Don’t remember subscribing? It probably happened when you made a purchase at my Etsy shop. If you must, you can always unsubscribe using the button at the bottom of the newsletter, but I hope you’ll stick around!
Revisiting Resistance Apparently I’m not the only person who gets waylaid by Resistance, which I reported on in my last newsletter. I’m employing a stoic approach to deal with my challenges (see below), with good success. Thanks to everyone who commented, emailed, and even phoned(!) to respond. The most helpful reminders were to:
set deadlines and put them on your calendar
break work into small chunks and use timers to stay on task
most importantly for me: less thinking, more doing
Wish I had a miracle cure to offer, but alas, no.
Sneak peek I’ve been having a blast monoprinting! More on that next time. Above: Out in the Wild | Monotype | 8” x 8” x 1” To purchase, click here.
Stoic giveaway! Info at the bottom of this section.
In recent years I’ve followed the rise in popularity of the ancient Greek philosophy of Stoicism. Ryan Holiday and his Daily Stoic website, podcaster Tim Ferriss, and Antifragile author Talib Nassim are just a few of the high profile personalities touting stoic values (with a capital S, the word refers to the historical philosophy, with a lowercase s, it’s more about a generic set of principles encouraging self-mastery and resilience).
Stoicism often evokes ideas of stuffing your emotions and living an isolated, humorless life. But that’s not how I see it. What I value is the emphasis on doing all that I can do, and letting the rest go; accept reality, amor fate. This includes feeling the entire range of human emotions but not letting them dictate my actions, being involved in public life when needed, and not taking myself so seriously. As Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius said, “Be gentle with others and strict with yourself.”
Stoic concepts inspire me, but… where are the women? Couldn’t women also benefit from embodying the four Stoic virtues of wisdom, courage, justice, and temperance? Last autumn I decided to design a calendar specifically to inspire women to practice these valuable personality traits, but using quotes by long-dead men (Aurelius, Seneca, Epictetus, et al) didn’t seem to fit the bill. I started researching contemporary female stoics, found quite a few (many via this excellent site), and contacted them to ask if they would allow me to use a quote of theirs on my calendar. Almost all of them agreed, so I put the project together and sold them on Etsy (three versions: here, here, and a digital download here). They sold quite well!
Now for the giveaway. I have two remaining copies of the version shown above in my stash. If you want one, just let me know by clicking the comment link below and giving me your name and address. I’ll put one in the mail to you right away. I know we’re almost to March, but better late than never!
If you’re interested in promoting stoic ideals, I’ve designed many posters, journals, and other items that are available in the Stoicism collection in my Etsy shop. Maybe you’ll find something to inspire you!
If you have ideas or experience to share about Resistance, or stoicism, or anything else, I’m all ears!👂🏼👂🏼👂🏼 Just click the comments link below.
TamJo AdAstra :)
Or you could leave it at Ad Astra - I’ll be there Sat. afternoon between 2 & 3.