the dreaming Press.

Seaglass, picnics & whales: Three reasons to take a road trip to Boston

stoke the fires of your *atlas* heart

A couple, {heck a few!} urgent things. I'll get to them most hurriedly, so you don't waste a single precious moment that you could be using to sign on for grand explorations and juicy adventures {that you so deserve}.

First, my friend Debbie wants to extend an invitation for you to go to INDIA.

Second,my beautiful blogging friend Lisa has a deadline to meet, so that she can go to MEXICO.

Third, my friend Tara is hostessing the best life-changing trip {trust me, I've done it}, to JORDAN.

Last,but certainly not least, I am taking a group of women through the Women's Travel Network to MOROCCO.

So, now with all of these updates your way...it's all up to you. Maybe it's time to pay it forward and give a little to see another realize the work of her dreams...or maybe it's that time to pack a suitcase with your camera, your journal and a couple of pairs of undies, sunscreen...and hit the road to realize your own sweeping and vast dreams.

I've prioritized the list according to time deadlines. Lisa will need your help within the next ten days. Debbie has room for you up until tomorrow only.

The other two are very important, but can be discussed in another upcoming post real soon. If I were you I'd head over to see the INDIA and MEXICO links first. Thanks friends, fellow adventurers and loving hearts. You are all cherished, deeply, each of you. xo

p.s. photo of the lovely blue doorway taken from a bumbling yet speeding van in the Middle East while driving along sharing cups of hot nuts and listening to this or something like it...in March 2010

Planting future gratitudes.

 
I'm colouring my hair blonder tonight and I painted my nails blue iguana.  A star studded indigo blue that is reminiscent of cosmic fluidity.   I've asked my eldest little girl to star in  my photography portfolio-she is concerned for just about everyone she has ever met and is so open and wise and I aspire to be like her though she is younger-you know? and we are cooking up the most fabulously fun photo shoots you could dream up this spring!  I'll keep you posted as to that, you can bet.

The lake is rumoured to be coolishly freezingish tomorrow and so we'll dress in layers as we feed our friends the chickadees.  A fresh group of gals is meeting tomorrow and we've formed a tribe of sorts that meets on Sundays to reconnect to each other and the Earth.  We disconnect from our on-line lives and meet in the flesh and in the out-of-doors.  What could be better for the spirit I ask you?

Last but certainly not least, you know how I rave on about my friends & family well here I go again...my good friend Tara Bradford was kind enough to post about the trip to Morocco in October.  Magical Morocco.  Please visit Tara to read her entry about the previous trips we've taken together and about the upcoming trip to Morocco.  You are more than welcome to come with us... there are a few spots left for women travellers. The trip is fully escorted and will be such fun I can hardly wait. 

Give it some thought and if you like you can read more here. I can see us now, wandering the souks...sipping mint tea and snapping photos.  Laughing under the stars in the desert and making new friends.  Trips are the one thing you can keep with you forever...for they are experiences.  Worth their weight in gold and then some.  However if you cannot make it this time, there will always and will always be...future trips. 

Plant with me now the seeds of your future gratitudes...the things that you will look back upon and smile about.

xoxo

 

 

 

A photographic safari. Then and now. {Join me}

 

There is a wanting within me to surround myself with likeminded individuals.  By that I mean (and not toot my own horn but...) kind*, lighthearted, fun and well downright crazy individuals.  Lately it has bubbled up to the surface of my psyche-wanting my attention like a two year old tugging at apron strings. I'm trying in earnest to justify the tugs.  Let's make this happen.

Just slightly over one year ago the most perfect group of people met for an adventure in a van that drove to and fro about the Middle East from the mountains of the north to the seas of the south.  Everywhere in between was frought with laughter, inside jokes, comaraderie, and well, basically....the good rapport of true friendship.

Trips can do that for a group.

Want to experience it for yourself? Let's head to Morocco and laugh ourselves senseless. Morocco, this October.  With me!

Shopping, good food, photography and FUN.  Did I tell you FUN is my middle name?

No actually it isn't but it should be.

xo

*"Kind" is emboldened (new word alert! LOL ) {apparently the word already exists}because well...kindness matters a hell of a lot so if you aren't a kind person with an open mind for travelling into the unknown with grace, decorum and a willingness to see with new eyes then this maybe this trip isn't for you.

Magical Morocco~travel with me! Discover an ancient mystical land this October~

 
Mosque in Fes,

Photo used with permission. Courtesy of Adolf Boluda on flickr 

Once in a while it really hits people that they don’t have to experience the world in the way they have been told to. ~Alan Keightley

Without new experiences, something inside of us sleeps. The sleeper must awaken. ~Frank Herbert

The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes. ~Marcel Proust

***

Dear Fellow Travellers,

I mean you.  Yes-YOU!

What are you doing this October 29th to November 6th?

Want to go for a magic carpet ride?

I'm inviting you, fellow experiencer-(who loves to wander the world, and see it with new eyes) to discover a most beautiful land with me.  I'm speaking of Morocco, that North African country that boasts the highest peak-Jebel Toubkal-and the imperial cities of Marrakesh and Fes, and more. 

