Be the Holder and the Held (Prayer Poem)

Be the Holder and the Held

Prayer Poem by Bronwen Mayer Henry

Am I the mom?

Am I the baby?

What is it to be the holder and the held?

Do we ever stop being both?

Is a baby selfish and a mom generous?

Is a mom selfish and a baby generous?

Enough with terms and ideas.

Just be.

In it.

Consumed.

Delivered.

Beginning. Failing.

Beginning again.

Never stop holding.

Never stop being held.

Be the holder and the held.

Both crying out.

Be the holder and the held. 

Both new.

Be the holder and the held. 

Both unsure, fragile, uncomfortable.

Be the holder and the held. 

Both crossing a threshold.

Be the holder and the held. 

Both witness to the Divine.

Be the holder and the held. 

Both tender, afraid, surrounded by love.

Be the holder and the held. 

Filled with limitless potential.

Be the holder and the held. 

New Prayer Poem (for those navigating grief)

A prayer poem for anyone feeling uneasy or wobbly—navigating new terrain around grief.

The ache in my body (heart?) feels big.
It feels insurmountable.
The (My?) world’s rotation feels wobbly.
I feel nauseas and needy.
What might enter here love?
What can flow in?

(Pause)

Breathe, love.

Let love meet you here.
She wraps you, holds your head in her hands.

Be here,
Eye to eye,
Forehead to forehead,
With love.

In this time of ache, wobbly-ness, nausea,
Love meets you.
Breathes with you.

You will find your sea legs,
Now that you’ve left land.

This will be your home.
You will adapt

You will find beauty
In groundlessness

You will know the deep abyss
And beautiful sunrises

You will know storms
And still waters

You will develop new muscles
(When you felt you were drowning.)

You will find unexpected refuge
At sea.

2023 Highlights

What an absolutely incredible, heartwrenching, beautiful year. I still feel I’m at the very beginning of so much in life, I hardly know anything at all. My heart feels disoriented with loss. I feel captivated by the beauty of life and loved ones. Nature continues to lift me up from dark places.

I am so grateful for the chance to pause and reflect on the year behind me.

I am nearly speechless to realize I created 60 original paintings, 30 (what???!!!) of which were commissioned pieces. This means 30 precious connections with people about matter of heart and art. I am stunned.

This is truly beyond my wildest dreams.

I painted protea, mountains, aspens, snowdrops, cherry blossoms, sunsets, sunrises, creeks, irises, peonies, delphinum, roses, winter trees, dahlia, calla lillies and one bird (awww).

With these sixty original paintings, each titled from the heart message that inspired them, I wrote the following poem:

Life and loss are filled with Artifacts of Love.

May Cascading Love and Mercy—Meet Us at the Horizon.

Everything Changes, so why not Bloom Now?
For this one Wild and Precious Life.

Be unsurprised by the Wild Edges of sorrow, that are Soul Carving.

You feel this because you are Exquisitely Alive.

Breathing through the discomfort you will Return Home. 

Friend, this heartache is an invitation to Return to Your Original Cadence.

To discover that you Belong Everywhere.

To know that all Bliss is Momentary.

Fear not, Love will Return.

You will be Safe from Striving. You will Rest Here.

Peace is this Moment.
Where we Open Together,

Overflowing in Joy and Connection.

So, Be Here Now. Don’t miss it.

And if you do, don’t worry.

Everything is Possible. 

The rhythms of day and seasons remind us. 

There is the Inevitable Return of Light.

Let there be a Gentle Beginning,

Don’t seek out the fancy or profound.

Return to the Nobility of the Ordinary.

When darkness persists.

Continue to Wait for the Light.

You have a Beginner’s Mind.

You discover what it is to feel Joy Anyway, no matter your circumstance.

You Anticipate Beauty.

You are a Love Warrior. 

You will bring Kindness in Times of Opening.

You will know True Joy as you Wake Up—Startled by Peace.

In this unexpected moment you will find you are Whole Unto Yourself. 

Awe Everywhere.

Kindness in Time of Opening

This sweet Dahlia painting is headed to a new collector in DC. Returning to dahlias was a total gift.  After contemplating the prayer request/intention I received for the commission, I found myself pondering these questions,

What does it look like to let go (with a heart filled with gratitude for what has been)?

