By Lolly Forsythe-ChisolmThere are many ways to be kind. Below are a variety of expressive arts activities using a love of doodling/art to create fun random acts of kindness.  Using expressive arts to offer random acts of kindness offers two major benefits. First, you are using a relaxing modality of self-care which you already enjoy and find calming. Second, studies have shown that when we express gratitude and kindness we benefit from the positive intention to connect socially. “The experience of gratitude and the actions stimulated by it build and strengthen social bonds and friendships.”(1) Art is a “win-win” as a random act of kindness!  Here are some suggestions:
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By Lolly Forsythe-Chisolm In an article posted on DailyGood.org, Brother David Steindle-Rast speaks about Five Small Gestures of Gratitude to Counteract Violence:
By Lolly Forsythe-Chisolm The falling leaves of our beautiful autumn have inspired this expressive arts activity. In an article titled, Fall Meditation to Embody Openness and Self-Reflection, author Tris Thorp from the Chopra Center, encourages embracing change and letting go. This expressive arts project is designed to encourage you to notice certain habits of thought which no longer serve your best interest, and to begin the valuable process of replacing the thought with a new word that suits your best interest. It is important to start this process with the realization that these thoughts were put into place in your mind at another time in your life – just like the tree lets go of the leaves as a process of growth and rebirth.
By Lolly Forsythe-ChisolmIn his article called “A Vision for the World,” Brother David Stiendl-Rast speaks about gratitude. September is a time of great abundance in nature. Trees are full, offering shade in all shades of green turning into glorious colors of orange, yellow and red. In this expressive art project, we will use the symbol of a swirly tree full of leaves to express gratitude even in moments of great challenge and stress. Gratitude is a word that gets tossed here and there. Brother Steindl-Rast explains that while we cannot have gratitude for everything, we can be grateful in every moment. I call these moments “Gratitude In” moments. In this arts project we will create a tree on an old bulletin board and record our “gratitude in” moments on the leaves of the tree. Leaves on a tree absorb carbon dioxide from the exhalations of animals and humans. In this project, we will write out our gratitude moments, worries or prayers on leaves as a metaphor to be “absorbed” by the swirly tree.  By Lolly Forsythe-Chisolm“We experiment with visual means to express what we most want to communicate. We try things out and see what quickens our pulse, what fully engages us. Our exploration and self-awareness grow over time - through drawing, through our life journey, and through seeing what matters to us. What moves us.” The Confident Creative by Cat Bennett. (An amazing little book, a quick summer read for inspiration and big Questions.) By the way, Big Q questions are the ones that give you pause. The idea for this expressive art project came from a failure. I was using spray inks to spray a flower stencil that I had made. The ink spread and blurred out from under the stencil and the colors blended in a drippy mess. Or so I thought. “Humph” I thought and I walked away… it dried and I thought “wait, what if…” And I doodled and played with the mess:  And then I realized that “hope” can spread and seep into all parts of our lives and now I love this imperfectly perfect flower with its message of light.
By Lolly Forsythe-ChisolmWe all have many forms of ID, badges and cards that let us in and out of life’s red tape. This activity will focus on creating an ID card for your spirit. In her article "Emotional Agility," Susan David wrote, “The mind’s thought stream flows endlessly and emotions change like the weather, but values can be called on at any time and in any situation.”  By Lolly Forsythe-ChisolmThis artistic project is designed to remind you of an intention that you hold dear. The activity works to connect you back to the big picture goals of your life. With the busyness and hustle bustle of life come challenges, and these challenges can throw us off kilter OR we can use expressive arts and challenge as a reminder to focus on values that are important in our lives.  By Lolly Forsythe-Chisolm
This activity combines the idea of a Tibetan “prayer flag” and the idea of Guatemalan “worry dolls” (both pictured below). In the process, you paint, create or decorate paper hearts, write out worries, prayers, thoughts or words of focus and fold them prayer style over a string to create a hanging garland.
By Lolly Forsythe-ChisolmCommercial Valentine's day can be rough. Expectations about "romantic love" can feel overwhelming or disappointing. This expressive arts project encourages you to take the best care of your own heart by showing gratitude/love to another's heart.
By Lolly Forsythe-Chisolm“The only map of your right life is written on your soul at its most peaceful, and the only sure compass is your heart at its most open.” Martha Beck “The way to find our own North Star is not to think or feel your way forward but to dissolve the thoughts and feelings that make you miserable. You don’t have to learn your destiny – you already know it; you just have to unlearn the thoughts that blind you to what you know.” Martha Beck – Steering by Starlight  |
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