Venetia Nevill – Multi-sensory and experiential art work

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“The breezes at dawn have secrets to tell you Do

“The breezes at dawn have secrets to tell you
Don't go back to sleep!
You must ask for what you really want.
Don't go back to sleep!” Rumi I was reminded on a silent retreat in beautiful Devon, that the trees and the precious earth always receive us unconditionally, exactly as we are. Committing to silence and going within, seems to send a signal that we are available for everything that arises, however uncomfortable that may be. The powerful partial eclipsed Taurus full moon certainly brought some strong patterns and emotions to the surface, and I didn’t get the sleep I craved, but the extraordinary ancient land at Sharpham House held it all. Poplar and Aspens’s wisdom is that any sense of helplessness cannot last forever, to hold fast and look to these resilient trees for endurance, grounding and spiritual strength. But also to ask for what we need - one of the biggest lessons on the retreat was to have the humility to keep asking for what I needed even when the pathway seemed utterly blocked . The whispering trees guide us to listen to nature and go to the trees for sustenance, to surrender to the eternal cycles, and relax back into the intimacy of this present moment. Life is always offering ways to slow down and receive it more fully. I was guided to a magical pathway down to the River Dart and the luxury of sitting under a breathtaking poplar for many hours. Wordless conversations are often the sweetest - listening to the poplar leaves gently fall and honoring the mercurial wind spirit that hastens their surrender. Tenderly holding the heart shaped golden leaves, feeling touched by their fragility and softness. When I eventually opened my eyes I was surrounded by a breathtaking radiance and felt a pool of gold open up behind my heart. The heart knows the way! We all have a deep yearning to know and be known but the question I was drawn to ask was not how can I know you more, it was how can I love you more deeply? #poplar #ogham #silentretreat #listen #heart #gold #healing
#purification #fiercegrace #windspirit #sacred #unconditionallove #allisthebeloved

The rainbow and the mistletoe led the way to the 1

The rainbow and the mistletoe led the way to the 19th ogham tree, the poplar/aspen. Known as the whispering tree its entrancing rustling golden leaves feel like a beacon. I took some Heather, vine and pinecones as an offering and quietly asked for support and knowledge of its wisdom this lunar month. When I read Glennie kindreds inspiring writing about the Aspen I cried because it was so beautiful . I knew that it was associated with adversity and challenges but it’s gift is to remind us that love is always supporting us in so many ways! Then we can allow the programs of fear and worry to settle and trust that we can access innerreserves. There is an old survival pattern in me of reacting like the white queen! As a child I remember holding my breath and feeling the pain before the sticking plaster or punishment. The Poplar offers protection and spiritual strength as we move through difficulties and grow. ‘There’s nothing to fear but fear itself’. Blackbirds guard the path to the Poplar and the crows and ravens are attracted to her majestic heights. The glittering leaves seem even more precious because there are so few left. They tantalisingly whisper their last messages before letting go to sleep in the Earth. The space and silence in between the rustling becomes more palpable and the invitation is to rest under its magnificent trunk and just be. Whatever you are going through, know that you are not alone. Dr. Bach, says Aspen/ poplar helps us to understand that "the power of love stands behind and overcomes all things." I am off on a silent retreat tomorrow so I’ll take a few poplar leaves to encourage me to keep deeply listening to that still small voice and open my heart when life feels tough. #poplar #aspen #ogham #silence #fearlessness #courageoftheheart #ritual #retreat #lettinggo #innervoice #windspirit #source

We are Heather and Mistletoe We offer you protect

We are Heather and Mistletoe
We offer you protection and cleansing
See us in the sacred stillness of all things
In your tears and the rain,
The breath of life in the wind
And the creative spark of fire in your heart
Rest your wearyness in the steady soft heart of the earth
let joy and death hold your hands Samhain seemed especially poignant this year. Heather Is associated with the realm of the fairies, death, magic and memories of loved ones. I am sensing a more visceral connection to ancestral energies- especially feeling their aliveness in the elements. Heather loves water so I took some with the healing, angel mistletoe to the iron spring. I created a Samhain mandala on a dream cloth, (unfolded on the Aries full moon to collect dreams, and cleanse and release where the flow of energy between spirit and matter was stuck). At its centre is a glass bowl I moulded on a Willow tree . Willow offers pain relief but calls us to experience the emotions fully first. The blue is created from healing copper powder. Like Heather it can bring balance, removing negative energy for us to receive spiritual support. . The strange thing about the Heather flowers is they look dead right now, but when I get up close and pick some they shape shift into a beautiful alive pinkness. I have been taken to some dark places this month, getting in touch with my own underworld. Heather is short lived but if it is burnt to the ground annually it will regrow with new vitality. Its promise of regeneration is inspiring! Heather and mistletoe are so generous reminding us to celebrate and share our creativity and joy. I feel blessed to have enjoyed their gifts and interactions with other trees, and magical little beings this lunar month! #heather #mistletoe #samhain #scorpionewmoon #balance #truth #generosity #joy #mandala #sacred #healing #ancestors #presence