How do I have joy and faith about what is to come (when there is uncertainty and fear too)?

While studying the intricacies of these blossoms my mind stumbled into soothing territory and a blessing emerged,

May there be an opening free from grasping, filled with gratitude.

May there be joy emerging in unexpected places.

May I open my hands and heart to all that has been and will be.

May I find the joy of living here, now, with the loss, the grief, the gratitude, the fear, the hope.
May I be held in kindness in this time of opening.

Painting while holding others on my heart is one of my highest joys. I'm grateful for the invitation into a small aspect of someone else's life and the opportunity to make an offering of kindness, joy and beauty. Message me if you are interested in a commissioned piece and/or a prayer poem.

"Kindness in Time of Opening"
SOLD
48" x 30"

(c) Bronwen Mayer Henry 
Original Acrylic on Canvas

Pursuing Contemplative Creativity Teaching

If you had told me ten years ago, when facing down the destabilizing, panic inducing diagnosis of thyroid cancer, I never would have believed you where I'd be today. 

This weekend, I began a two year meditation teacher training program with Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach and feel such a profound sense of "This is exactly where I'm meant to be." 

I first stepped into meditation practice at the Won Buddhis temple in 2008, I began a contemplative approach to the creative process in 2013. Meditation and creativity have helped me to cope with great difficulty: illness, anxiety, and loss to name a few.  

In the ten days leading up to this launch of this program I've had a few stunning opportunities, and I don't think it is a coincidence. I facilitated a meditative creative process with 92 middle schoolers as part of my work at Interfaith Philadelphia, I shared my story and facilitated a contemplative art activity with students in Temple's art therapy program, and most recently I was interviewed by Pauli Reese on their podcast Uncommon Good about my contemplative creative practice. 

Sometimes the universe gives us gentle winks that we are on the right track. This past few weeks it has felt more like a big hug. 

I'm profoundly grateful for the alignment of my life to make enrollment in this Mindful Meditation Teaching program possible. I am ripe for this next level of engagement and curious and open about the pathways that will open and unfold within and around me. 

Stream Inspired Commission Story

What a total joy to create a commissioned piece inspired by a stream. I have had a practice of biking down to the local stream (Pennypack) and sitting on the waters edge for months now. I took this opportunity to bring my canvas and paints with me to get the fully immersive inspiration.

[I finished up the piece(s) in the studio—paint sure dries fast outside!]

Painting by the stream.

As I frequently do I chose to create three canvases to give the collector a choice. Scroll down to see the finished pieces. Which one would you have chosen?

I call this series “Sacred Space” inspired by the way nature offers a place of renewal.

If you are interested in one of these original pieces, or a commission of your own, let me know!

What Peonies Taught Me (Collection Launch)

Friends,

Confession, when I peer into a peony blossom I have a full-bodied experience of bliss that I can only imagine feels like enlightenment itself. Is there more to being fully awake, free and open to joy than the miracle of this flower blossoming? I'm not sure. 

Here are whispers that emerged at the canvas while painting peonies,

1. I trust in the unfolding of my life. Surely my own design is like the peonies in that it has a momentum and emergence that requires "only" warmth, light and nutrient rich soil. 

2. Our design is beautiful. I delight in the gentle curves of each petal, intertwining in color, shadow and light. Not simple, yet beautiful in their complexity. I return again to Eckart Tolle's words "What you see in the tree [peony?] is also in you."

3. Our design is moving. Returning to the petals each day they continue to open. One brief rainfall changes everything. Bring them indoors and they won't be contained but will leap from their bouquets. The peony, just like our lives, is constantly opening, surrendering, transforming to seeds of what is next. 

I call this collection "Awake and Unfolding" as this feels like what is happening in my heart alongside this creative process. A constant effort to be present and awake to life as it is and a surrendering or unfolding of what is to be. 

This collection featured my BIGGEST. PIECE. EVER. which is a swoonworthy bouquet. Please check out this new collection, and let me know what you think.

I hope that you enjoy this immersion in this beloved fragrant flower and that you find yourself awake to all that is unfolding in your life.

With care,

Bronwen

New Sedona-Inspired Collection AVAILABLE

Where do you find the centering and energy to face the challenges of your life? The challenges of these times?

For me, it is in nature and at the canvas. Places to restore. Places to find deep peace. Places to recharge to return to the challenges of life.

