IN A CIRCLE OF JOY (and a raffle ~ giveaway)

11/21/2011

ART INSPIRED ABOVE:
Custom artwork by Rachel Awes, who draws from Mia T. Starr's words.

Join in the dance for a chance to win
a print of the featured drawing above, plus a surprise gift from Mia.
A raffle ~ giveaway below (through December 26, 2011).
Connecting and sharing our journeys through the moments,
travels, stories, treasures and dreams.

♪♫ ✶ Happy Holidays. ✶ ♪♫

THE STORY BEHIND THE RAFFLE ~ GIVEAWAY

I had just returned from an immersion into writing, bliss, and the artful life in Tuscany when I saw a new follower, Rachel Awes, in my Twitter stream. As with all my new followers, I read Rachel's bio and recent tweets. Later I went to check out her blog and learned she was a psychologist, art playgroundist, writer, wife, mother, and friend, who loved listening to the beauty in people. She also sold art for your heart at her Etsy shop. At her blog, she shared her awe and inspiration from the gold she kept finding. On that day, Rachel was also having a Word Giveaway at the Wish Studio. She wrote:

Rachel Awes

i would love to invite you to come play with me. would you share a favorite sentence or saying that is particularly resonating with you these days in the comment section? at the end of july, i will choose one that speaks “draw me” to me & i will put it into picture for you and mail you a print ... your words & all that resonates within you are wildly precious.

thank you, deeply, for considering! l*o*v*e, rachel

Feeling inspired from my writing immersion in Tuscany, I accepted Rachel's invitation to play in her Word Giveaway contest and submitted my words and joy:

We danced in the delight of inspiration all around.

My submission was a line from a story and photo journal I had just finished writing and putting together: Embracing the Sun in Tuscany (which was also recently posted here at my blog).

On August 4, 2011 I received an email from Rachel and learned I was the winner of words :-) I was both thrilled and honored. It marked the first time my words inspired someone to *draw* from them. Celebrating that moment and the spirit of sharing in a circle of joy and inspiration, I am sponsoring a raffle for a chance to win a print of the featured custom artwork above (drawing by Rachel Awes and words and inspiration by yours truly). There will also be a surprise gift from me.

♪♫♪♫
You're almost there.
Scroll and see below for the various ways
to enter the raffle for a chance to win:
post a comment, share, subscribe, follow, like, or tweet.

Come. Join us in a circle of joy and be inspired.
Be part of the magic. Dance in the delight of inspiration all around.
♪♫♪♫

Thanks so much for being here. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and happy holidays. We wish you a glorious New Year. May it be blessed, joyous, and inspiring. May it be full of creativity and discoveries, following and trusting your bliss.

Let's do. Dream. Believe.

-Mia

ENTER THE RAFFLE BELOW.

✶Leaving a comment on this blog post is worth 4 entries.
Sharing your dreams under *aspiring and inspiring* is also worth 4 entries.
All other options are worth one entry each. Enter below for your chances to win.✶

✶Twitter followers of Four Days A Week
will be automatically entered in the raffle
(up to 12:01 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on December 27, 2011).✶

♪♫ Thanks so much for being part of the fun, raffle, and inspiration. ♪♫

✶For readers viewing this post via email or a feed reader,
please click through the blog post title or here to enter the raffle,
which ends at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on December 27, 2011.✶

✶The winner will be randomly selected and announced at the blog
on January 2, 2012 when we return from the holidays with a new post.✶

✶If you wish to share this raffle at your blogs,
please contact us for the widget, or if you have any questions.✶

✶Thanks so much for joining us in the circle of joy
and inspiration all around.✶

✶A top story in Anita's Finding Inspiration Daily and
The Becoming Daily. November 2011.✶

Comments

Lara link

11/21/2011 6:17am

Oooh - there's so much that inspires me! My favourites are walking in the woods with my dog, my children's little sayings and words - such as 'dancing in the delight of inspiration' - the words make me want to dance! Lovely :)

Patty

11/21/2011 4:09pm

That is lovely. Light and joy is what I hope will fill my heart!!

