Last year at this time, I was standing at a journey’s beginning, taking deep breath after deep breath, and contending with doubts, “Can I do this? Can I uphold the integrity of the oracle so beautifully brought to life by the authors? I can think of several other mama artists who could do this better. Is it even possible in just 4 months while being a mama?” I knew I wanted to. I had been asking the universe for a project that would inspire me in a deeper way. I’d also been calling out for guidance and support on my path of mothering. But fears can be kinda loud.

I was staring at 52 blank rectangles, an empty map of what would be The Mother’s Wisdom Deck. I paged through drafts of Niki and Elizabeth’s card passages and came to Turtle – Grounding. The passage concludes with Turtle advising: “a time-honored way of coming back to earth: lie facedown with arms extended above your head. Make sure your forehead, knees, and hands are touching the ground. This is a full bow, a prostration to the powers above. In this supplication, you lower yourself before infinite Mystery and, in turn, come closer to your basic nature.”

Almost exactly ten years ago, after driving all night, I stepped outside of my car into a frigid, New Mexico mountain landscape, just five minutes walk from our home now. The sun was still on its ascent on the other side of the Sangres. Patrick led me down a snow-covered road lined with vertical blue, white, red, green and golden prayer flags. At the end was a white, wedding cake shaped shrine. Yes, it was my first visit to a Buddhist Stupa — what my daughter lovingly now calls, “Buddha’s house”. Two golden dear sat still and awake on either side of a peaceful Buddha. Goosebumps rose up on my already freezing body — the kind of chill when you are so overtaken with beauty and a sense of “wow”. I watched Patrick kneel on the freshly shoveled flagstone and a ghost-like breath rise out of his mouth. He lay on his stomach, facedown with his hands in prayer, reaching over his head. Aside from photographs in distant lands, I had never seen anyone do this before. My response surprised me. Feeling so much gratitude for that place I was right then and there, and the friend I was with, I dipped into my first full body prostration. I really wanted to throw myself down to the ground, but I am timid. I remember at first wondering, is this ok? I’m not Buddhist. And I distinctly remember the calm and grace I felt lying on the frozen stone before “infinite Mystery”. I didn’t want to get up. I went empty and prayed, and the sun spilled over the mountains.

Remembering that winter morning, I knew the only way I could trust that I could paint these cards –and begin this journey– was to get out of my head, out of my ego, and into my heart. To focus on “why” this project is so important to us: honoring motherhood as a spiritual practice. I lay in my studio in full prostration on a child-like rug of yellow and pink flowers. I felt anchored and prayed for intuition, endurance, clarity, and wisdom. Or maybe I pleaded. :) Either way, I feel like guidance presented herself.

**To clarify, I positioned the woman on the turtle to form the five points of the mandala within the turtle’s shell (vs. full prostration when you lie face down in a straight line — legs together and arms together over your head in prayer/Namaste position.

I realize until now, I haven’t shared much of this pilgrimage here. It was a test of endurance. I learned to hone my intuition, reach out to my community, and surrender. When I was painting, Tulsi often reminded me of what was most important asking, “Mama, first tea party, then you paint, ok?” and “Please Mama, you hold me like Haumea holds her baby?”

Mothering is the most amazing dance I’ve ever danced, and I pray these images convey that spirit, beauty and love. I did my best to “get out of the way” and let the images come through me. Of course, this I am still learning. :)

A little background on the deck…The idea first came to Niki Dewart in 2009 while she was out on a rare solo walk in the woods. She envisioned an oracle deck that would speak directly to mothers, an oracle bearing and bonding, nursing and nudging, surrendering and serendipity. She then invited Elizabeth Marglin to create with her, and soon after that, they invited me to offer visual interpretations. And although the deck doesn’t make its official debut until May 1st (for Mother’s Day), I just received my first sample and had to share! :)

You can pre-order it through your local bookstore or here. **If you live near Boulder or Taos, stay tuned for May Launch events where you can purchase the deck and support your local bookstore and midwives!**

I am so grateful for this experience, and now, for the daily meditations. Today, I pulled the card, Intention/Mother Meng. You will learn her story when you have the deck and accompanying book. I loved this quote Niki and Elizabeth chose to include:

Each decision we make, each action we take, is born out of an intention. — Sharon Salzberg

AND, last week, our website+blog, Mothering with Soul, inspired from the deck, came to life. We envision it as a place for mothers around the world to come together, to be real, to support and inspire each other. I know you will love Niki and Elizabeth and appreciate their honesty and spirit. Each week we will pull a card from the deck and use that as our theme. We’ll share whatever thoughts, stories, photos, drawings, and quotes that come into our lives that week as they add meaning to the attribute. We hope you will share your thoughts there, too. Will you join us?