Traveling to Sedona, Arizona was a trip of a lifetime for my little family. Within the first one hundred steps on the first hike one child exclaimed, "Mom, I found a new happy place." the other one said, "This is my favorite hike ever." My heart swelled. 

Returning home, it was beyond my wildest dreams to immerse myself in the imagery of the trip. To revisit the hikes. Even the attempt to capture the beauty was a joy. And then when the creative process is complete I step back and smile. And get a third enjoyment of these beautiful vistas.This new collection.....about the collection

I hope for you a life filled with ease. However, all of our lives have difficulties. I hope spending time with this tribute to Sedona will bring you a smile, a softening of the tension in your shoulders.

May we each find spaces to feel grounded, to feel spacious, to restore such that we have the courage and wisdom to meet the challenges of our time with new thinking, new hope, new energy, new bridge building, new strength, new clarity.
-Bronwen

PS. [Prints and products also available at society6.com/bronwenhenry . ]

Prints and Products Available at Society6.com

Mountain Blessings (A Poem and Painting)

I grasp at things.
But only daily.

Right as a softening or expansion emerges,
I think--here it is!
I can do this!
Immediately turning from the truth
Of constant change.

Holding onto a joyful moment,
Is like the earth saying,
"Finally, I did it! A sunrise!"
Only to feel despair,
As the sun goes down again and the emptiness of night surrounds you.

Or maybe what you grasp is an achievement
You've been working toward with time.
And you think. Hurray--at-last--it is here!
Like the earth saying,
"Spring. I knew it would come."

Of course the earth does not say this.
With her gentle wisdom she shines in the morning
Shares her sacred majesty in spring
And moves with grace toward nightfall and winters as well.
Without a whimper of despair to be heard.

Friend, if there were one thing I would like to hold onto most
It is remembering this movement--this impermanence.
By all means delight in the sunrise and spring.
And then stay--
As constant motion is underway

Remember with each sunset, just as it is with each sunrise.
This too shall pass.
Remember with each winter, just as it is with each spring.
This too shall pass.
If you are feeling bold, you might even smile.

I let go again.
But only daily.

Poem by Bronwen Mayer Henry

Painting, "Mountain Blessing," (c) Bronwen Mayer Henry

Befriending Life

This painting, “Befriending Life” was such a total joy to paint. While painting this piece, an integration of learning over years came together, speaking to me about what to do when difficult moments arise in life. I call this the “Dirty Sock Meditation” It helps me step out of suffering and back into belonging. It helps me to befriend life.

The dirty sock lesson: Make friends with dirty socks. I don’t know about you but there are dirty socks everywhere in my house. Right now there’s one under the dishwasher, there are two under the dining room table, I saw one on the steps to the backyard, there are a few in the hallway at the top of the stairs. I’m not sure why but there are dirty socks everywhere .

Even when I give speeches like "The merits of turning a dirty sock right side in," or "The ease of putting a small sock in a laundry basket," or "Hey, please pick up your socks," even when I do this motivational pep talks dirty socks keep appearing everywhere.

I decided that I was powerless over the dirty sock.

My only choice left was to befriend the dirty socks.

I decided that I would make friends with these dirty socks and every time I saw one I say to them, "Hello friend, thank you for not leaving me alone in the world."

Obviously life is a lot more challenging than dirty socks. There are other challenges of aging, illness, and loss. There are aches of the spirit and body that will not ever be relieved. So, what do we do? We reach out to community for support AND perhaps we also accept these aches as reminders that we are not alone in the world.

"Awakeness is found in our pleasure and our pain, our confusion and our wisdom. Available in each moment of our weird, unfathomable, ordinary, everyday lives." Pema Chodron, When Things Fall Apart

Surrender Again (A Poem and Painting)

A gentle message to surrender emerges as I work on a new large scale Maine inspired sunrise painting.

Have a beautiful week friends. Keep going.

Surrender Again, by Bronwen Mayer Henry

The sun told me
What my soul knew
Surrender again,
Begin again,
Rise again.

Not because everything is okay
Not because you have the answers

As her golden rays broke through the horizon
She told me to rise,
Because--why not?
While you are here--why not?
Give it another try.

