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Oct 07
in Tonga, Uncategorized

Silent Flight …. More…. & Swimming with Whales in Tonga

Rescuing Innateness_ Julie Stephenson Whale Swimming Tonga

Click to enlarge photo and see detail.

After each series of encounters swimming with various whales, there was a point where I knew and felt content that it was time for us to move on and leave the whales to get on with doing their ‘own thing’….or to feel the cooler air and the softer light on my back to return to a little cafe at the pier where the delight of roasted coconut and salty, hand-cut, hot chips accompanied reflections and words which best described the day for each of us…. but secretly did I want more?

Throughout the day often I just sat with visions of my experience rocking through my thoughts as the boat chugged slowly toward another location on the ocean. I felt humbled. I recognised this absolute privilege.

Mothers and calves. Singers. Pectoral fin slapping. Escorts. Pods of five. Repetetive tail slapping. Pods of ten in a ceremony protecting a female about to calve. Breaching.

I felt so happy and content; yet over the hours and days, sneaking up silently from within me was a hunger and an excitement to experience more. I could sense an innocent innateness within me that I wanted to nurture and let grow without hindrance.  I felt butterflies in my tummy when I woke up. I felt an eagerness about what not only the day would open to ..but perhaps what I would open myself to as well.

Was I being greedy? I felt an inquisitive anticipation of what other experiences I would be privileged to. Was I not satisfied with what I have experienced more than most people on the planet have had the opportunity to? I questioned why after I had experienced something so profound, and after breathing such contentment; that I still had bubbling within me a yearning to experience and feel more. Was I being ungrateful? I felt content, but still had an excitement silently flying within me. Was it wrong to want to open to and explore something new and be in the mystery of the unknown?

For me my answer is NO. Perhaps I am being greedy, but for me that’s ok. For me to be human and to honour and celebrate my existence IS to want to open and to experience and feel as much as I can…. in celebration of my “wild and precious life.” (once again thank you Mary Oliver).

I endeavour to honour and learn from all of my experiences…. . and although I connect with such expansion and contentment through some of them; my learning encompasses the unveiling of and deeper connection of who I am and that which is beyond who I am… and if experiencing more means I can connect more deeply with that which is Beyond me so I can express a greater reverence for my life… I say BRING MORE ON!!!

So until next Whale Swimming in Tonga, and whatever experiences open to me ahead each day and minute…..with humble gratitude to the whales for letting me play in their space and witness the silent flight within me of my yearning to open to experience, expand and celebrate.

Silent flight_Julie Stephenson Tonga Whales

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About the Author: Julie
I am a Journeywoman. I live my life as an explorer. An adventurer. An Observer. An Artist. There is no differentiation between how I live my life and the art that is an expression of it. It is through my experience adventuring the unknown, that I learn more about myself. My aim through this connection is to live where my expression is fully in alignment with the essence of who I am. “In the field of Fine-Art Photography, Julie stands apart from others with the way she sees the world and expresses her connection within it. Julie Stephenson’s photographs are sublime. Her work is an expression of her deep connection; and a gift to the world.”

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skeinydipping

I looked down and saw my hands. Hands which have t I looked down and saw my hands. Hands which have touched; have loved; have created; have worked; have nurtured. My hands.   

I looked down and saw on my wrist and fingers items from around the world which have so many stories; items which have all been created from the heart and made by the hands of others. 

I looked down and saw beautiful yarn. Yarn which has been handled carefully through shearing, dyeing, skeining, balling; and now being knit in my beautiful hands. 

My hands are one of my gifts. This year I’ve really missed the touch of another with my hands, to feel the heart of another through my fingertips; but so grateful and love my hands which touch and feel; work and play!

What do you see when you look at your hands?

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Knitting a fabulous  #slipstravaganzamkal by @westknits .
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#gratitudeattitude #westknitsarethebestknits #westknitsmkal2020 #knittersofinstagram #knittersoftheworld #knittersofaustralia #indiedyedyarn #handmadewithlove #handmade #handmadejewellery #fromtheheart #createeveryday #livetotravel #healing #healinghands #creativehands
My life is wonderful… and I have so many stories My life is wonderful… and I have so many stories. I’ve had adventures on all continents. Slept being rocked by the sea; felt the ice on my skin in both polar regions, and felt the silence of the deserts. I’ve walked stone steps in monasteries at altitudes where each step I’ve taken consciously and mindfully; focussing on treasuring every molecule of oxygen in the rarefied atmosphere. 

COVID has paused those adventures, but I draw upon my experiences as I navigate adventuring my days in a different way, on our ‘home range’. 

I recall my steps in Tibet as I walk through our bushland. I am mindful and conscious of my surroundings. I listen. I feel. I feel happy here. I am content.

My new stories may not hold the same experiences of connection with others; and may not be of extreme challenges or crazy things  (which I am rather prone to doing! 🙂 ) but they are not less wondrous… as I smell the warm eucalyptus waft from under my feet. 

I weave my stories, and this story is of my personal journey on my daily walk through our bushland. 
You can see some of my other woven stories on my website - link in profile. 

How do you express your life’s stories?
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#weaversofinstagram #indiedyedyarn #indiedyed #rigidheddleloomweaving #ashford #inspiredbynature #contentcreator #emotionalbalance #homedeco #handcrafted #makersmovement #creativelifehappylife #wellbeing #travellerlife #journeywoman #weavingaustralia
“....The Assookinakii cowl was created for those “....The Assookinakii cowl was created for those times in your life when you need a meditative and healing knit. Assookinakii (ass-s-oo-kin-uh-k-EE) means ‘healer’ in the Blackfeet language, thank you to Cut Woods School in Browning, MT for the tradish language support”. –  Candice from @thefarmersdaughterfibers 

Knitting this beautiful cowl by Candice from @thefarmersdaughterfibers for @sistersunitedmt ; WAS healing. 

As my hands gently formed the repetitive stitches I reflected on the word ‘Assookinakii ‘ - healer. I am a healer. I don’t understand it. It’s something unseen. Something within me which has been recognised by Ngangkari and ‘clever men’ here in Australia; and shaman and healers around the world as we travel. This recognition always has caught me by surprise; as I seem to walk a line between two worlds. 

As the stitches slipped from one needle to another and the beautiful colours of @spincycle_yarns revealed themselves; in the pauses between the stitches I heard a voice whispering to continue to seek connection with the natural world and listen deeply. 

What has been healing for you this year?
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#healingjourney #meditationpractice #dyedinthewool #assookinakii_cowl #knittersofinstagram #knittingaddict #livinglifetothefullest #happydays #shaman #healer #healersofinstagram #listentoyourheart #indiedyedyarn #handmadewithlove #knittersgonnaknit #knittersoftheworld
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2017 All photographs created by and property of Julie Stephenson.