Voluntaryism & Art for the New Earth Paradigm  [‘A New Paradigm’, Acrylics, pencil, fabric paint, pastels and collaged materials on 7" x 10" 150gsm smooth cartridge paper.] "Make no mistake, a new paradigm is emerging. The road ahead will doubtless be challenging and uncomfortable for a while, but ultimately, Life will prevail..." All of creation benefits from the elevation and proliferation of art, beauty and consciousness, and one’s financial status ought not to be a barrier to the experience of living with original art. I've always wanted to share the results of my own creativity with those for whom it resonates, without financial barriers blocking the free flow of sharing. Indeed, I regularly gift or discount art based upon that principle. In these times of strife and Awakening, it's time to publicly extend that ethos to all my brothers and sisters... Mankind is moving away from consumerism***, towards kinship and interdependence. Trade will increasingly be conducted via free exchange, in alignment with the laws of Nature. In support of this movement, I am happy to offer any original painting or 'Said In Stones' pebble in exchange for the donation amount of your choice (subject to a cost-based minimum)* So if you LOVE a painting in the Shop but the listing price is prohibitive, please do get in touch. Whether it’s a gift for yourself or someone else, or to enhance a communal or ethical business space, I want everyone to be able to enjoy original art, wherever possible. Whatever you are comfortable and happy to 'pay' is good and will be thankfully received. If you are called to increase your donation amount at a later date, you are always welcome to, but there's no obligation to do so. Those who are happy to give the price listed in the Shop (or more, if you’d like to contribute more) make it possible to extend this offer to those with less disposable income. You’ll also be supporting the continuation of my work and my ability to keep sharing it with the world. I believe that donation-based giving and receiving (‘voluntaryism’) is the future of exchange between humans, and resonates perfectly with Natural Law. Everything in Nature is given and received in perfect balance for the totality of all beings to thrive. When you and I make an exchange based upon mutual respect, to an amount congruent with your current personal circumstances, you give what feels ‘right’ to you.* As ‘Oracle Girl’ Jacqueline Hobbs puts it, “When you charge, you put value on something. That is one system. But nature... just gives the way it finds itself giving, according to its own dictate - which is actually peace and joy. If you look carefully the 2 ways of being are interlinked. You have to do what’s right for you... Giving must be spontaneous and whole bodied. It confirms we are free… modelling a new way of being for the planet.” "I paint with love, in joy and in flow. It makes sense to extend this same warmth and connectedness to the 'business' of exchange..." IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ:
* Choose an amount to give based on your inner feelings of what is ‘right’ for you, taking everything into account. FEEL what you are comfortable exchanging for the artwork/s you resonate with, and let’s make magic happen! ** As a self-employed single Mama with ‘old paradigm’ living expenses to meet, I have to cover a minimum of my costs plus shipping. If you'd like to chat with me about the minimum donation for any particular piece/s, please reach out and we'll get the ball rolling! As long as the amount you are offering covers the minimum costs of the artwork plus shipping, it’s yours (subject to availability)… *** I am delighted to support individual art lovers, and also ethical businesses and projects (whether community-based, families or individuals) by facilitating a donation-based exchange. Third parties, dealers and corporate bodies must act with integrity by making clear their identity, affiliations and intentions when contacting me regarding any proposed donation-based exchanges.