11/24/2011 5:20pm

I am inspired by my little sister, who never fails to seize the day, my emotions, which help me express myself in art, and also by music, which always soothes my soul. :)

Theresa

11/27/2011 9:14am

I am inspired by those of us who keep trying despite what seems to be overwhelming fears.

stan stewart (aka @muz4now) link

11/30/2011 10:18pm

Mia,

You do such beautiful and inspiring things. Simple, effective, wonderful. Thank you.

Playful blessings,
Stan

Dr Pooja Tripathi link

12/05/2011 8:32am

i am inspired by those who dare to dream ,dare to create a vision &dare to take a less traveled path against all odds because Life is one long training session,in preparation for what will come.Life &death lose their meaning,there are challenges to be met with joy &overcome with
tranquility"
Love
Dr Pooja

rtn

12/26/2011 3:37pm

I am inspired by my five-year old son who reminds me every day that the world is full if wonder, surprise and hope.

FourDaysAWeek link

01/01/2012 9:44am

Thanks so much everyone for sharing your joy and inspiration with us. Thank you for making this small corner of the World Wide Web a special one. -Mia

✶CONNECTING AND SHARING OUR JOURNEYS through the moments, travels, stories, treasures and dreams. ✶AT FOUR DAYS A WEEK. ✶Aspiring and inspiring. FROM HERE TO THERE. ✶LET'S DO. DREAM. BELIEVE.✶ -Mia T. Starr

CONTRIBUTORS & GUESTS

Click here for our special guest posts since 2010, or click on an image above to take you there.

SWEET TWEETS

NEWS & NOTES

✶ This year's special guests:
✶ Donald Verger, award-winning photographer; ✶ Matt Michaels, aspiring broadcaster and journalist; ✶ Melissa Sawatsky, writer, poet, and editor; and more to come.✶

✶ Thank you for being here and making this corner of the World Wide Web a special one. We treasure your tweets, comments, and emails. Thanks so much for sharing and sending them. ✶ If you wish to receive our blog posts for your week and beyond, subscribe to our Monday Musings and be inspired. ✶ Please note we only blog on Mondays, and we love having you visit here any day of the week.✶

✶ Cheers to our special guests and friends: Naoko Stoop on her new book, All Creatures Great and Small and to James King on completing his manuscript. Well done, Naoko and Jim!

✶ Stephen Lloyd Webber, an excellent writing teacher who helped Mia with her MORNING SUN in Tuscany, is offering Wellness and Writing Immersion ~ Online Writing Classes.

✶ Gems along the way for MORNING SUN, a historical fiction in progress. No matter how dark the morning, the sun always rises. -Mia T. Starr

READERS SHARE

✶ Mia, you do such beautiful and inspiring things. Simple, effective, wonderful. Thank you. -Stan Stewart

✶ I loved your post and your description of the secret garden! Your words to me right there. :) Thank you for that experience. -Carolyn CJ Jones

✶ Beautiful post! You have such an excellent ability to impart the feeling of the retreat experience. I love this. -Stephen

✶ WOW! Loving Clara's 8th grade graduation speech ~ believing in oneself. -Kerri Far

✶ Art and Joy. Love the cadence of your writing. -Mike, On A Junket

✶ dearest mia, your presence is breath-
taking. as is your writing, your face, your pictures. -Rachel Awes

✶ Action! I can almost hear the director pulling this film together, firm voice rising above the din. I know, it's a book. But you write with the taste and feel of film. The gift of vivid, clean storytelling. I look forward to the next installment! Thanks for sharing this. @virtualDavis

✶ How lovely, Mia! Thank you for sharing these poignant thoughts about your beautiful, strong grandmother and the excerpt from your WIP. It reads like poetry. -Caron Guillo