Would it interest you to see this ancient mystical place with 'like-minded' women- women like YOU who enjoy the beauty of language, culture, architecture, food &  history?

Now I clearly remember being a small girl, and being fascinated by the world of magic carpets, camels, and desert.  I knew in my heart I would want to travel there one day, though my 'little girl heart' didn't know how or when I'd do such a thing.  So you could say that travelling to Morocco has actually been a childhood dream of mine! Now I still possess the childlike heart of my youth-it is full of wonder, awe and joy for all new places on the map. (I've got a pin waiting patiently to be stuck in a map here.)

Imagine us there for a moment...camped one night under the twinkly stars in the desert amidst the world's biggest sand dunes.  There will be nights with belly dancers to entertain us as we sip our mint tea, delicious Moroccan food that we will learn how to prepare ourselves, and we'll photograph/journal the spice markets & souks & kasbahs!! (Shopping is permitted too, of course. For those who enjoy that sort of thing!)

We'll stay in luxury hotels in Fes, Rabat, Marrakech, Casablanca and Ouarzazate.  In Ouarzazate we'll stay at Le Berbere Palace. In Casablanca, we'll stay at Golden Tulip Farah. There is so much to see-so much to experience.  I really want you to join me on this trip! There are unwritten chapters of our lives left to write; new pages to turn, new sensory journeys to take.  Why not write the next chapter of your story with me & we'll walk (and photograph) the road together.  Or perhaps we'll go by camel.  The choice is yours.

Debbie Ross of the Women's Travel Network has hired me (and I'm most honoured) to be a Tour Leader for her well established Women's Travel Network.  First order of business; is to ensure a lovely and inspired group of women enjoy their time in Morocco. 

Magical Morocco!   

{Click to sign up for this travel experience of a lifetime.}

This journey is for those who desire seeing new places, who love to learn & grow as a person, and love the company of others who seek the same.  If that appeals to you-and you like travelling to new and wondrous places seeking out new life experiences...this is the unique trip you need to take this year.

I will be featuring Morocco in a few upcoming posts both here and over at Gypsy Girl's Guide, to whet our appetite for the trip-and to feed the imaginations of those who've already signed up. (Don't worry, there are a few spaces left!) Perhaps you are a painter, a sculptor, a poet or a photographer-or maybe you just like to live life to the fullest and squeeze out all it's empirical goodness...it is my hope to give you food for thought and fuel for your art or your journey. I hope you will join me for this trip to Magical Morocco!

Yours,

Gillian

xo 

reach for new heights~

 

 Christine Mason Miller's bejewelled wrist & graceful hand. Photo taken earlier this year in Petra, as part of Tara Bradford's Journey To Jordan photography trip.

These last couple of days my heart strings have been tugged on quite a bit.  I've welled up.  I've teared up.  I've sniffled a few times.  A few people have really cracked me open.  Wide open. I wish to thank them for that. They make me long to reach for new heights, stretch myself further, go the distance with my life. Read and see if you agree with me, I'm sure you will.

First, Relyn.  Relyn blogs at Come Sit By My Fire.  She posted a list of prudent advice for her daughter Sloane.  Go read it, you'll want to print it out and share it with your daughters, your sons, and your best friends.  Relyn has a warm heart and always blogs her personal truths.  She has been one of my biggest inspirations.

Second, a woman I don't even know.  At all.  But my mother knew her.  My friend Maithri knew her.  Here is her blog.  She recently passed on but left such a glowing legacy I had to share her with you.  She will gobsmack you with how richly she lived her life.  Go read, go cry.  Go be envious like I was.  Leave her space wanting to reach a little higher.  Thank you Tessa, for your inspirations.  I know your words will continue to ignite a living passion in others like wildfire.

Thirdly, and I say this with a lump in my throat.  Life is fleeting.  Life is beautiful.  Cherish those you love and hold them dear.  For it is but a blink in the twinkly night sky.  Blessed are we who have known the love of a most wonderful mother.  If you still have yours close, make sure you tell her how much she means to you today.

Okay, had to get that out there.  Life isn't always bowls of cherries ya know! If anyone has extra, or is feeling inspired to help, please check out my friend Maithri's organization to see where you fit in.  Who knows, I may bump into you in Swaziland one of these days.  Tessa donated proceeds from her art to PDI, it was a cause that touched her heart.

xoxo

Gillian

p.s. i love you :)

who needs a guru~?

 
I do! But since I don't have one, I'll settle for this journal I ordered online. I love doing any kind of "soul" work.  It is gratifying beyond words.  I'm delving in to my core beliefs, and other juicy soul stuff! I can't wait to go home and journal for today.

It has clouded over today.  But nothing will bring me down {yay! Chilean miners!}...I'm cleaning out my studio space tonight. {My basement, lol} There are such fun things lurking down there; paints, ribbons, buttons, glue guns, sparkles, stamps, inks, papers, fabrics! I just may stay down there for awhile. :)

The lovely photo above taken by Christine Mason Miller, while we were on a photo safari last March in Jordan.  She's a fabulous chick with lots of elephants to sell for a great cause, go see. :)

xo

Tea? Why, yes please....