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 Before you make any important decision, especially one regarding experimental medical procedures, it's vital to consider expert evidence from those who are voicing concerns, not just the 'officially-sanctioned' narrative. Here are some links to help you do just that (courtesy of https://t.me/newearthproj): 🔥🔥👇 1. Dr. Nancy Banks - http://bit.ly/1Ip0aIm 2. Dr. Russell Blaylock - http://bit.ly/1BXxQZL 3. Dr. Shiv Chopra - http://bit.ly/1gdgh1s 4. Dr. Sherri Tenpenny - http://bit.ly/1MPVbjx 5. Dr. Suzanne Humphries - http://bit.ly/17sKDbf 6. Dr. Larry Palevsky - http://bit.ly/1LLEjf6 7. Dr. Toni Bark - http://bit.ly/1CYM9RB 8. Dr. Andrew Wakefield - http://bit.ly/1MuyNzo 9. Dr. Meryl Nass - http://bit.ly/1DGzJsc 10. Dr. Raymond Obomsawin - http://bit.ly/1G9ZXYl 11. Dr. Ghislaine Lanctot - http://bit.ly/1MrVeUL 12. Dr. Robert Rowen - http://bit.ly/1SIELeF 13. Dr. David Ayoub - http://bit.ly/1SIELve 14. Dr. Boyd Haley PhD - http://bit.ly/1KsdVby 15. Dr. Rashid Buttar - http://bit.ly/1gWOkL6 16. Dr. Roby Mitchell - http://bit.ly/1gdgEZU 17. Dr. Ken Stoller - http://bit.ly/1MPVqLI 18. Dr. Mayer Eisenstein - http://bit.ly/1LLEqHH 19. Dr. Frank Engley, PhD - http://bit.ly/1OHbLDI 20. Dr. David Davis - http://bit.ly/1gdgJwo 21. Dr Tetyana Obukhanych - http://bit.ly/16Z7k6J 22. Dr. Harold E Buttram - http://bit.ly/1Kru6Df 23. Dr. Kelly Brogan - http://bit.ly/1D31pfQ 24. Dr. RC Tent - http://bit.ly/1MPVwmu 25. Dr. Rebecca Carley - http://bit.ly/K49F4d 26. Dr. Andrew Moulden - http://bit.ly/1fwzKJu 27. Dr. Jack Wolfson - http://bit.ly/1wtPHRA 28. Dr. Michael Elice - http://bit.ly/1KsdpKA 29. Dr. Terry Wahls - http://bit.ly/1gWOBhd 30. Dr. Stephanie Seneff - http://bit.ly/1OtWxAY 31. Dr. Paul Thomas - http://bit.ly/1DpeXPf 32. Many doctors talking at once - http://bit.ly/1MPVHOv 33. Dr. Richard Moskowitz - censored 34. Dr. Jane Orient - http://bit.ly/1MXX7pb 35. Dr. Richard Deth - http://bit.ly/1GQDL10 36. Dr. Lucija Tomljenovic - http://bit.ly/1eqiPr5 37. Dr Chris Shaw - http://bit.ly/1IlGiBp 38. Dr. Susan McCreadie - http://bit.ly/1CqqN83 39. Dr. Mary Ann Block - http://bit.ly/1OHcyUX 40. Dr. David Brownstein - http://bit.ly/1EaHl9A 41. Dr. Jayne Donegan - http://bit.ly/1wOk4Zz 42. Dr. Troy Ross - censored 43. Dr. Philip Incao - http://bit.ly/1ghE7sS 44. Dr. Joseph Mercola - http://bit.ly/18dE38I 45. Dr. Jeff Bradstreet - http://bit.ly/1MaX0cC 46. Dr. Robert Mendelson - http://bit.ly/1JpAEQr 47. Dr Theresa Deisher https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=6Bc6WX33SuE 48. Dr. Sam Eggertsen-https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8LB-3xkeDAE Hundreds more doctors testifying that vaccines aren't safe or effective, in these documentaries: 1. Vaccination - The Silent Epidemic - http://bit.ly/1vvQJ2W 2. The Greater Good - http://bit.ly/1icxh8j 3. Shots In The Dark - http://bit.ly/1ObtC8h 4. Vaccination The Hidden Truth - http://bit.ly/KEYDUh 5. Vaccine Nation - http://bit.ly/1iKNvpU 6. Vaccination - The Truth About Vaccines - http://bit.ly/1vlpwvU 7. Lethal Injection - http://bit.ly/1URN7BJ 8. Bought - http://bit.ly/1M7YSlr 9. Deadly Immunity - http://bit.ly/1KUg64Z 10. Autism - Made in the USA - http://bit.ly/1J8WQN5 11. Beyond Treason - http://bit.ly/1B7kmvt 12. Trace Amounts - http://bit.ly/1vAH3Hv 13. Why We Don't Vaccinate - http://bit.ly/1KbXhuf 9 hour court case https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DFTsd042M3o Documentaries... 💉 1. Vaccination - The Silent Epidemic(2013) - http://bit.ly/1vvQJ2W 2. The Greater Good - (2011) https://youtu.be/VxR8XQHc0A0 3. Shots In The Dark -(2009) http://bit.ly/1ObtC8h 4. Vaccination The Hidden Truth -(1998) http://bit.ly/KEYDUh 5. Vaccine Nation - (2008) https://youtu.be/bLk641P8CE4 6. Vaccination - The Truth About Vaccines - http://bit.ly/1vlpwvU 7. Lethal Injection - http://bit.ly/1URN7BJ 8. Bought - (2015) https://youtu.be/HrgkKREhQrs https://youtu.be/_9nre8AMe5I 9. Deadly Immunity - (2005) http://bit.ly/1KUg64Z 10. Autism - Made in the USA(2009) - http://bit.ly/1J8WQN5 11. Beyond Treason - (2005) http://bit.ly/1B7kmvt 12. Trace Amounts - (2014) http://bit.ly/1vAH3Hv 13. Why We Don't Vaccinate - https://youtu.be/WjiFrTnWiK4 14. Autism Yesterday - (2010) http://bit.ly/1URU2A7 MANY thanks to the New Earth Telegram Channel (https://t.me/newearthproj) for this awesome list of resources and information! Please feel free to SHARE WIDELY 🤗 **With love,** Jay [Image: Detail from 'Question Everything' by Jay Taylor] If you’ve fallen in love with this image, you may be interested to know that it is available on 50+ print on demand products including clothing, homewares and device cases. [Click here to find out more.]   There is a huge drive towards shaking off the illusions under which humanity collectively labours, and tremendous efforts are being made in that direction globally. This trend warms my heart and is one of the things currently keeping me going...
