty and art,
Maxima