If I invited you in for tea, would you accept?

Would you offer my child a sweet?  Ask him his name?

Would it matter to you that my second floor was absent? Waiting patiently for the second generation to build and move their family in, according to tradition....?

  
Will your children understand the level of patience and calm that our children afford them- in the face of no video games or television to distract them....?

When you stop to breathe in our landscape, will you allow us our space? That in which we have not built up in the name of commerce or gain?  We have precious things to offer the world that don't involve competing with larger cities or countries....!  We hold our own, thank you.

Would you join us for herbal tea?  Perchance in places where famous people were taking steps in their own journeys?  Tea with mint never tasted so nice!  Oh and beautiful Israel is just 15 feet away.  However, do not veer off the provided path, for land mines are located any which way, and cameras are trained on your every step-so going off the path could mean any number of troubles for you!  We are in a military zone, you see. (It is for your own protection, dear friends.)

My goodness the river is cold.  COLD.  See page 157 of the April 2010 National Geographic to see just exactly where a certain group of travellers stood, not three weeks ago.

If you feel enough at home then please accept our hospitality.  We'll be insulted if you do not. 

So-one lump or two? It would seem that in Jordan, sugar in your tea is the norm.  It is expected.  So if this sounds like your kind of place, do visit and stay for tea.  You won't regret a single moment of it.  xo

As usual click to enlarge the photos.  However, the shot of the little girl at Petra was out of focus, but she was so cute I couldn't stand not posting her, so forgive the photographers blunder. :)

Mezze at Lebanese House

Welcome!...of course I have to take you out for lunch..won`t you join me....

Call whoever you need to now, before we start...you won't be getting up from the table until it's time to roll you out... 

I do hope you are hungry.  We are having a typical Middle Eastern meal called a 'mezze' or 'mezzeh'. 

Among the fresh olives, lemon mint drinks & grilled meats, we have hummus, tabouleh & roquette salad...

Of course there are plenty of fresh baked flat breads and things I can't pronounce or remember the names of.

 
 
Oh and just outside is a spectacular view...terraced farming is practiced by the Jordanians due to the many hills and mountains that make up the geography.

Just outside is a bevy of blooms...Jordan seems bursting at the seams with life and we were there to catch it all.

 

Should you happen to look up, you'll notice as I do the many lamps and lanterns the beautify Lebanese House. 

So sorry to distract you from your delicious mezze.  Please, enjoy some more food why don't you...there is plenty...

If you are a tried and true North American and simply can`t get through a meal without it, well....here is your Arabian ketchup.

  

When in Jerash, Jordan visit Lebanese House for the most delicious meal with a stunning view. Perhaps if you are lucky enough to join Ms.Tara Bradford on her next `Journey to Jordan` then you too will eat lunch at this famous restaurant.

Jordan, Jerash
Tel Fax: 00962-2-6351301

 

 

dream sharing & evolutions of the soul

An e-mail conversation today shed some light on the evolution of my soul.  For that I am entirely grateful. You know how when something happens to you in life that you feel is unfair, then later on after the lesson is learned you are clear about the reasons why? Then you can't doubt that it was for the best? I had a moment like that today.  I was explaining a situation to someone and a lightbulb clicked.  I whispered a tiny prayer and shushed it out to the great wide Open.  {I almost burst with glee.} I am healing a deep wound.  It feels great.  We are all in charge of these things.  Repeated mistakes are by grand design-instead of playing victim, turn it around to your advantage.  {Have I told you I'm a warrior? I fight the good fight.}

My daughter had her own soul evolution today.  We worked through it, but she is hurting.  Only time will help her.  After our chat we watched the Olympic women's hockey.  (I explained to her that the USA team were crying because they wanted the gold medal, not the silver.  She thinks they will come to love the silver in time, and she is right.  She states: "Getting to the Olympics period is an achievement! They should be proud!" What a kid.)

Ah Petra.  I'm on my way. I relish seeing my good friend Tara again.  That globe trotting, head-squarely-on-her-shoulders good friend of mine.  I am fortunate & count my blessings to be able to see her in such a culture rich & beautiful setting.  I'll check my CMB¹ tomorrow for Susanna's *winged messengers*.  I only check my mail once every week or so, it is the height of laziness I assure you.  Tomorrow being the last mail day before I go, I'm hoping they will fly right out of the CMB to greet me with open wings! Pictured above are the wings Susanna sent me before.  I just love how they photograph.  If you follow me on FB², then you will have to check in and see any photos I post for you.  Wishing you well on your own soul journeys, both spiritual & physical.  Navigating this stuff can be challenging.  I know we can do it. {With each others help of course.  For how else can great things be achieved?}

xoxo

¹ community mail box

² Facebook

Is suffering really necessary? Yes and no.

If you had not suffered as you have, there would be no depth to you as a human being, no humility, no compassion. You would not be reading this now. Suffering cracks open the shell of ego, and then comes a point where it has served his purpose.

Suffering is necessary until you realize it is unnecessary.
*Eckhart Tolle*