Confusingly, though, there are as many interpretations of what 'awake' actually means as there are people using the term. Nonetheless, everyone seems convinced that they, themselves, are already 'awakened', or are on 'the way' to being awake; and that furthermore, their particular 'way' is 'The Only Way' to get there. Yet so few of us share the exact same definition of the 'awakened state' and 'the way' to attain it that there is a huge backlash of Judgementalism (yes, I made it up) traversing the earth. The danger when one begins to compare and judge - scrutinising and assessing others – is that it inherently leads to division, and alienates us from each others' messages. Everyone promoting their particular version of the truth is asking others to accept and to validate it, to make it true in the world – whether that be in the form of goods or services; hopes of personal or global redemption; egoic dreams; visions; religions; organisations; or any of a plethora of other 'buy-ins'. I sometimes wonder wryly whether the concept of 'awakening' was created purely to produce such division. Because I have rarely seen such bigoted certainty about one's rightness (and the wrongness of anyone who doesn't see things 'our way'), than amongst those who are focussed upon 'awakening'. My question to humanity is this: could we consider acknowledging that there are infinite paths to awakening - that, in fact, everyone's awakening is UNIQUE and precious to them, and PARTICULAR to that individual? Would it not serve us well to allow other people their own experiences and viewpoints without demanding that they conform to ours? Each of us is a unique piece in the puzzle of consciousness becoming awake and aware of itself. All are valid, all must be heard. No-one moves forward until they feel understood. By shutting out others because they speak a different 'awakening language' to us, we are actively slowing down the very mass awakening we say we want to facilitate. What could we achieve if we put our differences aside (or - gasp! - honoured them!) and supported each other instead? There really IS only one 'I' in the universe - one life force, expressing itself through diversity - and until it gets its story straight through each aspect of creation, that which is divisive will continue to divert from that which (re)unites. That divisiveness includes rejecting and excluding those who see things differently than us; those who challenge us, confuse us or frighten us, instead of trying to foster a shared sense of connection. We must keep looking for the things we have in common – the common ground, the common sense – and hold those shared values dear. For in the end, for all our wonderful uniqueness, we ARE all drops in the same ocean, inseparable, and ONE... With love, Jay (Originally published on January 11th 2017, but increasingly relevant) [Image: 'Are You Awake? Yes! xo' by Jay Taylor. Available on 50+ print-on-demand products HERE]  ⏰ 30% OFF ‘Fall Back’ SALE EXTENDED until 5th NOVEMBER ⏰
💕 BONUS - Share this post on social media any time until 5th November 2019 and I'll include a surprise gift when you purchase any original artwork using voucher code FALLBACK30 at www.jaytaylor.store* 💕 BRIGHTER WINTER SALE extended! Maybe it's the darkness, maybe it's just the fluff in my head... When I created the voucher code for this sale, it was meant to expire on 3rd November... BUT, evidently, I entered 5th November, as that's when it actually ends! So for an extra 2 days, you can still snag yourself a Jay Taylor Original at 30% discount in my online store! Treat yourself to unrepeatable art to brighten up and beautify your places and spaces, or to gift to someone who would appreciate an absolutely unique and energetically-charged gift. Use the discount code FALLBACK30 for 30% off all original artwork and Said in Stones pebbles until 5th November 2019 at www.jaytaylor.store and spread the ARTLOVE! 💕 With love, Jay 💕 *Free gift limited to one per household. Let me know where you shared by leaving a note at checkout!  ⏰ 30% OFF ‘Fall Back’ SALE ⏰
💕 BONUS - Share this post on social media between 26th October and 3rd November 2019 and I'll include a surprise gift when you purchase any original artwork using voucher code FALLBACK30 at www.jaytaylor.store* 💕 BRIGHTER WINTER SALE! Tonight heralds the return of one of my least-favourite events of the calendar - the end of British Summertime. At 2am this morning, UK clocks will turn back by an hour, plunging us into darkness an hour earlier - pretty brutal stuff, especially for us already-sun-starved Brits!! 😱 😜 Twice a year, I remind myself of how BST works by remembering the little phrase, “The clocks Spring forward and Fall back", and whilst the Springing forward bit is pretty easy to adjust to, I‘ve always struggled a little with the Fall Back part of the equation. So this year, as the darkness of winter encroaches, I've decided to spread a little light and colour as an antidote to the SADness, to lift my spirits and, hopefully, yours too! For the next 7 days, you can snag yourself a Jay Taylor Original at 30% discount in my online store! Treat yourself to unrepeatable art to brighten up and beautify your places and spaces, or to gift onwards to someone who would appreciate an absolutely unique and energetically-charged gift. Use the discount code FALLBACK30 for 30% off all original artwork and Said in Stones pebbles from 25th October - 3rd November 2019 at www.jaytaylor.store and spread the ARTLOVE! 💕 With love, Jay 💕 *Free gift limited to one per household. Let me know where you shared by leaving a note at checkout!  "Whatever pain and suffering our life has borne, we must nevertheless be thankful. He who is afraid of suffering is also afraid of joy." Lou Andreas-Salome (1861-1937) I love this quote and the insight it offers, as it resonates deeply with my own life experiences. Lou Andreas-Salome's words reflect a simple yet profound understanding: that the avoidance of pain and suffering leads to a debilitating retraction from the joy of living; and that, conversely, accepting their inevitability is incredibly liberating. She who loves most deeply will also be capable of feeling the greatest pain. She who shrinks from that pain will not allow herself to love freely. Loving unreservedly engenders a state of gratitude for the lessons we learn in life, even when they hurt. The transmutation of pain and suffering into understanding can build incredible strength, character, and courage, and also increase one's ability to experience joy and thankfulness. Pain and suffering offer hidden gifts when we invest our energy in discovering and embodying the messages they bring. Pain is a messenger. When we listen to it we gain insight - insight we can use to inform and improve our lives. Shrinking back from the threat of sorrow or loss is a movement away from life. Expansion into any experience, and becoming more open and permeable to it, is a rich source of true learning. In this spirit, one will not seek out unpleasant experiences, but neither will one withdraw or demur for fear of projected consequences.  I'd love to live in a world where nobody need ever suffer pain or hardship again, and where everyone could be joyously free. In the absence of that world, and whilst doing what we can to bring it into being, we can do our best to share insights and reach out to others who yearn for autonomy and true connection. Paradoxically, I would not be the individual I am today without having borne my share of sadness. I have lived through sufficient pain and suffering to learn to appreciate the gifts they have brought to me, and the joy I feel in the simplest aspects of being alive is massively deepened because of them. If you're in pain, or suffering emotionally, physically or mentally, please know that this phase will pass and that it has much to offer in terms of growth, even if it's hard to see right now. Please reach out for help, and take the time to celebrate the things for which you are thankful. Most of all, remember to look within yourself - and get outdoors whilst doing so if possible! - for the most profound guidance of all is to be found there if only one listens attentively enough. (If you'd like to find out more about Lou Andreas-Salome, you might want to check out this Blog post about her. Muse to the likes of Nietzsche and Rilke, she was really a remarkable character!) With love, Jay   'A Call for Love', completed 23/11/2018, acrylics, acrylic inks and gel pens on A3 heavyweight mixed media paper. --------------------------------------------------- When now-17-year-old Raven was a newborn, I spent our nap times reading 'A Course in Miracles'. It was a very positive and uplifting experience despite the Christo-religious framing of its messages (as I read, I crossed out the words 'Jesus' and 'God' and replaced them with the words 'Life' or 'The Universe'!) Many miraculous events occurred while I was studying it, including a fantastically mind-boggling Spontaneous Healing Incident. These deepened my burgeoning sense of spirituality and re-opened my heart to the possibility of miracles, healing and acceptance of myself. Of all of the content in ACIM, the words which resonated most deeply with me back then were these - "Everything is love or a call for love."  "Everything is love or a call for love." I am resonating with these words more than ever as I mull the modern disease of looking for love, yet so often pushing it away. It's easy to see how unconscious, dysfunctional behaviours stem from our largely unmet need to be unconditionally loved and accepted for who we are. It is a conundrum of 'civilisation' that it creates so many attachment disorders, which in turn go on to cause destructive and divisive behaviours in the unfortunate children who develop them. The tools our parents were given with which to nurture us so often lead to a Great Divide forming between them and us, their offspring. For a while now I've been doing 'inner child' work to release the 'expectation of rejection' which has haunted me for as long as I can remember. I can feel my inner child - her anger, her pain, her sense of injustice, her railing against the unfairness of being branded 'difficult', 'defiant', 'troubled' - beginning to soften into the understanding that yes, everything is love or a call for love. She's starting to trust that I love her regardless of what anyone else thinks: that she is loved now as she was not loved then. I begin to see how impossible it was for her to make sense of her mother's rejection and criticism, the bullying, the controlling, the blaming and shaming, the punishments and the ostracisation. And I begin to feel that it's entirely probable that my mother experienced similarly unloving parenting which made her capable of and given to such behaviour. Pain is passed from one generation to the next until someone is willing to feel it and heal it. This process takes not just awareness but courage, determination and perseverance. Anyone who tells a trauma survivor to 'just get over it', or to 'forgive and forget', does not understand the effect trauma has on brain development and cognition, much less of the heartbreak survivors live with every day...  "Our deepest wound births the pattern we will repeat most often. Find, face and heal the wound, and the pattern will be released." - Jay Taylor The process of fitting us to the society into which we are born has a lot to answer for, and as well as forgiving and/or understanding, it is our job right now to hold this process to task - to face it bravely, informed by our bone-deep experience, and leave it behind as we stride on fearlessly towards our goal of replacing it with something new and life-serving. And so my heart is beginning to allow the possibility of feeling empathy for the woman whose behaviour caused me so much pain. This is very different from 'ought to', 'should be able to', or 'it is all in the past - move on...' I begin to understand that when she called my baby body forth from the aether, my mother, too, was calling out for love - a type of love that she was not able to elicit or model; a kind of love which her behaviour towards me actually made impossible. I begin to consider accepting that this was our fate; that there is an opportunity to extract and cultivate new and positive meaning from our shared experience; that, in fact, this process is already unfolding. As I lay with my own child, reading 'A Course In Miracles', my newly-activated maternal instincts forming a shield of unconditional love, this knowledge began to proliferate in my awareness. My 'rebellious', feisty nature, borne of the lifelong core conflict between my mother and me, began to take an accounting of itself. 