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Start with the heart

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Over the years, I have grown very curious about archetypal stories and myths that run deep through a culture. By myths, I mean stories like Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey and Virgil’s Aeneid which are some of the ones that I was introduced to in school. There is something about how these stories are passed on through verbal and written storytelling - like a line or thread or connection we share with humanity through time. And I’m amazed at their ability to render lasting imagery and feelings that remain in our consciousness long after experiencing them. This powerful kind of storytelling is one of the reasons I am so drawn to try to express my own experience in art. I think ultimately, art is really about creating connection through deep understanding.

So the peony drawing (really all the drawings in this deck) was inspired by trying to uncover the shared understanding - something beyond time - that we have with the plants and flowers we encounter in life. In this case, I was thinking about how the peony’s name is connected to the ancient Greek mythological healer Paeon, known as a “healer and doctor to the gods”. Paeon appears in Book 5 of the Iliad and “heals” Ares, the god of war who is injured by Diomedes in a fierce battle.

What sort of blows my mind in this story is that Ares is a god - not a mortal human. So what does it mean for someone with immortality to be injured and to need healing? It all feels very BIG to me - a big version of wounding and healing, beyond the physical wounds we are accustomed to seek help for as humans. And Paeon, who in one story I’ve seen, uses the roots of a plant (perhaps the peony?) to cure the wound. The story seems to suggest that even the things that we perceive as immortal or everlasting can die without proper care.

So the peony for me has sort of come to represent ‘healing’ in any and all the dimensions that it is needed. The multitude of petals, overflowing in all directions is a reminder of the complexity and interconnectedness of the wounds and healing and beauty that is possible in our lives - even the kind of healing that happens beyond our physical experience and understanding of the world.

 
 
TAKE A PAUSE AND LISTEN

From THE GARDEN of HEALING Album. Music and video by Ariel Loh - Window Seat.

 
 
TAKE A DEEP DIVE INTO THE THEME
 
 

EPISODE 05 - SEASON 1

Heartbreak is real. In this episode, we hear from frontline healthcare workers, learn about the Japanese broken pottery practice of Kintsugi, and stories which show that healing is a process, not a destination. Neuroscience research shows a strong link between our minds and hearts. When we focus on the heart, we create greater coherence. Coherence transforms you and the world around you. In music and in nature, we find that coherence or wholeness creates resonance. Resonance is how healing our hearts begins to heal the world. 

 

 

EPISODE 03 - SEASON 2

Every moment matters. Teacher and blogger Livia Chan learned early in life that you don’t know when it will be the last time you get to say goodbye to the ones you love. In her 20s, Livia lost her best friend and grandmother. Since then, Livia has made it a point to make sure to count her blessings by making every moment count. She calls these everyday moments Atomic Interactions.

Valuing these small moments is a practice of healing or feeling into our wholeness.

 

 

EPISODE 67 - SEASON 3

Have you ever experienced a moment so quietly powerful that it demanded your full presence? This episode, with facilitators Angela Oh and Alex Dorsey, captures just that, as we recount an unforgettable evening at the Japanese American National Museum and the Democracy Center.

Our guests and us share anecdotes that resonate with hope, forgiveness, and the relentless pursuit of self-compassion. By peeling back the layers of our own emotional landscapes, we reveal how embracing vulnerability can lead to a more profound understanding of our intertwined lives and the healing we all seek.

 
 
 
 
 


Healing is one of the 39 Gratitude Blooming themes that we explore to help our community keep gratitude front of mind.

Explore all themes

 
 
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