Workshop Feedback
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They gathered to create an artistic expression about their emotions regarding their life patterns.
The process has been purgative. This is art piece is about the social intersections and friendships that have been established. We each have our dark and light clouds (with an occasional pink), balanced by a rainbow.
We have to surrender our "own" ways to accept the guidance and support of others.
The red sky...
The clouds radiate strength of lightening and storm. The rays edify the strength of the storm cloud. The rainbow refracts...
Statement from Bittin:
"This workshop is the first which has included people from different backgrounds, a vision that blossomed in me after I facilitated dozens of workshops with different separated "groups" of people, across the country.
"This group consists of an inclusive variety: a few people who have sustained brain injuries, one woman with Downs Syndrome, one woman I know from The Center for Spiritual Living, a man from the Whole Systems Design graduate program at Antioch University in Seattle, and a music therapy student from Evergreen College. What an amazing group of people.
"The first day in early May began with the potential challenge to discover a common theme among the participants. In the brain-storming sessions the group identified that each are walking their "own" path in life, and not following the "cultural norms."
"This was the common strength that each needed to "feel" connected as a group of people with a common life experience. The group's final sketch was of a composition that represented their common life pattern: "seeking our own path."
"We met another four or five times over the course of the next four months with a core group of five of the members. They brought the initial vision to completion as they wrote their stories, built the frame, created the three dimensional form, and painted the piece with fun and a great sense of friendship."
diabetic-power?
some docioch help me very sick I feel like my dizzy at my work
chienke
frch-fieds
post side
sler drassing
food
diet
eat lots of food
we go to my friend eat together
outside
my feel like sick my auunt is diabetic -to
my docito help me my mdeicine for me at U.W.H.
my Dr. Hish very mad with my high suarg
low suarg my feel like my other docitco
hlep me food specail food my boyfriend terry
give me cpis diet draking pop tank you
for you my special diet to ear I make my lunch my sife specail diet my sire very my specail bent froster she help me my room at Bink Room? My friend visit my room!!!
Loving friend-power
changes friend power
dancing with my old frenids lup very gerat speca.
friend with ms cano we going mr cano die give him frowfer??? perschool
I live with my friend down siend I my dream for you my friend I give you my birthday party at her house for me please give party plan
bloosed
happy birthdya ahps
cake
specail day at
ms cano for give me
brithday party fro you
change for my friend
down sind at loving
with ms cano very
fienrd I want you my very specail to you
arts power
Rainbow very bright light color rainbow
nice specail best artser is me marthu
colorbook of beauty and the beast and cindllan
brown tree
like beauitful brown tree very great
greatfull a grord is bright light
ranibow for very sping colors warter
beauitful ways freedoom
taking care
about us very specail
for my friends are you my great
friend very samt great forcy ettony
specail greatfulltous-very smart
freedom
alway for great brght frieds
is about to us very great power
of my dearm are my friend she
help clan my room at move oh
pink room soon with my friend Bittn
spots
I want bring a meilds for my specail
olmpics games at washington specail olympics
at my sorty names
seattle park shark best
very samt at olympics
team neme is
martha, terry maryanne
randar lup
line 2-4 us
I like feel lik you so much toyou
we going to dances at with my boyfriend is terry graves is gerat
my love with my true love
new little and music
I like Janter Jackson and Miekl Jackson
very best dancer is my with us to dance for special friend at my friend very great you specail friends I samt for friend great
my dearm very samttous
tous I feel like you my friend
singht
Martha Phinojosa G
power-I have strength to be powerful
freedom-I have freedom to be free
- I have freedom to be ok with people
-- I have freedom to be ok
My brain injury has changed my freedom to be free. Makes me question the idea of being free. Sometimes I just don't feel free-I don't know I don't know if I can explain the times that I don't feel free. Not being able to find the words to express my feelings, prevents me from feeling free. Sometimes I just don't feel free.
Sometimes I'll take rests if I feel free and sometimes I will not. Taking a risk for me would feel ok to me, it will feel like I can act as I want. Sometimes I don't feel O.K. emotionally. Sometimes I feel I take a risk to share my emotions with another. Sometimes I feel courageous and sometimes I don't. When I feel courageous I feel OK with myself. This doesn't happen very often. It took some courage for me to come here today. Because Barbara is here, I feel ok with being here. When Barbara is here with me it makes a difference. I know and love her and it makes a difference.
