April / May 2008
Melanie Weidner

Welcome to spring and this issue of Inner Tapestry, "Heart Stories."

With the arrival of spring we once again find ourselves allowing the stirring of the energy of the winter months to find its way to the creation of rebirth and new self-growth in our lives. We spend many hours within, in the winter months deep in reflection and feeling to bring forth change in our lives and new revitalized energy for the upcoming spring, summer and fall months. This inward wintertime is what sustains the ability to bring us forth in new and different ways. The magic happens when what we have connected to is shared from the heart with each other to bring us to a greater level of love, compassion and understanding first of self then of others.

The cover art for this issue was found on a wonderful website called Listen for Joy which features the artwork of Melanie Weidner, from Portland, Oregon. I could not imagine finding a more profound depiction of Heart Stories, as these two wonderful women and what it is that they are sharing, creating the magic of life, intertwined in connection with each other.

Melanie has asked to share the following with our readers:

"The 'Between Us' image rose from my experiences of deep, nourishing conversations with a dearest friend. In those and other heart exchanges, we would find ourselves saying more than we knew that we knew! We were discovering ourselves as the stories unfolded. Our connection of listening, love, and deep respect brought forth our best, so our wisdom started to tell itself between us. What a miracle to give this kind of healing attention to each other! Now I also use this image and its layers of meaning to represent my work as an Artist and a Spiritual Director, offering this depth of nourishing listening that draws out the inner wisdom or direction a person wants to follow. The art images and the stories often raise more questions than answers, as the Spirit or smoke in the image indicates. I pray we can hold both our deep truths and our questions in the reverence of compassion, trusting them to lead us on healing paths.

I invite you to explore other spiritual, healing, and questing images on my website at www.ListenForJoy.com. Consider inviting a painting or print into your home space, healing space, prayer space, or work space, to remind you of your intentions for love and healing. Blessings to your heart."

As well as Melanie's inspiring artwork you can also find the "Passion of the Earth Project" in DVD and also as Art and Text. This is a project of collaboration with the Benedictine Women's Monastery of St. Gertrude in Cottonwood, Idaho. The Passion of the Earth Project is described as a cross between the traditional Catholic Stations of the Cross and the contemporary "Cosmic Walk." It is a story of the origin and development of our universe, told in words and art in a vibrant and refreshing way. It is designed to be a spiritual exercise that enables people to see the earth and the cosmos not only as God's creation, but as the most basic expression of God's very self.

Number 3: Laughter "And God let forth a laugh that shook the cosmos for it was wonderful and very, very good."

A great DVD to check out and it can be ordered through Melanie's website, as well as her artwork at www.ListenForJoy.com.