Mandala GiveAway #2

Sweet Spring Joy (Circles of Spring Series 2010) Sue O'Kieffe ©2010
source image: wild strawberry blossom

It seems like February can be a challenging time for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere. Have you had it with too much snow? Too much rain? Not enough sun? Too cooped up? I try not to focus on the negative, but I sure know how much better I feel basking in the sun and filling my eyes with light. Bring on that Vitamin D!

So I think it is time for another mandala giveaway. I want to celebrate the blessings of over reaching over 500 followers on Facebook and over 100 followers here on Blogger. I know that many people come and read my blog that I don't even know about, and I want to thank you too. I am grateful for all of you who are inspired and uplifted by my mandala art.

Here are the giveaway rules :

1. Leave a comment on the blog that you want to be considered for my giveaway
2. Important! If you don't have a way for me to contact you when I click on your name (that will lead to a blog or website, in case I don't know you by name) please leave me your email address. I will save it and then delete it when I moderate comments, and enter you in the drawing without showing your contact info.
   
3. I will leave this drawing open until Sunday February 28th
4. On Monday March 1st I will use random.org to select the winner
5. The winner will be able to choose one of the mandalas on my Facebook fan page and I will send you a small print (a $30 value) of the mandala of your choice. Anyone, anywhere in the world, may enter.

While you are here, won't you consider signing up for my monthly newsletter? Every month I randomly pick one of my newsletter subscribers to win 3 of my greeting cards.

Do you know about my Etsy shop? You will find many inspiring mandalas and greeting cards available there. I'd love for you to come take a look around.

I hope the Sweet Spring Joy Mandala,created from wild strawberry blossoms already blooming here,that Ive posted today, helps lift you out of the winter doldrums. May Spring always blossom in your hearts.

Sue O'Kieffe
Sacred Circle Mandalas

My Mother's Mandala

Gift from God Mandala (Circles of Awareness Series) © Sue O'Kieffe 2010
source image: bicolored daffodil

When I woke up this morning, I realized this mandala was all about my mother Dorothy. Yesterday would have been her 81st birthday. Mom passed away on February 15th, 1999 from complications of multiple sclerosis. She was diagnosed with this crazy diseases in her late 20's, but it wasn't until my father passed away ten years before her that the MS really came out of remission. All I remember from my childhood is that it was a big mystery to me (and probably to her, too, since no one really knew anything about it back in the late 50's and 60's).

Dorothy loved red, black and gold. She was a classy lady in many ways, and a searcher for the truth. (I think she is younger in this picture than I am now; and that is somehow hard for me to wrap my head around.) I know that some of the many gifts she gave to me were her exquisite color sense and her stubborn strength. My mother was determined not to let MS get the better of her. She learned Reiki before it was a common alternative healing modality. She was a leader, a searcher, a seeker, a frustrated artist. Mom also suffered from social anxiety and was prone to bouts of depression. I don't think she ever accepted who she was or learned to live in the Now, although I saw moments of that lucidity a few days before she passed away.

I don't know if she loved daffodils, but she loved red, black and gold; and I know she would have loved this mandala. Dorothy means Gift from God. This one's for you, Mommy. I'm so glad I don't have to prove myself to you anymore. Thanks for being proud of me.

Sue O'Kieffe
Sacred Circle Mandalas

OCEAN SERIES #5 - Ocean Weaver Mandala

Ocean Weaver Mandala (Ocean Story Series) © Sue O'Kieffe 2010
source image: driftwood

As I was creating this mandala I was thinking about all the stories this piece of wood could share from the moment it was first washed up onto the shore. It is worn by wind and waves, smoothed by time and full of marvelous patterns. I wonder where the tree was originally rooted and how long it has been on this beach. It is curious to me how this wood arrives at the coastline, especially after one of our magnificent rain storms - the power of nature never ceases to amaze.

I have been experimenting with a new Photoshop kaleidoscope plug in that I downloaded from mehdiplugins.com. It's been fun to play with for additional textures and patterns, and I like the way all the subtle colors of the source image as well as the foamy ocean spray all play out in this image.

Sand and sea, ocean and river, wind and water ... all these elements weave together in power and majesty. Can't you feel it, smell it, taste it, touch it? These are the stories that nature shares with us.

~Sue O'Kieffe
Sacred Circle Mandalas

Delicate Love Mandala

Delicate Love Mandala (Circles of Spring series) © Sue O'Kieffe 2010
source image: white plum blossoms

Spring has returned. The earth is like a child that knows poems ~ Rilke

Delicate Love Mandala is the first I've created for the Circles of Spring series for 2010. While other places in the United States are being blanketed in snow with plummeting temps, we are being graced with these delicate blossoms of early spring. When I notice the blooms for the first time each year, my heart actually skips a little beat and I feel joy.

May your heart be encircled with tiny little buds of love, knowing they will burst open with your care.

~Sue O'Kieffe
Sacred Circle Mandalas