I think that if we're being helped by ____________ ok then we're really ok. I think if people are not being helped by their synopsis then they are not good people. I do not associate with me not being a part of people and their synopsis. I believe that people who are injured are not good people. We could become good people if we are willingto accept we are not good people. Good is healthy or physical. It is not about being good or bad in personality. I am referring more to people will not think they are good people if they question themselves and how they appear. I think these warp sometime. I think I am ok if I present the idea that I am ok. I don't do this that often. Sometimes I build my self-esteem up. I think of things that will make the other people appreciate what I have to say. Sometimes when I am appreciated by others I feel ok about myself.
Positive support is people who support me. They support me by being there and being ok with what I am doing. Sometimes I ask for positive support. Sometimes people jsut give it to me-I don't know how often that is for me.
Sometimes I'll stay with it if I'm doing ok that I 'm making my opinion well known. Communication that's if I don't to allow myself to be clear that what communication is to me. Living with my friends is ok if your friends - if you with your friend. First youhave to be a friend with your friend.
Life is hard if we don't do it we don't do it we don't make it be anything but hard. Talking and not making yourself very clear makes life hard. Be clear with what we want. I don't know what adaptable is unless your gonna get along with someone when you're adaptable you're ok. I don't know why you wouldn't be when change is going to happen around you then you learn to live with it. When I am healthy I don't need to change, because my body is well. If you're going to change, I do change because I want to not because I am supposed to. It is not hard for me to change. Change is pretty easy if you recognize it.
If you want to be ok and good for your community you go ahead and do that change. I feel supported by my community. If its good, you want to do it anyways and make the change, and be accepted in the community.
I have fear if I don't know what it is. Fear of the community, fear of not knowing. I have fear speaking and talking. I fear I won't say things properly. Sometimes I can hear myself do this, and it scares me. It reminds for me to remember that I am not bad or wrong when I do this. I have awareness when its a bit off and I stop and wonder about it being a bit off. I wonder how I could be so far off. I don't remember that it's because of the brain injury. Sometimes I do. But this is not very often. I think I'm being inproper or weird. I don't really think why...I'm not happy with this way of being. This is how I do feel. I want to know that is wrong when its wrong, when it isn't right. It is my thinking processes. I don't feel so good that I have alot of work to do for my healing. The recovery comes from me knowing that things are not right. And from things not being wrong, I know that I an wrong. This is about my health. I'm talking about it not being proper. I don't like to take of myself, unless I know I'm sick. I find being good to myself is ok, as long as I'm ok with this.
I don't like the feeling when I know I'm wrong. Sometimes I have different emotions. I'm ok with myself when I'm ok with myself. I feel I'm ok with gratitude when I'm ok with gratitufe. Gratitude is wrong when I am wrong or my best friend tells me I'm wrong. Gratitude means to me that people are happy when I have done something for them. I am grateful for people who have done something for them. Willingness is OK when your happy about being OK. Happiness is OK when your OK with being OK.
Compassion is a feeling that we have if we would hve done something different. We would do something differently if we could. Compassion is a caring for another, you feel for another because you like them or have a caring for them-an incredible amount. But I can't say I feel alot for them unless I am made to feel that way. They dan do this only by telling you how that other person is feeling. Forgiveness is something that happens when you do feel sorry for someone. We can forgive ourselves ony if, we feel sorry for ourselves, or OK with how we're feeling.
I feel pretty weird b/c my eye is being dumb b/c it's been wacked and it's not feeling well. I am tired.
Some say that you came to me to suck out the drop of blood left in my body. Why is this hypothesis not the reality?
I don't know. Maybe it is.
And death loses its mystique and becomes another boring fact of life. Until you want it, you feel you need it. It becomes your only salvation and you pray every time you hear a knock at the door that it is death come to take you away.
I am embarrassed about my sentimentality and unrequited romantic notions. I feel like an old man before a prostate problem.