According to many traditions mistletoe shares the

According to many traditions mistletoe shares the 17th ogham month with heather. Both represent a precious link between the earthly and spirit world. Heather connects to water, with Venus wrapping her gorgeous arms around her. While mistletoe is aligned with air; the dawn, the spirit guides, the sacred breath, and expansive Jupiter. I took a little bunch to the sea to release, and cleanse the tensions and frustrations thrown up by the intense fiery full moon in Aries. Swimming in the cold sea offered a wonderful awakening reset putting me back in life’s flow. We are now in Scorpio season, guiding us to allow transformation and accepting endings - trusting the eternal cycles. I can feel a strong sense of loss and desire to connect with the deeper mysteries as we approach Samhain. Mistletoe never touches the ground so it provides a 'home' for souls during the winter. As an evergreen it was sacred to the Druid’s promising rebirth. A very dear friend of mine is in the last stages of cancer no longer able to talk but she can just see and hear. I can only create mandalas for her and send her daughter healing images and voice messages. Painting with the mistletoe berries and the wing like leaves, which symbolise immortality, feels right. Commonly known as all-heal, the toxic berries are being used for cancer treatments. Energetically it will ward off any dark spirits and bring protection and sweet dreams. We are all having to find new ways in these times to communicate energetically when we are heartbreakingly unable to get physically close to loved ones who are suffering or dying. Mistletoe is a wonderful reminder of the eternal gentleness of angels looking down on all of us. #mistletoe #ogham #sacred #allheal #angels #interconnection #immortality #allisthebeloved #transformation #loss #lettinggo #cyclesoflife #inspiration #healingnature

I am the one that shines I am always with you a

I am the one that shines
I am always with you
a beacon of hope in the dark
A healer of hopeless cases
let my prickly thorns protect you while Your Spirit is gently
renewed in my tender embrace
Suspend your disbelief
Open your sweet eyes
Can you look from love not fear
See the miracles and beauty
Then shine your glorious light
My precious one Saying a fond goodbye to the Gorse, there were just enough emerging golden flowers to make an essence to gift the Heather (Urh) the 18th ogham ‘tree’. My eye was still swollen from the wasp sting and a wise friend suggested that wasps wisdom is that we don’t always see what’s in front of us. Apparently there is a name for these mental blind spots - Schotomas. Limiting beliefs alter our perceptions - an open mind allows for an open heart. Scottish warriors often wore Heather into battle for good luck. I released a deep well of anger and frustration this week (Did anyone else feel that strong Mars energy). Painting it out always helps and cocreating with the Heather softened its charge, wrapping the judgement and resistance in the tender arms of radical compassion. Heather offers a portal between worlds, connecting to spiritual dimensions, and the ancestors can help unravel clogged neural and negative mental pathways. Heather represents death, the eternal cycle of life but it also brings good luck. It is about how we relate to ourselves, coming into partnership with others and sacred earth - tapping into the natural creative intelligence. I placed the gorse medicine bundles in the little Heather mandala. The ‘kuyas’ are sacred stones traditionally received through rites, and passages of healing. The ritual of blowing on them animates their spirit - mine contained a breath of hope for all those suffering. I can respect and honour the traditions of other cultures while tapping into their innate wisdom and starting a conversation with these beautiful ancient stones. Jupiter goes direct today - looking forward to joyful adventures with the Heather. #heather #ogham #healing #portal #breathofhope #kuyas #sacred #natureheals #blessing #medicine #openheart #votives #spiritualwarrior #chosepeace

