Personal Stories | Sheila Collins

Making Visual Art to Help Us Grieve

by Sheila Collins | Sep 21, 2023 | Art & Life, Grieving, Personal Stories, Self-Care, The Art of Grieving

Visual art is what people usually think of when they hear the word “art.” Arts that are categorized as visual art; painting, sculpture, film, drawing, ceramics, crafts, print making, photography, video, and architecture, are appreciated primarily through our...

How About Looking to Music as Medicine

by Sheila Collins | Sep 7, 2023 | Art & Life, Community, Family, Our Children, Past Events, Personal Stories, Play, Songs, Story-telling

Grandsons Ethan and Will were nine and six years old, respectively, when I watched their mother interrupt a fight they were having. She had clearly done this before, and I saw that she had some skill in getting the boys to each look at the situation from the other’s...

How the Arts Help Us Grieve

by Sheila Collins | Aug 24, 2023 | Art & Life, Celebrations, Community, Duality, Environment, Family, Gatherings, Grieving, Personal Stories, Rituals

I’m in that stage of life when family gatherings are more likely to occur around funerals and memorial services than weddings, holidays, or birth celebrations. We family members promised one another at the recent gathering for my sister’s funeral that we’ll plan and...

Eulogy for a sister Mary Jane Smith

by Sheila Collins | Aug 16, 2023 | Community, Family, Gatherings, Grieving, Health and Wellness, Personal Stories, Spirtuality, The Art of Grieving

I insisted on speaking on behalf of my sister Mary Jane because I am the only one in the room who was there at the beginning. For me, her life began a t the votive candle counter in a Roman Catholic Church. I’m 5 years old and the lights sparkle as mother supports me...

So Sorry

by Sheila Collins | Aug 3, 2023 | Art & Life, Community, Family, Grieving, Health and Wellness, Our Children, Personal Stories, Resilience, The Art of Grieving

It seems an almost universal response. The person is asked about something negative that has happened, “how is your mother doing?” or “what do you remember about the accident?” or “Was she your only sister?” Next, as the person begins to talk about the situation,...

How the Spiral is a Perfect Model for Grieving

by Sheila Collins | Jul 20, 2023 | Art & Life, Celebrations, Environment, Grieving, Meditations, Our Children, Past Events, Personal Stories, Self-Care, Spirtuality, The Art of Grieving

Spirals are found in every aspect of nature. They are seen in the unfurling of fern leaves, the shape of snail shells, the arrangement of flower pedals, the cochlea of the inner ear. Not just a simple circle, the path of the spiral changes levels as it grows or moves...

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Learn the Many, Magical Ways Art Transforms Grieving!

(No art skills required.)

Loss is inevitable, yet too often we bury our grief, pretending we're OK when we're not.

In my new book (COMING SOON), I'll share some uncommon notions about grief and how the arts, and art-making, have transformative powers that take us to the heart of the matter.

Making Visual Art to Help Us Grieve

How About Looking to Music as Medicine

How the Arts Help Us Grieve

Eulogy for a sister Mary Jane Smith

So Sorry

How the Spiral is a Perfect Model for Grieving

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