44. SoulCollage

This Saturday, the mother of the children I babysit, in the middle of explaining bedtime rituals and whatnot, turned to me and asked me if I would be interested in doing something deeply emotional and moving. Surprised, I answered in the affirmative, though I had brought a book to entertain me once the kids went to bed.

On the dining room table were stacks of magazines, scissors, a glue stick, and a five by eight inch card and frame. “This,” she explained, “is for a technique called SoulCollage.”

Developed by Seena Frost, SoulCollage, as the name suggests, is a collage that one makes to explore their “inner wisdom”. To make one, you simply rifle through a magazine, identifying images that catch your eye, and paste them on a background, also selected from a magazine. The video below by the creator gives more details:

 

As suggested, I tried to do it without searching or intent of finding certain images. I just let myself look through the magazines, cut out the things that caught my attention, and embedded them in my background. Here’s how it came out:

After creating the SoulCollage, the introspective part of the process is trying to understand what it tells you. Or rather, what you tell yourself, using your collage as your medium of expression. The set of questions is available online at http://soulcollage.com/. I intentionally refrained from including them here, as knowing the questions in advance may influence how you approach the collage. The aim is to be as organic as possible in the creative process, and I don’t want to hinder that in case any of you decide to try it. For more information, visit the SoulCollage website, above. Let me know how your own SoulCollages end up!

Firsts This Week:

• Last day of high school, aka “Senior Boot”
• SoulCollage

 

43. The Beginning of the End

My Old Pointe Shoes

This week marks the beginning of the end. Tomorrow is my last day of high school, I had my last dance performance this weekend, and I have only nine posts after this one till the “Something New 52” project ends. Things are generally coming to a close. This time in my life is the culmination of weeks, months, and years of work.

Dance

As one of my friends mentioned just before our final show, “for the past few years, dance has been the one consistent thing in my life.” And it’s true. Friends come and go, interests change, clothing and trends change, but dance has been consistent throughout my life. Pink tights and ballet slippers, black leotard, hair in a bun. As a three-year old I went to creative movement classes, and distinctly remember my father waiting for a hug at the end of class. In first grade, I started with basic tendus, plies, and center work. Ballet was my first love, and in fifth grade I began to do jazz so I could dance more, though I was devastated that I had to quit soccer because of it. But the dancing was well worth it. Two years later, I added pointe shoes to my standard outfit.

This weekend I opened up my closet and found my two pointe shoe bags, stuffed to the point of near-explosion. Opening the drawstring, I let my pointe shoes fall to the ground. Including the new pair I got for this week’s show, I have twelve pairs. Looking at the shoes sprawled on the floor, I delighted in the fact that my feet used to fit into size 3 shoes (about 5.5 in street shoes). Since then I’ve cut, burned, and stitched my ribbons in all manners; jet glued and shellacked my shoes; and switched from one brand to another. I found what works and what doesn’t, and despite my callused and blistered feet, I’m comfortable. I’ve toiled, sweated, and even fallen, and it’s bittersweet that despite my denial, the end is here. I won’t dance with this group of people again, and I’ll miss all of my friends terribly. But I know that as long as my body keeps working, I’ll keep dancing.

High School

Today was the penultimate day of school, and even though I’m on the final page of the final chapter, I don’t feel a sense of closure. I’m in the process of returning my textbooks, finishing my projects, and taking my last assessments. Everything is still running in full gear, so it doesn’t feel like an ending. The younger grades still have a few weeks of classes, which adds to the feeling that things are still in full swing. I’m not ready for goodbyes yet, but at the same time, I’m so ready to go. I’ve done what I’ve intended, accomplished what I needed and more, and realized the need to extend my horizons beyond the limits of my hometown, my current interests, and my current social circle.

This is just the beginning of the end. In the coming few weeks, there will be more winding-down activities– most notably, graduation– and more bittersweet tears and goodbyes. And of course, more reminders that the best is yet to come.

Firsts This Week:

• The realization that some firsts come in the form of lasts
• My last dance show, including senior goodbyes
• Last full week of school

42. Goodbye, College Board

I am officially done with standardized testing.

Thank goodness. Goodbye, adieu, so long, farewell. I will miss you not, SAT and AP exams.

I am done spending hours on AP practice problems.

I am done sitting in a windowless lecture hall, watching the ticking of the clock, with test booklets teetering precariously on the tiny collapsible desk.

I am done smelling the nerve-inducing woodiness of perfectly sharpened number two pencils.

I am done bubbling in circles corresponding to my name, address, AP number, school code, and serial number.

I am done carting around spare AAA batteries in case my calculator malfunctions.

I am done peeling number labels and stickers to stick on and around my test booklet.

I am done scratching answers in the margins of my test booklet, hoping I’ve used the correct equation.

I am done wishing I were somewhere else during long exams.

I am done with the College Board.

 

41. How To Sneak Vegetables Into Your Diet (Like A Ninja)

If you’re bored with the whole salad routine to get your daily servings of vegetables, a fun alternative is to sneak your veggies into a smoothie. Two benefits of this are:

1. You don’t taste the vegetables, but you still to feel virtuous for eating healthy foods.

2. Smoothies are yummy.

A win-win situation.

This week my mom has been experimenting with various combinations of fruits, vegetables, and other ingredients, and I’ve been the guinea pig. The most interesting combination I tried was this:

• Frozen berries and/or frozen mango
• Fresh strawberries
• 1 juicing orange, peeled
• Ground  flaxseed
• Non-dairy milk (soy milk, almond milk, coconut milk, or your preference)
• A few handfuls of spinach
• Unsweetened cocoa powder

Instructions: Place ingredients in blender. Blend until smooth.

Fruit, chocolate, and spinach? Yes. It sounds like a weird combination, but it tastes good in that I’m-being-healthy-and-vegan-while-eating-chocolate sort of way. The fruit and chocolate overpower the spinach, so you can’t taste it, but it adds a certain creaminess to the smoothie. It took a few tries to get the right balance of ingredients, so don’t be discouraged if you have to add a little more of this-and-that while you make your smoothie. Since the fruit is naturally sweet, I didn’t feel a need to add any sweetener, but those with  a sweet tooth may choose to add a few drops of agave nectar.

And if this still doesn’t appeal to you, the old winning combination of carrots and oranges (and if you want, strawberries and bananas) is quick, easy, and good for your vision. After all, have you ever seen a rabbit with eyeglasses?

 

Disclaimer: The above post is based on my experiences only. I am not a medical professional. I do not guarantee any actual health benefits. As always, consult your doctor when making any dietary changes.

Firsts This Week:

• Spinach and chocolate smoothie experimentation
• Registered for college orientation!
• Saw my brother perform in the musical “Urinetown”