17 years later, this life-changing process continues to work its way through my system, still driving me to seek out the truth, bringing wave after wave of new insight. Humanity is evolving, and I am evolving, too. All over the world, our experiences are mirroring each other. There are more of us awakening to this realisation every day. It's a truly global phenomenon. We are living through the beginning of the end. The current paradigm is not sustainable, just as my mother's relationship with me - and ultimately with her own existence - was not sustainable. This cruel world is beginning to fall apart, to face its own dysfunction in ways which will transform or kill it. Those of us who feel will this suffer accordingly, but our suffering and insight are driving us to create (and experience) something radically new - a new way of life for ourselves and our offspring.  Everything is love or a call for love. All the hurt and pain and anger I carried for so long is birthing a new me - a version of me who is more capable of loving and being loved than ever before. Bringing trauma to the light allows its shadows to be cast out, or to be enjoyed for their own beauty, or to be played with, danced with, LOVED. "That which divides must be abandoned in favour of that which unites" - Jay Taylor Do you hear the Call? With love, Jay xx The original painting 'A Call For Love' is available to art investors worldwide via my online store.  The first ever, prototype Said In Stones 'Affirmation Stone' has just flown all the way from the heart of England to the far reaches of sunny Texas to assisting its new guardian in getting "Better and better every day, in every way.":  Repeating a positive affirmation 20 times twice a day, every day is a great way to help overwrite self-limiting beliefs and reprogram the brain and being with uplifting positive auto-suggestion. Each Affirmation Stone will be accompanied by either your choice of affirmation or the phrase favoured by the pioneering Father of Positive Auto-Suggestion, Emile Coue - "Every day, in every way, I am getting better and better!" Here's an example of a presentation 'shadow box' frame, with its silicone suspension display housing, showing a personalised affirmation printed on the back of the protective slipcover. This photo is of the second-ever Affirmation Stone, which was snapped up by a collector in the UK. Also shown here is its mini-certificate of authenticity:  The Affirmation pebble is threaded on a silk cord with 20 counting knots, much like a non-denominational rosary. The Affirmation Stone cord features 20 knots to facilitate counting without engaging the conscious mind in counting - just slip one knot through your fingers as you repeat your affirmation in a relaxed state, and let your subconscious mind absorb the goodness and begin to work its magic for you! 💖✨💖✨💖 I'm offering this configuration on any of my pendant stones henceforth, in addition to the usual necklace configuration. Of course, if you fall in love with a Said In Stones pendant and want it in the standard configuration with an adjustable necklace cord, I will be equally happy to supply it thusly. You can even order one of each type of cord, making your Said In Stones pendant more versatile by enabling you to switch between the two in a matter of seconds. Either way, each cord comes complete with coordinating glass beads, a signed, dated and numbered mini-certificate, and a choice of gift packaging options: I have a limited number of 'floating frames' like the ones shown here, or you can opt for an original handmade Said In Stones box, created using upcycled card or paper, or a sweet little non-leather pouch:  I will be listing new pieces in the pendant SHOP section shortly, and any of the pendants currently available can also be configured as an Affirmation Stone. Please leave me a message at checkout or get in touch to request this. If you would like to have a COMMISSION piece created especially for yourself or to gift to another, please message me to discuss your requirements. We can chat about colour scheme, design ideas, packaging configuration, affirmation selection etc. either via email, Messenger or Skype. With love, Jay  Although they were not painted together, I reckon this little 'Said in Stones' pebble trio and miniature artwork 'We Fall Only to Rise Again' are a match made in heaven! ✨   I love to see Said in Stones collection pebbles and cobbles hanging out with my artwork. Although at first glance the two may seem quite different, they compliment each other beautifully. As creatrix, I find the two disciplines equally compelling, each in its own unique way. The focus, containment and patience required to work with the stones and pebbles appears to be a very different energy than that which is involved in creating a huge, splashy, wild 100 x 150 cm abstract on canvas. And yet the two are not as far apart as they may seem - in fact, they are stablemates and siblings. An inherent part of both processes is the state of space and mindful-yet-open focus I enter when creating; the reflective looking and listening which is as vital to the creation of both types of work as the brush strokes or pen marks themselves. The spontaneous, playful-respectful nature of my working approach means that every canvas or pebble is a singular, unrepeatable moment in time, captured and offered lovingly as a gift to you or the special person you are gifting it onward to... Here's another example of the inherent compatibility of stones and paintings - 'Birds In Her Heart' alongside Said In Stones pendant SISP045J:  And here's another aesthetically pleasing pairing - 'Making Waves' alongside a few recently completed Said In Stones decorative pebbles:  If you're looking for a truly unique, one of a kind gift or investment purchase for yourself or a loved one, the stones and artwork shown in this post are available to collectors in my webshop at the time of writing. If they've already found their new homes by the time you read this, there are a number of other works to choose from and I add new ones as they are completed. All are created with love and the intention of spreading the message and resonance of healing through creativity.