Attempt again to be kind to all beings.
Attempt again to do your best.
Attempt again to show up for those in need.
Attempt again to be present with each aching moment
Attempt again to inhabit each gorgeous moment.

She knew I would be discouraged
So without words
She showed me what it is to
Surrender again
Begin again
Rise again

A sacred pause fills the space around me.
For 120 seconds,
All fear, doubt and worry fall away.
And in silent wonder
I hear her.

A Conversation with Flight ( A Poem)

I have noticed
That when I eat sugar
Mindlessly, secretively
It is to hide.

It is not that I'm hiding the consumption (though I am)
I am hiding from the discomfort
I am hiding from the pain.
I am hiding from the breakthrough

When I reach for chocolate (low quality!) without anyone knowing
I can be certain I'm on the shores of awakening
To a new level of vulnerability, joy, possibility.

When part of me races to the cupboard
I can be sure that something within me is racing
That something has been stirred
That something in me has urgency.

So what do I do?
It doesn't matter if it is sugar, alcohol, or compulsive thoughts that have become old friends.
What matters is awakening.

Eat the sugar or not.
Be underwater or not.
That is okay.
The awakening will be waiting for you.

If you choose to experiment
To walk on that knife edge,
To step to that space where groundlessness meets spaciousness
Something new will be discovered.

About yourself,
About another,
About humankind,
About the earth.

I don't know.
It might be scary.
It might be hard to see and learn.
So you might blind yourself with a sugar coma.

Okay, no problem.
The awakening will wait.
Just don't make her wait too long.
Don't let your hole (whole) life pass by without being willing to walk this edge
This place that scares you

This place that you thought was bleakness
Is a darkness that has been holding you the whole time.
Some have called it a vacuum.
But that is because they do not know the mystery

Of what is not yet understood
Of what appears empty.
This is spaciousness.

Love, it is okay.
Stand on a stool and eat gross chocolate
While hiding from your kids.
As long as you'd like.

Or don't.
And come here.
And feel
Everything

Let the waves crash over you
Let tears fall
See the vulnerability of it all

And notice that you are not destroyed.
In fact you are just beginning.

What Zinnias Taught Me

What Zinnias Taught Me

In a garden bed overflowing with zinnias,

in the final days of summer and early days of fall,

I see flowers sending forth buds of possibility.

I see continued growth.

Courage to keep putting forth new buds.

Uninhibited energy.

I see blooming and preparing to bloom,

not because it is reasonable or easy.

But because that is the design.

I want to live like a garden of zinnias.

Unafraid to expand and grow.

Bursting forth with color and hope.

Unafraid of the future.

The winter does not destroy this life

but helps to bring it back to the soil.

To re-emerge brand new, when the warmth returns.

It feels easier to be alive when there are zinnias nearby.

Even when they are gone,

I will remember the beauty of their lessons.

A Blessing for Letting Go of Something You Love

After letting go of a project I adored, I wrote this blessing seeking my own comfort and I offer it here that it might be a comfort to anyone in a similar space.

May the choices we leave behind be compost for new growth.

May our doubts be held tenderly.

May the intuition and leading that encouraged us to leave carry us forward.

May we be gentle with the mourning and all that aches.

May we trust that just because we grieve doesn't mean it is the wrong decision.

May we remember with humility that we are people navigating the human experience who don't know everything.

May we release control of any plan.

May we trust that our life is being led and that the purpose of our design will be revealed.

May we continue to show up wholeheartedly to life unafraid to put ourselves out there.

May we be willing to stretch and grow in uncomfortable and unfamiliar spaces.

May we be kind with how letting go hurts.

May we be understanding when letting go awakens fear.

May we trust in the generations of spiritual teaching and wisdom that encourage us to let go anyway.

May we trust that love and wisdom will lead us forward.

May our lives become more fully integrated and authentic expressions.

May we keep going, opening to new paths unimagined.

********

(c) Bronwen Mayer Henry

First Mural

Over the years I've had many inquiries about mural work. Since I'm so passionate about working big--people often asked me, “Would you want to work really big?” With small children at home and working in the cracks of motherhood and other employment it never felt quite right. Until this year! My kids are getting older and I felt ready.

