The Human Condition with Susan Marie (Why Is This Considered Art?) Episode #4

The Human Condition is a weekly 10 minute audio series featuring me, you and a conversation about everyday experiences made simple.

The human condition is defined as "the characteristics, key events, and situations which compose the essentials of human existence, such as birth, growth, emotionality, aspiration, conflict, and mortality".

Episode #4 covers art appreciation, the debate about - what is and what is not considered art, the main art periods, movements, sub-genres (Ancient Classical, Medieval, Renaissance, Neo-Classicism, Romanticism, Modern Art, Contemporary Art, Indigenous, Islamic, Hindu, Asian, African Art), a funny story about Jackson Pollack, the Artistic Preferences Scale 1.2. and something fun for you to try.

Listen Here: https://soundcloud.com/susan-marie/the-human-condition-with-susan-marie-why-is-this-considered-art-episode-4

Resources:

Artistic Preferences Scale 1.2 Demonstration: openpsychometrics.org/tests/APS/

Sit back, relax and enjoy.

I rely on your feedback, so hit me up.

Please share, subscribe and follow on iTunes: itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/s...

YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UC2wg77y8t0SMIeHXZEtZPCw

Soundcloud: @susan-marie

Subscribe to my weekly newsletter with audio: suemarie.substack.com/

Peace,

Susan Marie

The Human Condition with Susan Marie (What Is Xenophobia?) Episode #3

Audio Here: https://soundcloud.com/susan-marie/the-human-condition-with-susan-marie-what-is-xenophobiaepisode-3

The Human Condition is a weekly 10 minute audio series featuring me, you and a conversation about everyday experiences made simple.

The human condition is defined as "the characteristics, key events, and situations which compose the essentials of human existence, such as birth, growth, emotionality, aspiration, conflict, and mortality".

Episode #3 covers xenophobia, microaggressions, implicit and explicit bias and terrorism, focusing on defining such terms and finding solutions for self to overcome bias. This episode is dedicated to the victims and families of the New Zealand Terrorist Attack.

Resources:

Harvard's Project Implicit Test: implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/education.html

USCF Office of Diversity & Outreach: diversity.ucsf.edu/programs-services/overview

Sit back, relax and enjoy.

I rely on your feedback, so hit me up.

Please share, subscribe and follow on iTunes: itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/s...

YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UC2wg77y8t0SMIeHXZEtZPCw

Soundcloud: @susan-marie

Subscribe to my weekly newsletter with audio: suemarie.substack.com/p/the-human-co…tm_source=copy

Peace,

Susan Marie

The Human Condition with Susan Marie (The Five Senses: A Demonstration) Episode #2

The Human Condition is a 10 minute audio series featuring me, you and a conversation about everyday experiences made simple available on Soundcloud and iTunes.

Every week will feature a new subject suggested by you, to me.

The human condition is defined as "the characteristics, key events, and situations which compose the essentials of human existence, such as birth, growth, emotionality, aspiration, conflict, and mortality".

You can listen here: https://soundcloud.com/susan-marie/the-human-condition-with-susan-marie-the-five-senses-a-demonstration-episode-2

Episode #2 covers the basic five human senses, focusing on the sense of smell and relating that to memory and emotion with a short demonstration.

Sit back, relax and enjoy.

I rely on your feedback, so hit me up.

Peace,

Susan Marie

 

The Human Condition with Susan Marie (newsletter)

Hey everyone, 

I started radio again and have a 10 minute (or less) weekly podcast, The Human Condition that focuses on complex things made simple. All kinds of cool things to explore. 

You can subscribe here: https://suemarie.substack.com/ and that goes right into your inbox. 

You can also listen to the podcast for this week (on that link above) to get an idea of the tone, quality and diverse subject matter that I will present. 

Show some love. Most importantly, to yourself.

Peace, 

Susan Marie 

The Human Condition with Susan Marie (What is Mindfulness?) Episode #1

The Human Condition is a new audio series featuring me, you and a conversation about everyday experiences made simple. Every week will feature a new subject suggested by you, to me. 

The human condition is defined as "the characteristics, key events, and situations which compose the essentials of human existence, such as birth, growth, emotionality, aspiration, conflict, and mortality". 

In this ten minute conversation with you, dear listener, this episode of The Human Condition covers the simplicity, not complexity, of mindfulness including a one minute mindfulness technique for greater self awareness. 

Sit back, relax and enjoy. 

I rely on your feedback, so hit me up. 

