Isabel Designs

On a bright, sunny Sunday this past October, I answered a casting call put out by WORKSHOP and CAPTAIN AND THE FOX to be part of the video reading of the Charter For Compassion in New York City. I jumped at the opportunity because I believe in the powerful, hopeful message of the Charter. (That’s me in the picture in the front on the left side) Click here to see the video

It’s been quite sometime since I’ve been able to engage in ‘spiritual’ dialogue of any kind, even though I still consider myself to be ‘spiritual’. I’ve been waiting and longing for something I could really sink my teeth into, and without a doubt, I have found it. “Treat all others as you want to be treated”. This simple, yet ancient philosophy of kindness and respect toward others is worth getting excited about, especially in a world that so desperately needs it.

There are numerous opportunities for everyone to get involved in events celebrating the Charter world wide. There is also an open door for each of us to create our own events, and in that spirit, I’ve been working on two. First, along with my signmaking peers, we’ve established a blog and gallery of Inspirational Word Art. Secondly, I’ve written a new song called, “Higher Ground” with co-writers Dawn Kenney and Christine Hatch. The song will ultimately find its way to a youtube video featuring the Inspirational Word Art, and hopefully will find wings beyond that.

Everyone can get involved in spreading this message: facebook-it, msn-it, tweet-it, blog-it. More importantly, we need to ACT on it. Compassion is a lifestyle. An attitude. An invitation.

Designed by Nancy Beaudette

Peace

I would like to invite you to learn about “The Charter of Compassion”. This idea was conceived by author Karen Armstrong. She was the winner of the TED Prize in 2008 for her unparalleled expertise and wisdom regarding the three theistic faiths: Islam, Judaism, and Christianity, and their impact on the world today.

“The Charter will proclaim a principle embraced by every faith, and by every moral code. It is often referred to as The Golden Rule.”

On November 12th, 2009, the Charter of Compassion will be unveiled, unleashing a week of celebratory activities around the world – in places of religious worship, public spaces, schools, universities and workplaces. We are all invited to participate and spread the word. This could quite possibly be the greatest accomplishment of our generation, and we can be part of it.

“Compassion manifests itself in the world not by thinking but by doing.”

Let’s do something!

Pat Pattison, Jonnell, Nancy Beaudette & Graham Greer in Nashville

Friend and mentor Pat Pattison is a songwriting professor at Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA. He teaches seminars on the craft of songwriting all over the world, and was recently interviewed on New Zealand television. 

Just as a skilled craftsman builds an extraordinary piece of furniture by manipulating the tools in the workshop, the songwriter must hone and refine songwriting skills too. In this interview Pat states that, “it (writing) starts to be art when it stops being arbitrary”. When done successfully, the marriage of melody and lyric leaves the listener filled with emotion. Watch the interview here

I have worked with Pat on numerous occasions and filled my ‘songwriters’ toolbox’ with many new tools. ‘Stable vs. unstable emotions’, ‘motion creates emotion’, and ‘writing from a title’ are just three of the valuable seminars he teaches, and I highly recommend any of Pat’s classes.

Visit Pat Pattison’s website for more information about seminars and online songwriting classes at Berklee.

Every town or city, big or small, has something to celebrate. One of the great things about summer is the number of festivals and fairs being held all over North America. I have fond memories of cotton candy and ferris wheels at the ‘Newington Fair‘ as a youngster. This annual agricultural event, held on Labour Day weekend, marked both the end of summer and the beginning of a new school year for me and my siblings, and we looked forward to meeting up with our cousins for a day of fun.

The Williamstown Fair, the oldest fair in the province of Ontario, is perhaps still my favourite of all time. It has thrill rides and great food, along with terrific entertainment (I have performed on the ‘Centre Stage’ many times), horse shows, antique machinery & car displays, highland dancing and caber tossing, and so much more. The vendors are always top notch – especially the Sign It Signs & Design booth where you’ll always see carving and painting demonstrations, and even get to try some of the techniques yourself!