I'm thrilled with the experience and product of this creation for Fettersmill Bed and Breakfast in the breakfast nook. "Follow the Sun" a burst of sunflowers and zinnias. [New largest piece ever, 9' x 7']

If you are looking for lodging in the area (Huntingdon Valley, PA) please check out this bed and breakfast—I’m so honored to have my art featured throughout the suites as well. https://www.fettersmillbedandbreakfast.com/

Before, During and After!

It was so great to bounce between kneeling to get downlow and up on a stool to reach higher.

The finished project! Complete with tiny birds for the bird-lovers.

Introducing the Shores of Renewal Maine Collection

After an incredible trip to Maine in June 2021, I found myself captivated with this part of the country. I came home and poured myself into creations inspired by our hikes. My heart was in the spaciousness of these vistas as my brush worked away at home. I’m thrilled to share with you this new collection that speaks of hope, stillness and renewal. When we take time away from the hustle of our daily lives and settle into our breathe and body we are changed. Being with each of these paintings I find a calm comes over me. I hope you enjoy this new collection.

Creating My Largest Painting Ever "Shores of Renewal"

Friends,

I had an incredible opportunity to create a large scale painting for a non-profit in Portland, Maine. To inspire this piece I travelled with my little family north to Maine. We spent a few days North of Portland in a tiny cottage on the water (that inspired this large piece) and a few days in Acadia National Park hiking and falling in love with Maine.

While staying at a  little cottage on Harpswell peninsula, I took a paddle board out when the tide transitioned and paddled around a tiny island. I was captivated. The delight I felt with the trees and rocks, the water and sky. I couldn’t hold my smile in while snapping photos at intervals (with earnest care taken to not drop my phone in the water). This island was one of many, each one an invitation to explore and rest. When I returned to our little cottage I wrote myself the following notes:

Rest. Movement. Healing.
Every day, we are on the shores of renewal.
We are invited to live at this edge. 
Where heaven meets earth.
Where life is filled with movement, possibility, loss and beginnings.
On these shores we remember what is true about us and others, 
We remember the sacred human experience,
What we remember is beyond words.
This remembering is a deep truth that renews us.
The truth aligns and reverberates, crashing on the shore of our essence.
And we feel peace.
Not because everything is okay.
Not because we are certain how things will go.
But rather, because 
We know this moment.
Where there is movement, possibility, loss and beginnings. 
We know this moment
Where we find renewal. 

It was delightful to spend time in the studio working on this large piece. I first did many smaller explorations, that now make up the Maine Collection (launching August 25th). There was something exhilarating with this large piece. A special energy in my chest. A sense of newness and vulnerability met with groundedness and familiarity. Though the size was intimidating from afar, I found comfort and ease as I stepped into the process. (This is so often the case for me that I fear something from a distance and than find less strain when I’m in process.) 

This piece captures a sense of peace and possibility. The rocks, how old? The trees returning over generations. The water crashing on the shore--new each moment. Never the same. I find painting moving water to be a particular delight because it reminds me of the movement in my own life. So often I think my life is ‘same ol’, same ol’ and yet that is far from the truth and the ocean reminds me of this. I hope this painting will be a reminder of the energy of the coast, new beginnings, strong roots, being created anew each day. 

Introducing New Butterfly Collection

16 Original Acrylic Paintings

Playful, Colorful, Calming

"The two parts of genuine acceptance —seeing clearly and holding our experience with compassion—are interdependent.
Together, they enable us to fly and be free. " Tara Brach“

These wings are a reminder and teacher about life, presence, heartache and learning to be present in it all.

Butterflies are sacred symbols of transformation. These pieces are reminders to always pair awareness with compassion. If you pair these two, you will have more freedom. For me, there is nothing as transformative as bringing compassion to a situation.

“It is wise now and then to tune into your heart and listen for what it carries. Sometimes the simplest things effect unexpected transformation. ”

— John Donahue

.So often we respond to increased awareness in life by numbing to try to decrease awareness. We may become aware of someone else’s struggle or it can be a personal realization, "I'm in a dead end job." "I'm not going to live forever." "This relationship isn't going to make it."