Peace, 

Susan Marie 

Reinvented Success: 26 Authors Share The Little Things That Matter So You Can Help Yourself Master Confidence, Motivation, and Success

Proud to announce a book publication of mine along with renowned and bestselling authors on the subject of writing and creating. 

These are tested and tried tips, hacks and experiences from a plethora of creative people for those that fear writing, wish to simply begin, or stress over the publication and submission process.

"Reinvented" was created to make you powerful. Learn from 24 authors who share their one secret - the simple and easy thing that gave them a big breakthrough - around success.

Available on Amazon: https://lnkd.in/e7DRb5H

A Great Perhaps

How ecstatic it feels to be open, like a sieve, fresh water pouring through holes, like nerve endings, another energy melding with your own, blood pumping through arteries and veins, across synapses, traveling from the crown of your head to the tips of your toes, electric.

Sharing my soul with another forms a most holy union protecting us both from the onslaught of the dank energy of this middle world.

But like seasons, we change, and the essence of humanity has waned. Each time I share my soul with another, instead of filling my chalice, they drink. And drink.

They drink so gluttonous it seems the sky will swallow me right up into the atmosphere to be lost among the heavens, eternal, and every time my feet hit this dear Earth, I am sure the ground will grab my ankles and pull me right down into the deepest depths of what I imagine to be hell.

I prefer to be a sieve. It is my natural state of being, but to exist in this land of humankind as an open, accepting, empathic soul, is quite the arduous task.

I often wonder how Mother Earth feels, always alive, breathing, bearing her breasts for any ole fool, never ashamed nor worried for her own health and well-being, always with open arms, she is willing to embrace even the crudest of our kind.

Perhaps this is why, for me, this is the only place I can be a sieve, in her arms, beneath the safe canopies of her treetops, holy angelic halos, with my hands deep in her lifeblood, the dirt and clear water streams, where salamanders and damsel flies play, where there is no noise, only the wind, Mother Earth breathing, heaving from her lungs, billion year old carbon.

Perhaps, this is why I adore Joan of Arc, a maiden on voyage, silver gilt and shielded, eyes ablaze with wonderment, brain abuzz with messages, otherworldly.

I too, shall ride stallions into war, one arm raised, in great holy thunder, battalions behind me, forged steel as protection, the Gods and Goddesses, holding their palms above my dear head, rays of light streaming from behind clouds.

 © photo and words Susan Marie

Solitude is Communion

 © Susan Marie 

I have always been a solitary creature. Even when extremely extroverted, for that is who I inherently am, however, my initial need for absolute solitude the past few years, except for communication with one or two trusted humans, was to heal from the most hideous emotional pain I have felt in over fifteen years. 

During that time, I more fully recognized the emotional, psychological, spiritual, and eventual, physical benefits, of the necessity of solitude. 

The joy I feel in quietness, to hear the birds singing outside, the ticking of the clock, the call of wild geese, to dance to music, to sneak into nature and just simply BE, is necessary for elevation of the mental and emotional self.

Imperative for true elevation of the soul. 

What I discovered when I tapped back into technology [texting, instant messaging apps, Facebook], after a year or so of not utilizing what society deems “necessary sociable and acceptable means of communication”; and I view as a facade, fake, not reality and easy ways to miscommunicate; I started to experience anxiety, sadness, a disturbance in my own peace, an argumentative stance, anger, emotional confusion, and all of my energy stripped from my soul. 
    
I felt myself starting to become ill.
 
What does that tell you about the state of humanity? 

A necessary component of being a successful Clinical Mental Health Counselor [my current path], as well as an enlightened human soul, is to know self, via solitude and the entire time I have been healing, then focused on my education and career; I have been happy, secure, well with my place in this world, directed, on mark, existing on a plane suitable to my soul; the progression of self, loving and knowing myself, accepting myself fully. 

I am still on this journey. 

What I discovered is reconnecting to society via certain forms of technology, was utterly disturbing to my well being. 

I began to doubt myself, and instead of pleasing self, I fell into long tossed away destructive behavior patterns of pleasing others. 

Now I fought those behaviors internally, and externally, still kept my distance, for I know myself pretty well, however, starting to utilize technology in the above ways brought to me isolation, not connection, and for me, after so much absolute breathtaking personal freedom, technology was suffocating. 

I felt like I was stuffed into confinement. 

Which is interesting to me psychologically considering most people feel that solitude is confinement and loneliness, however, my solitude is peaceful and enlightening. I am not in absolute solitude by any means, I live a healthy, productive existence, however, the noise of society and feeling of responsibility that comes with using technology, is exhausting. 

