Land art: Mandalas in Nature

© Heidi Spitzig

Perhaps one of the greatest things I miss in the Winter is being able to simply sit in nature. I long for the days of strolling through the woods, picking wild flowers to place in my basket, and finding a place far into the forest to just be and create mandalas from the petals. The process of creating something that would feel so meaningful in the moment and then choosing to walk away from it would simultaneously fill with me great peace and a type of sadness that eventually taught me about getting out of my own way and letting go.

© Heidi Spitzig

Each mandala was lovingly created, from the flowers I’d picked to peeling off the petals and painstakingly arranging them one by one according to color, size, and shape. Every time I walked away, I would feel an ache in my heart at the thought of leaving my creation behind. By the time I’d reach my car, this ache would transform into inner peace. I realized that it was the process of creation itself and not the final product that had aligned me with some source of inner strength and made me feel more deeply connected to myself.

© Heidi Spitzig

Creating something so fleeting taught me that art isn’t about creating masterpieces, though sometimes that happens. Art is about the process of creation, the resistance to what is being revealed, the practice of getting out of one’s own way, and being able to leave all of that behind in order to do it again and go deeper. And every time we are able to do so, the more our art will reveal about our soul.

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