Whatever it is, as you increase awareness, you have two choices. 1) Numb and attempt to decrease awareness or 2) Increase LOVE.❤️

When we come into more awareness our compulsions will alert us. They will say, "Oh my! Quick! Do something. This is uncomfortable." If we are having a compulsion (to drink/drugs/sex/overwork/social media/food/exercise etc.) that may be a sign our awareness has increased in some way.
.
If in this moment of compulsion we pause, we may notice a new awareness. Then we can go back to the two choices. 1) We can numb. Sometimes it is a life-saving option, but it isn't a sustainable option. or 2) We can ramp up the LOVE. With this new awareness how can we turn up the love?
.
These are the two wings of freedom, awareness AND lovingkindness. To take flight and find freedom you need both.
.
This collection is a reminder to see clearly and hold with compassion all that unfolds in our lives. 🙏

"[Our Compulsions] are calls to awaken and will, if we learn how to listen, guide us into our true selves, and they will keep calling, sometimes in varied guises, until we wake up." Mary O'Malley

With Gratitue to my friend Anita Halterman for sharing many photographs of Southeaster PA butterflies that inspired these pieces.

Election Day Prayer

Turn to the Light (An Election Prayer)

May we be gracious in accepting results.
May we be kind to our neighbor who longed for a different outcome.
May we be gentle with ourselves if an outcome we dread arrives.
No matter the outcome, may we be humble in acknowledging the work still needed.

May we be slow to anger, violence, resentment.
May we nurture a sense of hope and possibility.
May we find ways to connect with our neighbors who voted differently.
No matter the outcome, may we discover ways to come together.

May we not see this moment as a time to give up on hope or love.
May we not become apathetic thinking others will do the work for us.
May we become students to new ways of being, led by lovingkindness.
No matter the outcome, may we continue to stand up against injustice.

May we drop the narrative of our separateness.
May we see no strangers, but only neighbors.
May we embrace how our humanity is bound up in one another.
No matter the outcome, may we offer loving kindness to all people.

Whatever happens.
Whatever our story.

May we not be seduced into hating our neighbor.
May we not rise into arrogance nor fall into despair.
Despite a cacophony of fear, may we hear the light calling.
No matter the outcome, may we turn towards thoughts and actions that expand that light.

May we put down any weapons aimed to harm body or spirit
May we lift up acts of humility, kindness and understanding.
May we be armed with compassion
No matter the outcome, may we be brave and bold in building bridges of connection.

May we be willing to understand ourselves and others more deeply.
May we be advocates for connection and care.
May we find ways to join together as we move forward.
No matter the outcome, may we turn to the light.

Amen.

*****

"My humanity is bound up in yours for we can only be human together. " Desmond Tutu

"You are a part of me I do not yet know." Valarie Kaur, See No Stranger

Let the Flowers Choose

I've felt an emptiness lately. Maybe you have too. I get lost in chores, go days without leaving my house, get overwhelmed by the injustices in the world, and feel empty.

It was with this feeling that I recently started this painting, and a story came to me, "The Empty Pot" by Demi, from a Chinese folktale. In this story the emperor is looking for an heir. He devises a way to find one. Amongst all the children, he says, I will "let the flowers choose" who the next leader will be. He hands out seeds and asks the children to bring back their flowers they grow the next Spring. "Whoever can show me their best in a year's time," he proclaimed, "shall succeed me to the throne!".

All the children return to their homes eager to do their best work and prove their worth. One boy, Ping, is an excellent gardener and sure he can do a wonderful job. However, his seed never grows. Though he cares for it, waters it, tends it lovingly it never bursts forth from the soil.

In the end, dejectedly he brings his empty pot back to the emperor. Meanwhile all the other children return with amazing flowers they have “grown”. The emperor looks out at all the children and calls forward the boy with the empty pot. The emperor reveals that he has cooked the seeds, none of them could grow. Ping because of his honesty will inherit the throne.

As I worked on this dahlia painting I kept this story and the phrase, "let the flowers choose" in my mind. Maybe it isn't our achievements or accomplishments that define us. Maybe showing up, empty handed, without much to say or offer is enough. Maybe we should let our lives be led by this part of us willing to say, "I am trying. I am doing my best. I don't see any results. And I'm here anyway."

May we find comfort in the sacred beauty of our empty pot moments. This canvas is far from empty, and yet the flowers speak of hidden possibility and carry a reminder to let our lives be led with vulnerability and authenticity.

"Let the Flowers Choose" (SOLD)

10.27.20

40" x 40"

(c) Bronwen Mayer Henry

See other original FLOWER paintings available.