24-154 Citizenship

The Mandala Lady, , , , , , , , , , ,
abstract background with blobs of purples, reds, greens, gold, and light yellow. grayish-pink lines throughout that look like wrinkles in fabric. on top in white ink is a 2” diameter sketchy circle with 8 petals about a 1/4 inch apart from each other. the next row has the same style of petals only they’re shifted over to be centered over the gap in the previous row. the word citizenship is written curved inside the bottom of the circle.

Citizenship

“a combination of membership, participation, and responsibility within a given community of shared values and goals”

Usually when we think of citizenship we think of it in terms of belonging in a civic way (voting, paying taxes, obeying the laws, and so on). For today, we’re focusing on a more personal level of citizenship. For instance when we join groups or organizations…ie become members.

Over the years I’ve joined multiple groups and organizations (art guilds, toastmasters, women in business, zonta, local government committees, masterminds, home owners associations, etc.). The thing is when I join something, I join it…most of the time to my detriment because I tend to over do it with my involvement…to the point of burn out. With most of these, I usually last about two years and then I’m out.

What tends to happen for me is I notice that only a few of us actually participate and take on responsibilities while the rest seem to ride along. It frustrates me and then resentment starts to build, and then blah blah blah…I’m done. It’s probably a people-pleaser and/or a control-freak thing on my part.

Since I can’t control or change what other people do or don’t do (darn it!), it then becomes my responsibility to change what I do. To be honest I haven’t joined anything for over six years and quite frankly I’m not sure if I want to or am ready to. The key for me is three-fold: 1) do I truly care about this group, do I truly want to give of my precious time for this cause, 2) embrace moderation when it comes to my level of participation, and 3) is there equity in the level of participation/responsibilities by others.

Are you a joiner? Are you a joiner who participates? Or are you a joiner who participates and takes on responsibilities?

How about you? Is citizenship a core value for you?

BTW…here’s what it looked like to begin with …

abstract background with blobs of purples, reds, greens, gold, and light yellow. grayish-pink lines throughout that look like wrinkles in fabric.

joyfully,

Maureen
The Mandala Lady

inspiring and encouraging creativity, curiosity, and play through the art of mandalas

About the 2024 Mandalas of the Day

Each day I will create and post a mandala inspired by one of 366 “value” words chosen randomly. The objective being to discover for myself which ones would best represent my core values…and by doing so, I hope it inspires you to determine your own.

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Published by The Mandala Lady

My Mission: connecting with our Inner Light in delightful, inspiring ways For me, creating mandalas is more than just coloring pretty patterns in a circle. I do it because my spiritual evolution and creativity require it of me. My mandala designs come about within an active meditative state, connected with my higher self, my spiritual guides and nature spirits. Together, we bring into form, mandala art the allows me to re-connect with my own inner peace and joy, letting me explore and expand my own creative spirit to however far and in whatever direction I want to take it. As part of my own spiritual journey, I encourage, and hopefully inspire, others to explore their own creativity, to help them re-connect with their own inner peace and joy. As a means to that end, I make all of my mandalas available for people to color. Why should I have all the fun?

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