Sunday, April 19, 2009

Turtle Island

"Turtle Island"
Kate Jobe 4/2009

I began this mandala perhaps eight months ago with the intention of creating in a more earthy, and somewhat simple style. Being me, loving ornamentation, that didn’t happen. I found it this week and was inspired to recycle it. The more I worked on it, the turtles became more flamboyant. They are, after all, painted turtles and the focus of this piece was to celebrate and honor Mother Earth. So, my humble turtles have been transformed into highly embellished ones but venerable, nonetheless.

Turtle Grandmother is a symbol of Mother Earth. Turtle reminds us to slow down, look around at the world around us and to remember that all that we need is provided for us in the realms of Mother Earth: Her trees; Her lakes and rivers; Her grasses and flowers; Her animals and birds; Her sunsets and sunrises; The geography of her land…all have gifts of insurmountable beauty and resources to share with us. We will continue to be sustained by our beautiful planet if we reciprocate her generosity and take care of her.

Wherever Turtle travels she has her home upon her back. At all times, everything that she needs surrounds her. We carry everything we need within us…the spark of original joy…the comfort of our original peace that was infused in us at birth. We have to seek shelter within the home of our spirit, the compass that steers us toward truth, to experience more beauty and appreciation of the world around us.

To me, the alignment of the turtles shells in the North & South segments of this mandala resemble ornate tropical butterflies. On the medicine wheel the red road of the path of heart runs between the north and south. When we go within to the truth of our soul, we can determine what speaks to us with heart and meaning. Energized by passion for life, we rise beyond ourselves to reach greater heights of awareness and can then reach outward with a generosity of spirit.

We owe it to ourselves to nurture that inner spark…to cultivate it to its full bloom. We owe it to Mother Earth to be fully present for ourselves to allow us to take care of her in the best way possible. How can you further cultivate your spark of original joy and peace to it’s full bloom? How can you nurture and appreciate Mother Earth?

5 comments:

Stacy Wills said...

so totally awesome, kate...so much to take in at once - very easy to get lost in the incredible beauty of this mandala. i really love it!

Gabi Greve said...

Hi Kate,
I have a bit on the

Tsuru Kame, turtle and crane symbolism of Old China

http://www.amie.or.jp/daruma/Tsurukame.html

Greetings from Japan.
Gabi

Daruma Museum Japan
http://darumasan.blogspot.com/

.

Cheryl Finley said...

Kate..
So amazing and beautiful...so intricate. It's like a wonderland. And thanks for the links in your article.. I look forward to exploring. And you might remember from my Turtle Love mandala...Turtle is one of my main totems..learning more about her totally makes me understand myself more. I am a home body by nature..and it's no wonder, my home is with me wherever I go. Thank you Turtle...thank you Kate.

Unknown said...

if you had been in the room with me, you would have heard me gasp as the image opened. i love the compass and the ornamentation...are those jewels on the points? this is one of my favorite images of yours...

Kate Jobe said...

Thanks so much for all of these comments. I'm honored by your appreciation. Sue...yes they are jewels at the points...I managed to stop myself after applying 8 of them...ornamentation is my middle name