In the book, Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other, by Sherry Turkle, the author states:

When we don’t have the capacity for solitude, we turn to other people in order to feel less anxious or in order to feel alive. When this happens, we’re not able to appreciate who they are. It’s as though we’re using them as spare parts to support our fragile sense of self.

Right now, after leaving some of technology behind, my heart is lighter and my spirit, grounded.

I am centered - away from the noise. 

There are people I love with my entire being and never wish to cease communicating with because they have beautiful souls, mean the world to me, people I trust with my life and have created lifelong soul-bond relationships with that are eternal, however, that does not mean I must be in constant communication. 

Instead of living for me, my betterment, that of this space here, myself and my family; I was anxiety ridden, worried, could not sleep or eat, my brain was on an endless loop of negative thinking. 

Unhealthy attachments and boundaries people have created to stuff, the need to constantly communicate, to have attention paid to them, to feel they must pay attention to others, being too busy, addicted to drama, and mass miscommunication, is essentially, fleeing SELF for an unreality, a coping mechanism that denies SELF, in turn, is the fear of seeking self, thus trying to FIND self in others. 

Everything I saw was fake, is false, a need and want for validation from others. 
 
I seek none of these things.

Solitude is a necessary component for loving and accepting self. It does not mean I want to be solitary forever or am always solitary, it simply means I love myself more than the demands and restrictions of societies. 
 
The positive aspect is recognizing when you are depleted, to stop, step back, regain your ground and reflect. 

I belong in this world, I do not belong in my past.

I sit here now, writing to you, peaceful. Peaceful because being sucked back into what no longer serves my purpose caused me mental and emotional imbalance.  

Solitude is communion. 

*

The Road Not Taken 

by Robert Frost 

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

© William Robert 

Swan Songs

On SoundCloud HERE 

I cannot teach you languages,
nor histories of nations and men,
nor can I teach you of wars and rebellions;
but I can teach you of the stars and sky,
the silt and dirt of this dear Earth.

I can teach you why your heart flutters
at the sight of beauty
and why the touch of another
is the hand of a most holy angel.

I can show you galaxies undiscovered by mankind
until the reflection of your own soul appears,
in cloudbursts blanketing the sky.

I can tell you why your feet, bare,
long to hug the sand and soil.

You are a channel to the divine.
Do you not recognize the call of birdsong at early dawn?
How can you deny your breath and body?
It is made of the same elements as driftwood and thunder.

Your voice is that of lightning,
your breath,
the aether of ancient firmaments,
ones your ancestors sat and prayed beneath,
bedouins in the searing sun,
the sweetest eye of heaven.

Come, take my hand,
I shall lead you to yourself.

You have seen the well-worn path,
wooded and weary
by lakes and rivers.

You know the way, you may have forgotten.

Come, come follow me into what is known and unknown,
what is truth and fiction,
where there is no language,
only sight,
where swan songs are heard,
deep, meditative ruminations,
trumpeting supplications to the great Gods.

Come, come follow me into what is known and unknown,
what is truth and fiction,
where there is no language,
only sight,

and walk proudly, dear soul,
walk proudly,

into your rightful place
of existence.


© Photo & Words Susan Marie

Like Lovers Do

On Soundcloud HERE

 

My hands shake
beneath this precious dawn,
not for myself,
but for the fate of humankind,
a land I do not belong,

for my eyes see the peaks of Himalayas
in the tips of pine trees,
where bluejays perch,
contemplating their next flight,
and the grass,
as Whitman pondered,
this precious gift, otherworldly. 

No, I do not belong down here,
yet I am grounded,
for my spirit is in flight
with the hawk,
scrying above,
screeching solitary,
as a murder of crows
attempt to take it down
from the most holy sky,
yet fail,
again and again.

I see this world like a child,
wondrous and wide-eyed,
an explorer of my own soul,
the new dawn shines upon my chin, upturned,
and the breeze,
she tussles my long mane,
like a lover,
splaying my legs,
ever so gently,
apart,
to the virgin skies.

I belong in the waves,
meeting the shore,
the crashing of tides
beneath the moon, full.

I exist in the limbs of trees 
and the sound of my feet
bearing down upon this sweet Earth.

My soul longs for completion,
for respite from the dying world,
for I exist in both,

in a land where my voice is unknown
to the language of humankind.


© Photo & Words Susan Marie