Nancy Performs at RRWF

This year I’m being introduced to a new weekend event – The Red Roof Women’s Festival. I’ll be performing there on Sunday, July 19th along with other songwriters and performers who will be taking the stage all weekend. My sister-in-law Eileen will be accompanying me on viola for a few tunes too. And Isabel Designs will be setting up a booth! We’ve signed on to be vendors all weekend, bringing our creations ‘off-line’ so to speak. Maybe I’ll see you there! (You can hear some of my songs and get more info about my music here).

Another festival not to be missed in Eastern Ontario is Cornwall’s Lift Off Balloon Festival. The line up this year is incredible, including Amanda Marshall as the headliner, and my good friend Graham Greer as the opening act for her. 

There’s no excuse to stay home this summer. Get out and experience the local flavours of festivals and fairs in your neighbourhood!

Angus Woody MacDoodle

I was walking in the woods yesterday, as I often do, when I heard a faint but familiar sound. I turned to see a tiny orange tabby emerge from a pile of wood rubble, and without hesitation it came towards me. I hardly had time to bend down before he was at my heels. An adorable kitten, six to eight weeks old, obviously socialized, looking a little worse for wear and all alone. He had some trauma to his tail and a dirty face, but other than that, looked healthy. I picked him up and carried him out of the bush. Knocked on doors of surrounding homes, but couldn’t find an owner. 

It is appalling to me to think that people abandon pets, but it happens. This is not the first orphan kitten I’ve attended to. Families living in the country seem to be targets for unwanted cats and dogs, as if by some mysterious right it is our responsibility to care for discarded animals. I have certainly fed and cared for my share of strays over the years because of someone else’s neglect. It is not a burden I choose, yet I cannot disregard the living, breathing, hungry creature that wanders across my path. 

So I named him Angus Woody MacDoodle. Thankfully I had a can of tuna in the cupboard, and though it took a bit of coaxing, he ate up the small bowl that I put out for him. Then I wrapped him up in a shirt and brought him to the local veterinary clinic where they kept him overnight (a portion of his tail had to be amputated). Today he will be delivered to his new home. One phone call to a friend was all it took. Angus will have a family after all. 

At the end of the day, I’m feeling like a kitty hero – making the big resue, playing nursemate and adoption agent all at the same time. An act of compassion that took little effort but will yeild big results. I believe every moment we step outside of ourselves to serve another – animal or person, or even when we tend to the environment – we create goodness in the universe and expand the possibilities for love and respect in the world. 

How do you feel about this? Share you comments with us now.

I really didn’t know anything about ovarian cancer until my mother was diagnosed back in 1998. Her symptoms snuck up on her and by the time she realized there was a problem, she was already in stage three of the disease. Ovarian cancer is typically very difficult to diagnose, and can remain silent for quite some time before causing any symptoms. My sister and I are now quite vigilant about our ‘reproductive’ health, knowing that often this type of cancer is in the genes. Regular visits with our doctor now include additional screening – just in case.

There are a few things all women can do to reduce the risk. According to the Ovarian Cancer Research organization of Canada, taking the birth control pill for five years can reduce the risk by more than 50%. Another little pill we can take that will substantially reduce the risk is vitamin D. The American Journal of Public Health stated that, “The high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency, combined with the discovery of increased risks of certain types of cancer in those who are deficient, suggest that vitamin D deficiency may account for several thousand premature deaths from colon, breast, ovarian and other cancers annually.” (link to article)

I’ve been taking vitamin D for a few years now, initially as a way to combat depression, but now I take it for cancer prevention too. I think we all need to be extremely proactive about our health, and this is just one little thing – that may turn out to be a big thing – that I can do for me. 

Now what I’d like you to do for ‘you’, is visit the Ovarian Cancer Research website and familiarize yourself with the information available there. There is a feature on their site that allows you to set out a postcard to family and friends to help spread the word about education and prevention of this disease. The photo below is one of their postcards.

I know Mom would be proud – is proud. Our local newspaper caught up with Sue and I to write a little expose on our jewelry business. If you’d like to read the article, it can be found on Isabel’s website.