I hope you've enjoyed this post. As an independent, self-financing creative, and a radically unschooling Mama, your support, kind-ness, and appreciation of my art are most welcome. Please feel free to comment below or share this post if you feel called to do so. As well as funding the daily necessities of life, proceeds from sales of my work facilitate the continued creation of my painting, writing and photography. On an energetic level, your support is confirmation that I am doing the work I was born to do, and inspires others to follow their own authentic life expression... With love, Jay x AUCTION NOW LIVE - BIDS VIA MESSAGE using my Contact form, please. 100% of the sale of 'All's Not Lost' will go directly to @orangutaninformationcentre, so please share this post with anyone you think might like to bid. 'All's Not Lost', inspired by Hope, is up for auction to raise funds for the team who are looking after her and many other orangutans rescued from persecution. Message me with your bid, please - I'm not placing this artwork on eBay as I want the full donation amount to go to Hope's care at @orangutaninformationcentre. I'll run the auction for 7 days, with updates as we go along on where the bidding stands. I'm donating both the artwork itself AND the cost of tracked and insured shipping. Hope's baby tragically died during her rescue from a palm oil plantation where they were being viciously persecuted. Hope is now in intensive care, her body riddled with 74 pellet shots, suffering from traumas including a broken shoulder and large, open wounds inflicted upon her by humans. As a mother myself, and as a cell in the body of humanity - a species that is capable of such kindness and yet is also causing so much destruction - this 'story' (much as I hate to call it that) is incredibly poignant. It really makes one feel deep despair at the cruelty in the world, alongside anguish that people are placed in a position where the greed of corporations drives them to carry out such dreadful acts. But truly, TRULY, all is NOT lost - as long as there are people upon this planet feeding back empathy, love, compassion and understanding, and willing to take right action in the defence of that which is life serving, Life Itself will perceive those acts and KNOW what to do to balance and rectify these situations. As long as there is breath in us, we must know that there is still hope. It makes for truly heartbreaking viewing, but if you want to follow Hope's story and ongoing efforts to save her, please visit https://www.instagram.com/orangutaninformationcentre. 100% of the sale of 'All's Not Lost' will go directly to The Orangutan Information Centre, so PLEASE alert anyone in the who you think might like to bid via your social media channels or any other methods at your disposal. Thank you <3 Jay #SaveOrangutans #SumatranOrangutans#OrangutanRehabilitation #oic #hope#charity #auction #orangutan#sumatranorangutan #orangutansumatera  I spent much of today working on a new painting titled 'All's Not Lost', which is inspired by the story of Hope the Orangutan. Rescued this week by the team at Orangutan Information Centre, Hope and her baby had been the subject of merciless persecution due to their presence in a palm oil plantation. Hope was badly injured, has been blinded in both eyes. Both she and her baby were traumatised and suffering from malnourishment.  Hope's baby tragically died during the rescue operation, and Hope herself is in intensive care, her body riddled with 74 pellets from air rifle shots and suffering from other traumas including a broken shoulder and large, open gashes. Hope and her sweet baby have been in my heart and on my mind ever since I saw OIC's first post about them. As a mother myself, and as a cell in the body of humanity - a species that is capable of such kindness and yet is also causing so much destruction - their 'story' (much as I hate to call it that) is incredibly poignant. It really makes one despair at the cruelty in the world and simultaneously feel anguish that people are placed in a position where the greed of developed nations and corporations drives them to carry out such dreadful acts... I'm not posting the most harrowing images of Hope or her baby in acknowledgement that many of us simply cannot bear to see such disturbing content. They are truly heartbreaking, and those images are burned indelibly in my mind. If you do want to find out more about Hope's story and follow the ongoing efforts to save her, please visit the OIC's Page on facebook or their Instagram. A 3 month-old baby named Brenda by the rescuers is also in intensive care having been confiscated in poor health. I do wonder whether these two beautiful souls will be able to help each other back to health... Once it is completed, I intend to auction this painting to raise funds for Hope and Brenda. All funds raised will go directly towards their care and rehabilitation.
💔 Please feel free to let me know in the comments below or via my online contact form if you would be interested in bidding on this piece, and please also alert anyone else you think might be interested either in bidding or in Hope's story. Watch this space for updates upon its completion and further details of how to bid. #SaveOrangutans #SumatranOrangutans #OrangutanRehabilitation #oic #hope #brenda#orangutan #sumatranorangutan #orangutansumatera  PRINT PRODUCTS now being added to jaytaylor.store!FLEXING THOSE ADULT 'UNSCHOOLING' MUSCLES!
