love

The Resistance: Justice Rising

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I’m an optimist, always have been, always will be. So I see the large numbers in the States marching and organising against fascism as a brilliant development, confirming my faith in the goodness of the majority of people in the United States.

Similarly I see the rise of Jeremy Corbyn in the UK as a sign that people are organising for social justice, peace and decent wages and working conditions, and an end to the class warfare of the Tories under the euphemism of “austerity”.

And just this past week I’ve seen reports of how the progressive government in Portugal in 2016, according to figures released on March 24th, cut the budget deficit by more than half to just under 2.1% of GDP (see chart), the lowest since Portugal’s transition to democracy in 1974. The administration restored state pensions, wages and working hours to pre-bail-out levels, and also brought the deficit well under the 2.5% target set for it by the European Union.

So there are lights on the horizon even though negative news about Trump fills a lot of newspaper, TV and radio space. The trick is not to focus on the negative but instead on the positive.  It’s how we’ll survive these challenging times!

 

 

 

The Rise of Goodness

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I created this image to celebrate all those who are standing up for decency and condemning the fascists in the US and their endorsement by the despicable, utterly corrupt Donald Trump.

The events since last weekend have indeed been awful but from bad has come good – so many people have been galvanised to stand up, organise and resist the neo-fascists, while Trump has cooked his goose well and truly with his disgusting endorsement of white supremacy.

So the image above has certain symbology: below are the waters of emotional turmoil but also emotional support for each other. Above are the stars which shower us with grace, love, compassion and optimism. Running through the centre is a river of light, illuminating hope and right action against the forces of evil.

And central is an image of Ganesh, the Indian god. I had intended to use a photo I’d taken in Australia of a spider and its web, to represent Spider Woman spinning a new society. But then I came across the image of Ganesh and it was so apt I decided on that instead.

Ganesh is the destroyer of vanity, selfishness and pride. He is the remover of obstacles and also the symbol of abundance but right abundance – sourced from love and compassion and not profane worship of money. Interestingly, he also places obstacles in the path of those who need to be checked. I thought this was most appropriate in current circumstances.

 

 

In Honour of Heather Heyer, Charlottesville

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So much has been written about events in Charlottesville that anything by me would be now superfluous.

Instead, I’ve created this artwork to honour Heather Heyer, who was murdered by a white supremacist who drove his car into anti-fascist demonstrators in Charlottesville. Heather fought for decency, kindness and against injustice.

The eagle in flight represents her courage and steadfastness in standing on the side of the people and the injustices suffered in the community. The rays of light reflect the heritage she has bequeathed of compassion, courage and ongoing struggle and organisation for justice, equality, respect and against the forces of racism and white supremacy.

The bright colours top and bottom reflect the forces of positivity, optimism and determination to fight for a society where people are respected and honoured regardless of their colour, race, sexuality or religion.

We stand in hope because we will not allow the forces of evil and hatred to thrive, we will pull them out by their roots and in their place plant hope, love, kindness and tolerance.

Song of the Heart

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Last week we had our apartment cleaned professionally by the Merit Hotel management due to the high amounts of dust and sand flooding our apartment from the construction site they’ve started right next door to where we live. We were unable to keep up with the dust levels – as fast as we dusted, the sand would blow in and land on all the surfaces in our kitchen, living room, bedroom and my study. In the end we complained and Merit management agreed to the cleaning process.

We had a lovely young Indian lass clean our place – she did a grand job, was very conscientious, but was I mortified when she collected our ornaments from the pelmet in our living room (I’d forgotten all about them!) and they were so covered in thick dust and sand you could hardly see what they were. She cleaned them up carefully and then replaced them in the right order on the shelf.

She told us we reminded her of her grandmother and grandfather in India who she missed enormously. But what went to my heart was her concern for my various scrapes and scratches, telling me to go to the doctor to get them checked. And then when she left, she tenderly stroked my cheeks and wished me well for the future.

She really touched my heart because I’m very independent, my husband’s kids live in the UK so we don’t get to see them very much, and anyway we are all accustomed to living our own lives.  It reminded me of the strength of the traditional family system and the way its members care for each other.

It was also very much a reminder to myself to take better care of me!  As I’m all air signs, astrologically speaking, I tend to be in my head and out there in the universe creating art and ideas, and often my physical body gets a bit overlooked. So since that kind gesture from the young Indian lass, I’m focussing more on loving my own self (instead of worrying about everybody else)

The above image is a result of my reflections on taking care of ourselves and listening to the song of our hearts which are meant for each of us as an individual. I hope you like the image.

Streets of London

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A friend just posted a link to this song, Streets of London, by Ralph McTell, so I’m posting it here too with a more subdued version of an image from an early post.

It’s one of my favourite songs, one I played forever and a day when I lived in London from 1970-72. So poignant!

In this instance, I dedicate it to the courage, humour and resilience of all who live in London given recent events, and see this powerful song also as a call to our humanity to show compassion for all, regardless of their circumstances!