I want to sing out a thank you song to so many people who have helped this book come alive, who believed in me and cheered me on, (and who supported me while I worked on it, creatively and physically!): my husband Patrick and Tulsi, my amazing editor and book guru Christy Ottaviano and my wonderful AD Patrick Collins and designer April Ward, my rockin’ agents Jo-Lynne Worley and Joanie Shoemaker, my Mom (who came to play with Baby T while I painted my heart out) and Dad (always my biggest fans), my sister Renee (!), Neeru Dhakal and my Sunshine School Family in Nepal, my book gal friends, and countless little friends across the oceans and at home who inspired this story. This is yours, too!

This is a description from the full press release:

“Fifty years ago, Ezra’s book The Snowy Day, which featured an African American child, broke the color barrier in mainstream children’s book publishing when it was embraced by families across racial, economic and ethnic lines,” said Deborah Pope, Executive Director of the Ezra Jack Keats Foundation. “Like Ezra, this year’s Book Award winners have, in their own way, celebrated the similarities—and differences—of people whose life experiences are dramatically varied.

The Book Award was created to acknowledge and encourage budding children’s book authors and illustrators who impart Ezra Jack Keats’ values—the universal qualities of childhood, a strong and supportive family and the multicultural nature of our world.”

I have been a fan of Ezra Jack Keats since I was young and dreaming of making children’s books! I really admire him as an illustrator and a person, and I am inspired by his books and mixed-media experimentations. Plus, we are both Polish! Hee. :) Thanks everyone for ALL your encouragement over the years and for letting me share this FUN news! I am playing “hard” to bring some new books to you.

And a big congrats to Meg Medina for winning the New Authors Medal! Patrick, Tulsi and I are looking forward to the ceremony on April 12 in Mississippi!

Saturday brought more Spring chicken dances,

tropical greenhouse creations,

and snuggles galore.

And on Sunday came a temple visit colored with music, community, purple bulbs peeking out of the dirt and carrots-peas-beets and yogurt mixed with fancy peacocks under the sweetest blue sky. I am so grateful to have a sacred space that I feel at home in, to sing and pray, cook and eat, give thanks, share ideas and lessons learned, and to give and receive encouragement.

Gotta soak up these radiant days because the winds are coming soon…but then we’ll be intrigued and inspired by seed catalogs and garden planning. How are your days colored lately?

Last week I came upon The M.A.P.P. Gathering, an incredible, growing ocean of mamas, coming together to relate and share, encourage and ignite each others’ flames. The Gathering is a series of interviews with some amazing, wise, gentle, BRIGHT soul-mamas who are all wholly passionate about their mothering AND their “work”: Brene Brown, PhD, Jennifer Louden, Renee Trudeau, Jill Savage, Sara Gottfried, MD, Pamela Slim, Kelly Rae Roberts, Tsh Oxenreider and Andrea Scher (links on the M.A.P.P. site). The gathering was initiated by Lisa Grace Byrne who I keep thanking over and over in my head and heart — and I have only listened to 3 of the conversations so far!

Lisa describes it as, “a collection of intimate conversations with a handful of mothers who have followed their passion and are making a beautiful difference in the world.” For any mamas out there, you know how connecting intimately with mama-friends can be a saving grace…and how it gives you strength in countless ways? I think you might find that (and more) in listening to these conversations while nodding and saying “YES!” and reflecting on your own walk of motherhood.

I feel like sometimes on this path of mothering there isn’t a lot of time to reflect, with days passing so quickly and diving straight into my art in any “me-time”. Rare alone-walks (thank the goddess, are happening a bit more and more) seem to be the best time, although honestly, I enjoy going empty and silent, too. That is why The Mother’s Wisdom Deck project (coming May 1st) was such a gift for me even though it was fast and furious. I poured so much of my experiences and emotions, courage, endurance and intuition into the paintings, which helped me grow as well as reflect inwardly. And HOW I am ready for even more connecting and mama-energy and honesty and opening on this path. We (the authors of the Deck and I) are currently creating another mama-community-site, which is set to launch in a couple weeks. I hope you will join us then AND upon reading this post, run over to The M.A.P.P. Gathering to sign up and join the expanding, awesome conversation of mothering. I know you will be grateful you did!