I am doing SO MANY THINGS "all by myself" at the moment! One of these is building this new website, and the latest learning curve involved in that process is finding out how to integrate Printful's print-on-demand service into my online store. It's quite the challenge, for sure, but as you'll be able to see if you hit the 'Print Products' link above, I am getting there! All of this 'standing on my own two feet' is putting into practise many of the 'unschooling' principles I've been advocating for many years, but from the perspective of an Unschooling individual, rather than an unschooling facilitator-parent. LEARNER-DIRECTED, IN-CONTEXT EDUCATION Have you ever noticed how much easier it is to learn a new skill when it's something you're either passionate about or NEED to learn for real-life, practical purposes (in my case, in this instance, for example - getting my work out there where people can see it, and becoming financially independent). Learning IN CONTEXT is a powerful experience, and as an adult, it's one that can undo years of erroneous self-limiting beliefs. AUTONOMOUS LEARNING I know I am far from the only one who struggles with learning by rote, or without any meaning or purpose in the context of my life. I include actual curiosity and genuine interest in the category or 'meaning and purpose', by the way. A good example is that although they had zero practical application for me as a child, I was always fascinated by - and therefore good at absorbing information about - things like history, poetry and biology; whereas advanced mathematics, physics and the like had me plunging into brain-freeze and the accompanying cycle of external pressure/criticism and resulting chronic self-doubt associated with 'not being good at' those things. WHAT MOTIVATES US? WHY I CHOSE SANDY... Here's a little tip I've picked up over the years when teaching oneself new skills which are likely to be less-than intuitive and really quite challenging. Include self-motivating elements which lift one's spirits whilst pushing through the frustrating bits. I knew ahead of time that whilst learning how to create products and add them to my new webshop I was likely to encounter some tech-related frustrations. So I have chosen to work with an image which reminds me of some of the qualities that will serve me well as I dive into the project: in this case, courage, perseverance and determination. I chose the face of my beloved Sandy the Shih Tzu, who taught me so much about these qualities, and whose dear, sweet, funny little face is also just a huge boost each and every time I see it. I literally cannot look at him without smiling! What better way to encourage myself onwards as I 'learn the ropes' of Printful? Seeing Sandy appearing on the products I want to share with the world is truly inspiring as I move forward through all that 'user-error' stuff! WHAT MOTIVATES YOU...? I'd love to hear about what motivates YOU when you need that push to go the extra mile. Let me know in the comments below - and give me a shout if there are particular print products you'd like to see Sandy (or any of my other work) made available on... With love, Jay  "The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other's life." - Richard Bach, Illusions of a Reluctant Messiah. This photo of me and Sandy cuddling was taken in 2012, shortly before the fungating tumour that took his life began to develop on his back. Sandy and I were true family, although we were not even members of the same SPECIES, never mind 'blood family'. We both knew it from the instant we set eyes upon each other. And we lived that familial bond every minute, from that first moment of recognition to the moment he died peacefully in the sunshine, wrapped in my loving embrace. Our joy in each other's lives, our respect and love for each other, was one of the most real experiences either of us had ever had. The bond was unbreakable. We readily forgave each other everything and each of us accepted the other unconditionally, literally warts and all. The transformation in this little fellow from being truly loved, respected and enjoyed was astounding. We 'lit each other up' and I will carry that light in my heart until the day I die. Although there is undoubtedly a bond of blood, never allow it to blind you to the family you are related to in heart, soul and spirit, which truly is everybody and everything. And in the moments you meet CLOSE family again - when that unmistakable chemistry and recognition hits - open your heart to that with everything that you are. it's the most powerful experience any being can have - the sharing of a common bond, unbound by space, time, species or any other illusory boundary. Be open. Share yourself. Celebrate that connection. It is as pure and beautiful as it gets here on earth. With love, Jay #love #life #friendship #truth #widsom#richardbach #quote #quotes #meme#shihtzu #dogs #shih #tzu #bemoredog #family  "The woo-woo is scientific" - Bruce Lipton Synchronicity 1: The Raven's Gift Whilst I've been going through the mill lately, sweet Raven has had my back every step of the way. Totally unfazed by my 'emotional vomiting', 'oversharing' and occasional deep dives into the abyss, Raven has been sending me lovely things to keep my spirits up and get the message across that 'I am enough', 'Everything is OK' and so forth. One of those 'things' has been a steady little stream of #memes, #thoughts and #inspirational #art from various sources. The image you see here is one such candle in the dark - a piece of art with motivational text from The Latest Kate, whose work I was not previously familiar with... I went to her delightful feed on Instagram and was so impressed that I decided right away to #repost one of her artworks, something I am very judicious about - as creative in your own right, after all, your Insta followers came to see your content, not somebody else's content, am I right? As I scrolled through, watching for resonance, this piece jumped right out at me. You also can see what I wrote when reposting it on my Instagram below: 
'Your empathy and kindness are their own forms of magic' by The Latest Kate
@jaytaylorart #shoutout #repost from @thelatestkate, whose work was shared with me by the light of my life @raven_grymm. Kate's Instagram feed is full of beautiful and inspiring art and wisdom, much of which speaks to those who are facing inner and outer darkness and transmuting turning on the light as best we can. If you head on over there, I'd love to hear which of Kate's Creations speaks to you most right now. I am particularly feeling this one, for reasons that will be obvious to those of you who know me a little bit. It's not just about the image and words on Kate's artwork, though - I also love the quote she chose to accompany it: wise words indeed from Maya Angelou: “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” - Maya Angelou For me, this is a reminder that when you interact with other beings, no matter what their age, culture, language or species, they will FEEL you above all else...What feelings will you be remembered by? Are you aware of the feelings you are transmitting? What feelings are you going to remember them by? What's your interpretation? Let me know in the comments below 💖 Synchronicity 2: Spirit Animals As I mulled the reasons for my strong sense of connection to this particular post from Kate, which were multifaceted and abundantly obvious to me, I knew I wanted to reach out and share the photo below right after it, mostly to give some context to the people who started following me after it was originally posted a couple of years ago. Doing so also gave me a platform to express some of the strong feelings and insights that were flooding through me after sitting with Kate's beautiful imagery and the emotions it evoked. Here it is, with the words that accompanied it: 
'Mister Bird, Sunny and Jay', by Jay Taylor
Some context regarding my last post, for those of you who DON"T know me a little bit yet...Mister Bird and Sunny... Two of my best friends in the world and two of my greatest teachers. I must be part elephant, because leaving their graves - and those of Milo, Millie, Apricot, Dot and Robert - behind was a source of great pain when I had to leave our former home... But although their bones are lost to me, our love for each other most certainly is not. Although I cannot do so in my physical body, I visit them often whilst sitting in silence, reaching through space and time to sit beside their burial place or hang out with them in the sunshine. They will live in my heart and my memories until I join them in the earth...and until then, I will do my best to embody the qualities they taught me and the lessons we learned together... In a very real way, they are now my #spiritanimals, many of whom surround me with their loving guidance and companionship. Do you have a spirit animal? Can you feel your animal companions around you? I would love to hear your stories about them if you would like to share them here ❤ PS I wanted to post the raw, unedited version of this image but I cannot find it this morning. So the 'glamorous' version will have to do. No makeup but a ton of filters, haha 😗🐓😆 💔 💖 Synchronicity 3: Saint Cuthbert So the same day that I posted the two images and text above, I was reminded (by Raven again!) of how helpful it is to me to sing. We'd been talking about 'scream therapy' and I said that I can't do it - each to their own, but I just can't go out there and inflict my pain upon an unsuspecting natural population. I have tried, but no. Instead, I felt that I should sing - something that brings me great joy and healing. I really felt like singing 'Amazing Grace' all of a sudden! But the acoustics in our new little house are awful... SO I thought I'd combine a walk with a visit to the local church, where the acoustics were bound to be better. Off I pottered, in I went - and as I began singing, this is what I saw. Remind you of anything?! 😁 Obviously, this went straight up on my Instagram feed as soon as I got home! 
