Last month, while discussing seasons, I mentioned that I look forward to the change of seasons. Which is 100% true. However, as I began to reflect on this new month’s specific theme of change, I realized that in many ways, the yearly seasonal change is more predictable than most kinds of change. Change can be downright difficult. I say this because I am currently in a season of change in more ways than one. And it is overwhelming me. So my post for this month is brief, but the process is helpful.
When I am overwhelmed, I have a need to express my emotions (I am an introverted Enneagram 4w5), either in my scrapbooking (storytelling) or in my art journaling. So, I have decided to journal part of my motherhood story here. Some of you may agree with this: motherhood has brought the biggest change and challenge to my life. Currently, I am in the midst of the actual “change”, I am also navigating an ever-changing temperament of our teenage son and then also a change in my daily routine which entails chauffeuring him around twice a day, five days a week because of a change of schools this year. Of course, there is plenty of growing and changing as we age, whether we are mothers or not. Lately, it feels all encompassing. What will happen next? What can I learn from it?
If you normally tend to be a scrapbooker of holidays and/or events, or have simply not thought about scrapbooking in this way, perhaps this layout will encourage you to consider it. Whether you try one page, or create a full journal/album of your thoughts and feelings, it can be quite cathartic. Very often, you surprise yourself and learn something in the process. I wrote at least 3 versions of my story before settling on the one in this layout. The first draft was filled with angst and frustration. I let some time pass before going back and editing it for public consumption.
Because I wanted to invest the most time in heartfelt journaling, I decided I needed a little grace and decided to purchase and download a pre-made digital template called “Watercolor Simplicity Layered Template 02” by Katie Pertiet. In order to show change, visually, I selected photos of me with my kids from different time periods. My photos and journaling were added to the psd file in Photoshop. Some photos were changed to black and white. I found it necessary to reduce the opacity of the elements under my journaling to improve readability. Everything else I left the same. The process and appearance were simple, but it was deep and meaningful in thought and words.
If you are interested in learning more about yourself and your family through the Enneagram, here are some links:
https://www.enneagraminstitute.com