by guest author Judy Mastrangelo, creator of RedFeather’s new release: Inspirational Visions Oracle Cards.

Welcome to my world of Fantasy, where I create imaginative paintings, write and illustrate fairy tales, and communicate with the spirits of nature.  Flowers, trees, mountains, and clouds are just a few of the fantastic and beautiful aspects of Mother Nature, and they are our friends.  I love to share these feelings of love for the world around us.  I also have a deep adoration for great works of art throughout the ages.  I can’t imagine a world without art to uplift and inspire us.  This includes great literature, music, paintings, dance, drama, film, and photography. 

Through my Oracle Card deck Inspirational Visions, I’m delighted to share these feelings about the love of life, which gives me great joy.  I enjoy talking about these things very much and am always glad when others experience similar feelings.  I understand, of course, that our lives have many ups and downs, successes and pitfalls.  We are only human beings, but we also have the ability to soar to great heights.  We may live in a humdrum world where we have to do ordinary things such as making a living, but we don’t have to feel bogged down by this.  The very miracle of being alive is such an awesome thing!  When you contemplate this fact, it can bring such happiness.  All of humankind has deep-seated hopes and desires which may lie dormant inside of our hearts.  You may have forgotten or buried these sweet dreams since childhood.  As we progress through life, we may develop feelings that these imaginative ideas and aspirations might seem too “unrealistic” or childish.  But try not to feel that way. 

These wonderful ideas and feelings of our youth live eternally deep within our hearts and are yearning for us to remember them.  Once we discover them again, we can reawaken them, and they will bring us tremendous joy.  They will contribute to your innate creativity, which we all have.  Everyone has within them several gifts.  These may be artistic talents that come in many forms.  The world of art has many aspects, and there is a place for everyone.  It could include the art of cooking, sewing, gardening, singing, sculpting, as well as the familiar arts of music, literature, painting, dance, and drama.

I urge people of all ages, both the young and young-at-heart, to meditate in your own little private space about what gifts you would like to develop, and what would give you happiness.  I have developed a method which I call “Mind Painting,” in which I meditate, with my eyes opened or closed.  I let my imagination fly, and various images and ideas will come to me.  If you try this you will find that it’s like a stream of consciousness of ideas and dream images entering your mind.  You can concentrate on amorphous things, such as the movement of water or clouds.  It’s like scrying in a crystal ball. You’ll be amazed by what your fantastic mind will come up with.  It’s an exhilarating experience that you will certainly enjoy and want to develop further.  All artists in various fields throughout the ages have used this and similar techniques to create their great works of art.  And you too have the ability to bring to life beautiful things which lie deep within your imagination.

There are many things to inspire us.  As I mentioned, having a deep love of the beauty of nature is a great way to begin.  I myself have the feeling that everything in nature is alive.  I sense the presence of “Nature Spirits” all around me, in the form of elves, fairies, angels, and sprites, as well as water and tree spirits.  I have never actually seen a fairy, but I sense them around me, especially when I am outside in a lovely garden.  It brings me great happiness to feel the majestic presence of a tree.  They are really like actual living beings, not just pieces of wood.  I feel that all of these Nature Spirits have feelings, sensitivities, and magic. Without our beautiful Nature, the world would be a bleak and barren place.  These lovely Nature Spirits inspire me greatly in my paintings.  I often personify them and make flowers into elves and fairies or trees into graceful dancers.  This is one thing that gives me great joy in life.

As I mentioned, I am tremendously inspired by great art throughout the ages.  Fantasy art is among my most favorite, since it takes me away to other imaginary worlds, so uplifting from this world of every day.  I love great fantasy literature, and also great films which have developed this imaginative literature into delightful movies.  Some of my favorites are The Wizard of Oz, early classical Disney animations such as Snow White and Pinnochio, the old black and white 1935 movie A Midsummer Night’s Dream with great actors and a fairy ballet with beautiful music by Felix Mendelssohn, The Lord of the Rings as well as The Hobbit, and the Harry Potter movies, to name a few.  I love the art of ballet, and I often have the impression that the delicate ballet dancers seem like graceful and beautiful floating fairies and angels.  When I read great literature and poetry and watch wonderful films, I am often inspired to create enchanting paintings, and write my own original fantasies. 

If you look within your dreams, you may find people from your past who resemble fantastic characters from famous Literature, such as wizards, magicians, heroes, dragon slayers, gods and goddesses, elves, fairies, and angels.  You may also imagine amazing creatures, such as unicorns, dragons, griffins, Pegasus, etc.  All of these fantastic creatures and beings are certainly inspiring and exciting.  You can dwell on them in your mind, and live for a time in your own fantasy world.  Try fulfilling your desires, and actually imagine yourself as your favorite fantasy character, doing all of the fascinating things that they would do.  You might want to even dress up like that special being.  Try developing your imagination in this way, or any other original way that you develop on your own. Remember your fantasy experiences, and after these reveries, you will feel refreshed and inspired to develop and live your life to the fullest.

There are so many things that you can be inspired by throughout life:

• Being with wonderful people you enjoy, who are uplifting and share your interests
• Reading a fascinating book
• Watching a film
• Listening to music
• Looking at a painting that you love
• Dreaming
• Being surrounded by beautiful Nature

All of this could make you want to be creative also.  Try writing a story, creating a painting, dance and sing and play a musical instrument to music you love, or make a sculpture out of clay. 

My Inspirational Visions Oracle Cards can be used in many ways.  They’re not only intended to specifically “tell the future,” but also enrich your life through developing your imagination and creativity.  Never forget about or give up your hopes and dreams that may have been suppressed in your heart from childhood.  Bring them to life and let them blossom to the fullest. In that way, you can create your own future and help uplift yourself and others to great heights, with inspiration, spirituality, and the love of life.  That is the great Art of Humankind.

Explore Inspirational Visions Oracle by watching this brief flipthrough:

About the Author:

Judy Mastrangelo has painted all of her life, and she daydreams about her paintings for a while before putting them on canvas. This preliminary technique of “Mind Painting” helps her develop an imaginative work of art. She licenses her artwork in several markets, and many products using her paintings are available for purchase to the public, such as wall murals and art prints of her paintings. She has done artwork for other inspirational card decks and has also written and illustrated several books, which include themes of poetry, fairy tales, and fairies. Judy’s author’s page on Amazon can be found at www.amazon.com/-/e/B001KI3S1Y. To learn more about her art and products, please visit www.judymastrangelo.com.