I just created a page “FOR KIDS” (and parents, teachers, big kids…) — it is now in my menu above. I think it’s super fun, and I hope it will inspire young authors and illustrators. At the top is an interactive page with 27 different “clicks” that shares some of my writing & art process and research for Same, Same but Different. Scroll down further and there are videos, postcards, journal entries, and more coming soon… Please share with your kids, their schools, your teacher friends, and let me know what you think. :)

Mata Prasad is spinning clay cups without any electricity!

Do you recognize this game? Two girls at Sunshine School are playing “Jacks” with rocks…

My Indian “sister” Didi is dressing me in a saree…

AND, I thought I’d read you a journal entry from India…riding on a rickshaw. onarickshaw

Click here to see a video of our dear friend Amanda who is a professional Odissi dancer in India!

A few months ago, I shared my new picture book, Same, Same but Different, with my long-time client Karen Capp of Oopsy Daisy Fine art for Kids. She had an idea to host a craft to connect young artists with my book and my travel-inspired Oopsy Daisy art, while encouraging children to create art about our world — just as Elliot and Kailash share with each other in my book. In addition, Karen generously decided to make it a contest for kids and schools giving away several of my Oopsy Daisy canvases and signed copies of my books as prizes!

Children 12 and under are invited to submit their art for the random drawing. Parents and teachers, this art project can be a great conversation starter for learning more about geography and world cultures, or even starting a pen pal exchange. And Teachers, please note there is a special prize for the school with the most participants!

So, how to play? Look around you. What colors YOUR world? What do you love? What sounds do you hear? What makes your world unique from Elliot and Kailash’s and other kids around the world? Create your own art inspired by an imaginary or real pen pal, your travels or ideas about the people and cultures of our world. Draw, paint or collage a picture of your world, and share it with us. Please include a sentence explaining the child’s drawing. I posted the craft on Oopsy Daisy’s blog. The official contest guidelines and instructions are on their “Budding Artists Contest” page. It runs from today thru March 14th!

Your child’s art can be SIMPLE! A line drawing, simple shapes collaged to form a picture, watercolor or even finger painting for the toddlers. It could even be drawn words. It’s endless. :) Just have fun! I am excited to see your art and hear your thoughts! And please share with other parents, teachers, librarians, your children’s schools…

To start, Tulsi and I created a picture of “our” world. We are working on another picture of a little girl we are reading about who lives in a very different world than ours (how we imagine her to be). These are just two examples of endless approaches to this prompt.

by Tulsi Shaw and Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw Tulsi
In our world, 3 baby chicks are riding on their mama’s back or hiding under her wings. Little Red Rooster is singing, we are dancing outside in our garden, and the Milky Way shines right over our house.

by Tulsi Shaw and Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw Tulsi
In our world, 3 baby chicks are riding on their mama’s back or hiding under her wings. Little Red Rooster is singing, we are dancing outside in our garden, and the Milky Way shines right over our house.

A few months ago, I shared my new picture book, Same, Same but Different, with my long-time client Karen Capp of Oopsy Daisy Fine art for Kids. She had an idea to host a craft to connect young artists with my book and my travel-inspired Oopsy Daisy art, while encouraging children to create art about our world — just as Elliot and Kailash share with each other in my book. In addition, Karen generously decided to make it a contest for kids and schools giving away several of my Oopsy Daisy canvases and signed copies of my books as prizes!

Children 12 and under are invited to submit their art for the random drawing. Parents and teachers, this art project can be a great conversation starter for learning more about geography and world cultures, or even starting a pen pal exchange. And Teachers, please note there is a special prize for the school with the most participants!

So, how to play? Look around you. What colors YOUR world? What do you love? What sounds do you hear? What makes your world unique from Elliot and Kailash’s and other kids around the world? Create your own art inspired by an imaginary or real pen pal, your travels or ideas about the people and cultures of our world. Draw, paint or collage a picture of your world, and share it with us. Please include a sentence explaining the child’s drawing. I posted the craft on Oopsy Daisy’s blog. The official contest guidelines and instructions are on their “Budding Artists Contest” page. It runs from today thru March 14th!

Your child’s art can be SIMPLE! A line drawing, simple shapes collaged to form a picture, watercolor or even finger painting for the toddlers. It could even be drawn words. It’s endless. :) Just have fun! I am excited to see your art and hear your thoughts! And please share with other parents, teachers, librarians, your children’s schools…

To start, Tulsi and I created a picture of “our” world (at the top of this post). We are working on another picture of a little girl we are reading about who lives in a very different world than ours (how we imagine her to be). These are just two examples of endless approaches to this prompt.