Saint Cuthbert with some of HIS animal companions
I don't know what the odds are on me happening upon this today whilst looking for somewhere with great acoustics in which to sing Amazing Grace (don't ask!), but I'm willing to bet that they are pretty darned low. I mean, seriously - following on from my last two posts?! Life is about as subtle as a sledgehammer between the eyes or a passionate kiss from a new lover's lips sometimes! Saint Cuthbert's Church with Saint Cuthbert himself, looking perfectly beatific and handsome as can be 😊 Stained glass Protector of animals and birds, silently gazing down at me with similar compassion as I sang my little non-religious heart out, in perfect synchronicity with the flow of my life these past several hours. Life - don't you love it?! What synchronicities have popped up in your life today? Let me know in the comments, if you'd like to share... Thank you for reading this far, if you have! And please feel free to answer any or all of the questions I asked on the original Insta posts, or share anything else that comes to mind. With love,
Jay x  Time and space are illusory.
All things are connected, inexorably, And yet absolutely discreet. Everything is fabulously bizarre And yet utterly mundane - Surreal and real simultaneously. Madness is genius. Hate is love. Birth is death. Below is above. Everything is EVERYTHING, As is nothing. Nothing is everything! Yes! And us? We are links in a never-ending chain, Rusting and beautiful, Rattling, Dangling, Binding, Bewitching. Holding ourselves caught, Yearning for release. A living work of Kintsukori, Broken, oh yes, but NEVER BOWED. I sing songs of wholeness, defiant, out loud. I reassemble this vessel once more With the unrefined gold of authentic expression And pure, relentless wonder. The universe watches And all that remains Are the choices we make, The actions we take And the love that we give And receive. Jay Taylor, 11th February 2019 #poetry #photography #life #death #birth#rebirth  Another day of stripping wallpaper...Two more job rejections... (is it possible that life is trying to tell me something?)...But in the midst of the chaos that is my existence at present, here's another #doodle for Life! In the absence of a place in which I can paint anything other than walls, stairs and floors in my new home, I am doodling every day. You can take the #art supplies and studio space away from this #artist, but never, ever the #creative urge. As long as I have a pen and paper, I can and will still be arting - I literally can't resist, especially during phone calls or listening to music, inspirational videos or audiobooks. Is anyone else out there a serial doodler? I'm sure I can't be alone in this. I'd love to see some of your 'telephone call art'...! 😘
#doodling #pen #ink #drawing #creative  As you can probably tell from the backdrop to this photo, my life is currently all a bit upside down and topsy turvy! I recently moved from my 15-acre sanctuary in the Peak District National Park to a 'normal' council house with a little garden, which is presently a total dump. I am still finding my feet (and living on plastic decorators' sheeting!), spending unanticipated time - and money! - working to get the place shipshape. Making it habitable is certainly developing and flexing my DIY muscles. Amongst many other projects needed to create an enjoyable space to live and work in, THAT RED WALLPAPER HAS TO GO!!!!!!! As yet, I've nowhere to paint paint, so instead I am doodling daily, when not building this website, networking, searching for jobs or stripping walls and floors.
As you can see, I have already made friends with the neighbours, some of whom have been so welcoming that they seem to think my home is also theirs! "Cats without Borders", I call them! This is sweet little Miss Molly, who is endlessly fascinated by the boxes and the climbing surfaces they provide. She also likes to sprinkle newly painted areas with cat hair, tread my bedding, and meow outside my window at 3a.m. in a quite persuasive effort to induct me into her informal 'cat sharing' scheme. The last couple of mornings, she's actually figured out how to force her way in through the slightly-open window - she has developed a special knack for busting it further open with her head! So clever! Timid, flighty, super-standoffish Rufus she ain't, haha! |
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