✶ Mia, what an amazing thing to wake up to ... that was the most beautiful imagery I've ever seen ... and your words, as beautiful as your spirit ... I can't thank you enough for sharing it. And to think I never would have seen it if it weren't for lovely you ... -Jennifer Valentine

✶ Photo-
graphic Moments In Time: Awesome interview with Esta Singer @sheconsulting -Kathy Meyer

✶ I love your blog, Mia! Beautiful in design and compelling in content. -James King

✶ Thank you for sharing the wonderful story about how you found my artwork ... these comments are treasure for me as well as it's fuel for my next creation. -Naoko Stoop

✶ Thank you for your kind comments about my post "expanding my horizons" ... I popped over to your site for a visit, what a wonderful place you have there! I am adding you to my blog roll, I definitely need to visit, often ... -Kelly Letky

✶ Mia, you are such an inspiration with your writing, travel, advocacy and all. I am so happy to have met you here. Bless you! -Anita Bondi

TOP STORIES ~ the ones that captured your hearts and imagination, here and at Anita's Finding Inspiration Daily, The Becoming Daily, and other online papers. Thank you so much. ❤ ✶*¨¨*•*¨*✶☼

✶ In Venice ~ an awakening. In a swirl of art and joy. Above the grandeur. Photos, moments, and poetry.

✶ A daughter makes a visit to her father's village of Mong Phu in Vietnam. A family passage.

✶ Clara's 8th grade graduation speech ~ believing in oneself. Looking forward, looking back.

✶ Uncommon views. Unforgettable moments. Under the sun. On the White Rim Trail. Moab, Utah.

✶ We lift our voices above the sorrows of the earth ... a hundred flowers bloom.

✶ Together we can make a difference. Wrapping our arms around hope. For Japan.

✶ HG handed the story to Mom and said, "Put it in my packpack. Please. I want to read it in school. Okay?"

✶ MORE TOP STORIES ✶ ƒ๏ℓℓ๏ω YOUR HEART AND INTUITION ✶ experience ✶ TAKING FLIGHT WITH LIFE ✶ something new ✶ BEYOND THE TRAIL ✶ THE WAY TO THE SKY, THE WAY TO THE STARS ✶ AN IMMERSION into Writing, Bliss, and the ARTFUL LIFE ✶ AM WRITING MORNING SUN ✶ MOM'S GARDEN From Vietnam to Michigan ✶SPRING ETERNAL ✶ WISHES AND CRANES WITH LOVE ✶ JOURNEYS OF HOPE ✶IF YOU FOLD A Thousand Cranes ✶ PRELUDE TO MORNING SUN ✶ A HISTORICAL FICTION In Progress ✶¨*✶•*¨*☼✶

BELIEVING AND FOLLOWING OUR BLISS. FROM HERE TO THERE.

ABOVE: Words and inspiration by Mia ~ 1st place Winner of Words. Art ~ Drawing by Rachel Awes.

TREASURES ALONG THE WAY ~ DOING WHAT YOU LOVE.

✶Life is short. Live your dream. And share your passion. -Holstee Manifesto

✶Wellness and Writing Immersion ~ Online Writing Classes by Stephen Webber.✶

Art to Save Trees by Jade Webber.

Lush little book by Naoko Stoop.

Freedom by Kate.

Vintage assemblage jewelry by Sacred Cake.

In 1965 a nine-year-old son gave his mom a magnolia tree and planted it in front of their home in Toledo, Ohio. Each spring the tree grew and blossomed, carrying with it the spirit of life. This year the flowers of the tree were dancing to the winds on a clear, blue sky day. Photo by Beth Bingle.

❤ If interested in being a featured sponsor at four days a week, please contact us. ❤

GIVE VOICE TO YOUR DREAMS.
LEAP FEARLESSLY.

In being fearless
you are not without fear,
rather you are
withstanding fear.
You are moving forward
in spite of it.
-Meredith Pignon

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-Dr. Norman Peale

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