“the gorse is rime-laden and beautiful, with the

“the gorse is rime-laden and beautiful, with the fretted webs of spiders, like the framework of rose-windows in the shining walls of some fairy palace." Thomas Hardy I wanted to say thank you to all the precious beings (seen and unseen) who find shelter in the prickly protection of the gorse. Finding a dear dead crow nearby I created some medicine bundles with the little feathers. The crow can deepen our connection with the mysteries and remind us that magic is everywhere. I gathered some sacred stones (Kuyas) connected to the Rishi ancestors, that I collected at Hastings, imbued with the breath of hope and thankfulness. And tenderly wrapped them with the feathers and clay from the ash spring, sealing them with a kiss of gorse thorns. The ‘mesas’ (medicine bundles) are a way of connecting to the ancestors through ritual, healing and ceremony. Apparently they ground us and heighten awareness to other realms and to the rhythms and cycles of our own true essence. Gorse is connected to the faery realm and said to protect
against the unwanted attention of goblins. If you tread lightly and stay awhile there are always wonderful beings to see. I have been captivated by spiders weaving their webs, the dancing crane flies and these beautiful curious fairy like cathedral webs. The new moon in libra, welcomes a time of balance and harmony and hopefully an outbreath now Pluto has gone direct. Sometimes it seems a bit too easy to blame the planets for events beyond our control, but after a week of power cuts, leaks, and finally a swollen eye from a wasp sting I am ready for a gentler month. The medicine bundles are vessels of hope for those who are facing seriously big challenges right now. (Will post more pics soon) Nearly time to meet the heather and sweet mistletoe. #gorse #ogham #magic #awe #lovenature #hope #faeryrealm #newmoon #ritual #healing #medicinebundles #sacred #stillness

‘God turns you from one feeling to another And t

‘God turns you from one feeling to another And teaches by means of opposites So that you will have two wings to fly, not one’ Rumi The Autumn Equinox felt more intense than usual. Feeling my way to walking with the darkness as well as the light, being open to finding harmony in opposites. Curious how i can be both grateful and connected yet unsettled, seeking relief. This equinox, and moving into Libra, really highlighted where I am out of balance; in a place of lack and negativity, craving connection and definitely not ready to hibernate yet! It felt good to sweep away some old mental obstacles with a gorse brush, and create an equinox mandala blessing inviting sweetness, equilibrium and alignment. Gorse reminds us to share our gifts and that we too are evergreen and everlasting. She suggests writing down our aspirations - do we need support, encouragement, practical help? Water is the element associated with the autumn equinox, bringing its healing flowing energy. So I painted with gorse twigs and wrote my coloured dreams, burying them and watering the seeds with sacred spring water infused with prayers of hope. Apples are about reciprocity, the vine leaves about community and letting go, and the yew clippings remind me about regeneration Gorse can reward effort when we reflect on our accomplishments, honouring the gifts of this year. My other half and I are still being cautious after his ops so no big holidays, parties, festivals and exhibitions celebrating freedom. He is so much better I can forget the miracles of what we have been through and the body is still on alert. Mercury is in retrograde and i am inviting a new relationship with resistance, befriending fear held in the unconscious. Gorse inspires me to persist with faith and patience. There are several little gorse flowers now beginning to unfurl with their heavenly coconut scent, just as most flowers are saying goodbye to this year. Freedom is really just a different way of seeing and being! #gorse #autumnequinox #freedom #balance #ritual #mandala #blessings #waterislife #flow #lovenature #presence

‘Never lose hope, my dear heart; miracles swell

‘Never lose hope, my dear heart; miracles swell in the invisible.’ Rumi Gorse essence is for those who have given up hope and belief. Dr Bach suggested it as a remedy for uncertainty - it can flood the heart and soul with golden light allowing us to see things differently. According to Hindu legend, the ‘Rishi’ stars (also known as the Big Dipper) were once great sages. They are closest to the Earth around September 9-15th when their light is said to possess special healing powers that transform all water into a healing nectar. The medicine is to collect and bathe in waters during this time and the water in our own bodies can also be ‘blessed’ and purified by star gazing and bathing. I took my sprig of gorse to the sea for a few days immersing it and myself in the healing waters of sea and sacred spring. The gorse relates to fire and I sense it enjoyed the cooling as much as I did. Giving thanks to these precious waters with blessings and ritual. Unexpectedly meeting a dear friend on the beach we invited flow to integrate creativity and healing, hope and despair, imbuing the stones with our breath and releasing weariness and dreams into the ocean. Sleeplessness reveals new layers of grief. This time is always poignant as the anniversary of my baby son’s death many years ago, and connecting to the rishi stars and the waters I feel comforted and closer to him and other old friends. There were a few wonderful gorse flowers tantalisingly out of reach at the edge of the cliff and I discovered a single flower on the gorse bush at home - a beacon of hope! I am probably not alone in craving certainty during these uncertain times but it doesn’t leave much room for the unexpected gifts of faith. #rishistars #surrender #gorse #essence #hope #forgiveness #atonement #ritual #sacred #wearewater #medicine #healing #presence #neptune

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