I like to scream whem I burn my body's failing me and my mind is dead in the water. But I like it that way cause I've got a fire inside I use for energy and I get alot of miles out of my fire when I stoke it up good. Stole works good. Bokowski is best. My fire gives me art. When no one sees Vangoish pictures they call me a fake "artist?"
It's all about behavior I think but no one in this town knows what's up when I "act"
So I'm taking off all my clothes and dancing on the bar!
Well it's art...
ART!!!!
2-24-97
I don't know how I know this. The island I'm standing on is sinking. I would try to swim to the mainland but my father is standing on the cliff and when I look at him he's throwing radios at me.
Death has a parachute and when I look at it I loose my center of gravity. Smooth young skin confronting time's scabbied, wrinkled leather. The one becomes she and My broken mirror/the other
3-2-97
Ah, ha the art learn What do you waaaa.....
enveloping still lifes....
keep changing and so give something to write about....
I am here I am not there not there my word play today is both define that poem or devine that poem. Tygh can you devine that poem for me. I don't know what it means o if you could just devine it.
a complex genius says I will not have passive mediocure minds' sex. dangerous sex is the ultimate act of creativity.
When the lady gets cold the blood goes away from the extremeties to the heart. When the heart gets cold people move away to extremity.
So I'm sitting here needing a word. Cause other destructive behaviors want to take the place of the Word. Only for lack of klack, klack, klack
errer, errer, errer, errer, errer, erers, errers, errers, errers, errers, eros, eros.
Okay, she's movin out. Because? Drinking? I don't know but I guess I'll be going to Europe alone and that's all folks. I will not be there if she's not. And if she's moving out, movin out. It really does not matter why. I need to focus on H.O.W. In all situations I need to forgive others. "Almost none of us have like the self examination the leveling of pride. Tinkin 'bout now. yeah, but don't wanna be yourself Tinkn; 'bout drink. No, not, don't annoy that. What's kind of strange is I know that shit don't work. I'll still sit here with my feelings I drink or cigart or not.
Well, maybe some ice cream, yeah, I think a chocolate Sunday would help.
I feel I must just pray for Mary and that good things happen for her. I must give it to God.
When you are in bed and you hear the howling of the dogs in the fields, hide yourself beneath your blankets, don't make a jest of what they are doing. They have the insatiable thirst for the infinite, like you, like me, liek the rest of us human beings with our long pale faces.
I am again ready for that aria quixotic pilgrimage. My eyes feel with copious tears and I have another strength to produce...yet do not read my words please! you must pay avid attention to how the words are put together. I feel like being in a wood floor room with high ceilings and no lights, only candles, and music, and paper, and chalk, and paints.
Imagine a tree with strong clouds with the dark top left a rainbow with it's reflection. The dark clouds building up edify the strength
Piture the tree strong old with roots reaching for sorce of water. Reflection from Rainbow above and sorce of light radiates in water below
ideas to create a masterpiece of ART
Imagine a strong old knarled tree above and behind this tree is storm building (edify) park clouds POWERFUL the limbs are connected with a positive support of a strong a root systems
adjacent the clouds is a rainbow, with its a.m. reflection synopsis in the foreground is an area of water with rainbow reflection
It ongoing my consciousness after my head injury of March 1964. I realized I had to rebuild my life being put down, and restriction for my future.
Being over coming these resrictions. Built my self-esteem, building up a "I can do it " attitude
by repetition, I've over physical disabilities.
At first communication was difficult but with a positive attitude and knowledge of the subject. I found that if you can making a good comment with others. I edify making better communicator.
By brainstorming I am making mental assumptions synopsis with my physical sometime and half to adapt (connectng dentrites)
When learning to live with change. I making myself stronger (examples) find out new bus route, by writing the secretaries of State's office to inform of my new address when I moved to update my voter's registration. By overcoming these changing obstacles sometimes always it take courage.
By taking care of my responsibilities I am building strength in community with research overcoming fear of unknown.
By helping others I am building a willingness attitude
By giving others encouraging comments I am expressing compassion and forgiveness
These accomplishments are living proof of my recovery
I advocate having a Can Do attitude is key to my recovery
thank you for sharing
Bill Carbaugh 6-8-97