The Power of Focused Attention

This summer I was blessed with having my 7-year-old grandson, Jaden, spend seven days with me.  This was the first time we had such a block of time together, just the two of us.  So you can imagine all the plans I had for showing him the best possible time.  We did have a wonderful week together, and pretty much had worn one another out at the end of each day.  Yet, what I came to realize is that even had we stayed home the entire time, it would still have been a wonderful week simply because we had time to place focused attention on one another. 

I was also reminded how a child puts this focused attention on everything they do, from talking with O'ma (that's me) to exploring my garden with the telescope we got at the Science Center, or painting in the studio.  A child is constantly high on life because of this focused attention.

A few years ago I attended a conference in Palm Springs, California organized by the Center for Noetic Sciences.  Here I participated in a workshop that taught the art of focused attention.  We were shown how putting focused attention on a complete stranger could create a connectedness between the two of you in a very short time.  We also learned that "focused attention" is the key to keeping love alive in a marriage, or actually, in any relationship.  In other words, we were shown the "power of focused attention."

The importance of focused attention is something I experience every day in teaching drawing and painting. The more I can get a student to "focus" on what they are drawing or painting, the more they are able to capture its essence in their artwork.  And the more I can get a coaching client to focus on what he or she really wants his or her life to be, the more likely he or she can make that happen.

And so, today I'd simply like to remind you to practice "focused attention" as you go about your daily life.  It is a part of being present in the moment, a part of seeing how each experience can be your teacher and/or your inspiration.  It is also key in knowing what you are feeling or needing.  Focused attention means being fully aware of what you see, hear and feel in each moment of your life.  It will keep the child alive in your and give you a natural high.

Thank you Jaden for reminding me of this.

Creating An Artful Journal Workshop (Sept. 25) Is Almost Full. Sign Up Now!

Making Art Makes You Feel Good!

Did you know that being creative releases the same "feel good endorphins" that jogging releases?  Doing art actually does make you feel better.  In addition, being creative improves your ability to learn on all levels.  It enhances your skills in every other subject.  Plato, in ancient Greece, was the first to connect the arts (music in particular) with math.  The Greeks, in fact, believed music was so important that every citizen was required to study music until age 30. They considered music the most important of the arts.  Today we know that all of the arts affect both learning and mood in positive ways.  So, art really is a type of therapy.

You do not have to have a desire to become a professional artist or to sell your art in order to benefit from doing art.  This is especially important for parents to know.  Your children benefit from doing art in a mirad of ways, just as adults do.

OPENING: "Exhibit, American Bounty Restaurant"

You are invited to attend the opening
for a "one woman exhibit"
of Jan Groenemann's work
titled "Abundance"
Saturday Afternoon
October 2, 2:00 - 5:00
American Bounty Restaurant
430 West Front Street
Washington, MO

(The show hangs from
Sept. 18 through Oct.30)

WORKSHOPS FOR THE FALL

CREATING AN ARTFUL JOURNAL

Saturday, Sept. 25

9:00 - 4:00 Fee $125

110 Millbridge Ct.

St. Peters, MO 63376

AWAKENING YOUR CREATIVE SPIRIT
Life as Inspiration for Your Creative Expression
Saturday, Oct. 16
9:00 - 4:00 Fee $125
110 Millbridge Ct.
St. Peters, MO 63376

AWAKENING YOUR CREATIVE SPIRIT

Saturday, Nov. 6

9:00 - 4:30 Fee $125

Grace Tree Yoga and Personal Growth Studio

West Chester, Ohio (Cincinnati area)

Contact Jan at: hokseda@charter.net

to register or for more information.

Featured Student: Jan Wolf

Jan Wolf has been dedicated to her art for many years. She is my most long term and accomplished student (and a dear friend), and has been a part of my Tuesday Morning class on and off since the second year of the opening of my home studio. I celebrate my 25th year of offering classes here this year. For these reasons I have chosen her to be the first featured student.

Jan is a professional. She has accomplished the ability to capture all of nature with her amazing realistic watercolors. Presently she is working to perfect abstraction, and you will see by the photos of her work above that she is very successful at this as well.

Jan also has a line of note cards created from her original artwork.

In Jan Wolf's own words:

"Art is a means of expressing oneself, and this has been a 'process' for me.

As I have explored different mediums, I've begun to understand myself more
and be more at peace with myself.

Sharing ideas in class is very inspirational for me, and I want to try every

new concept I see.

My interests are centered around home and family, and art, for me, is an

expression of these things. My favorite subject is nature, including flowers,

birds, and animals. My most recent endeavor is to see and paint in a more

abstract way. Achieving this is my goal."

More of My Art