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HI. I'M SARAH.

"I know that becoming conscious is a never-ending process.  My prayer is that by the actual end of this life, I will exit wearing my own true face and be completely unmasked.  Authenticity has been my aspiration.  Whatever is in the shadow, own it, pull it into the light and let it shine."   

                                                                                                           - Ellen Burstyn

I was born and raised in Kansas.  I thought I'd grow up and become a social worker.  Instead, I became a Horticultural Therapist and moved to California to escape what I believed was a growing-up-on-the-Plains induced depression.

My California journey began in San Diego.  There my depression was joined by the onset of adult psoriasis.  In an attempt to out run the discomfort of my exterior condition, I moved up the coast to Marin county.  I was in search of clear skin.  

I wanted a quick fix.  It was the only thing that mattered.

However, the only thing that was clear, was this: that no matter how perfect my skin might look on the outside, and it was far from looking perfect, my inner condition was still going to need my attention.  I began to wonder if my interior condition was connected to my exterior condition.  I stopped searching for a quick solution for my skin and started working with Judyth Weaver, who introduced me to Sensory Awareness and much, much more.

The more I worked with Judyth, the quieter my mind became.  The quieter my mind became, the more I wanted to make art.  I wanted to make art just like I did when I was a kid; before art became something to produce.   I wasn't interested in classes offering techniques or classes with critiques.  I wanted to make art just to make art.  So I sat with my wanting until a friend showed me his paintings.  That was it.  I started painting with Michele Cassou and Stewart Cubley.

The strong medicine of making art and sensing is the way I cultivate heartfelt presence.  Through them I've found a way to meet myself and life with a mighty kindness.  Sure, I still experience resistance about going beyond my knowing, my comfort zone, but, more often than not, I find myself deliciously interested in living heart-fully, without effort, on my own solid ground, breathing in and out.  I have

found a way to meet life with a mighty kindness.

WHAT DO I DO WHEN I'M DOING SOMETHING?

I believe creative explorations invite a wild, sweet ride into the sincerity of your heart.

I am moved by how presence is cultivated through thoughtful inquiry and support to investigate what is arising in the moment.  Making art and sensing, with fierceness and tenderness, gives me the space to invite a deep meeting of my interior condition with the outer world.  

I lead  retreats and workshops using the simple activities of painting, altered books and sensing as a way to explore living sincerely from the heart.  My workshops offer a gentle way to meet one's interior condition.  My deep curiousity about living more heart-fully, along with my sense of humor and Kansas sensibilities, inform my work in the studio, rooting it in the here and now.  It is delicious to find myself here, on solid ground and resting more fully in my humanness.