Monday was Memorial Day and I was busy with my family, so I didn't get to post the coloring page.
Here are both for this week...
New Free Pandemic Coloring Pages #128 & 129!
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page #126!
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#stopthestigma #MentalHealthAwareness
In case you haven't seen my other May posts for Mental Health Awareness month, check them out by scrolling down. Today's coloring page isn't just about mental health, it includes other invisible issues including illnesses and injuries. Don't judge. Don't assume. You are better off giving everyone the benefit of the doubt and just be nice. You never know what someone is going through or what they have been dealing with. Choose kindness. Offer support or even just a shoulder to lean on. Be present for your friends and family. Be present for others - even if you don't know them. Imagine what our world would look like.
Personal story - Last week, I was at an outdoor garden with my family and it was 3 or 4 miles of walking. I have bad knees, so I use a cane when walking distances. While taking pictures, I tossed the cane to the side and a group of women sitting and enjoying the mountain/garden view said, "Yea, you don't want to look like you need a cane." I've thought a lot about this. I do need a cane. There is no way I could have walked for 2 hours through the gardens and up and down stairs without it. I didn't need her comment - she should have kept it to herself. She didn't know me or have any clue what my injuries are or why I need the walking support. Keep it simple. Don't judge.
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page #123!
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Today is day 439 of quarantine. Shavuot starts this Sunday, May 16th and ends on Tuesday, May 18th. I created this page for The Blue Dove Foundation (as seen here: https://thebluedovefoundation.org/shavuot/) and I'm sharing it here for both Shavuot and Mental Health Awareness month.
For those who don't know what Shavuot is - it is also known as the "feast of weeks" and it celebrates the day that the Torah was given to the Jewish people on Mt. Sinai (this is why I drew mountains) more than 3,300 years ago; 7 weeks and one day after the second night of Passover (the weeks). It is associated with the grain harvest (the feast). It is typically celebrated by lighting candles and staying up late at night reading the Torah.
This holiday is typically celebrated with the study of the Torah, but in my family, we will celebrate educational achievement. While the school year isn't quite over, my children have worked very hard during this strange year attending school from home on their computers. They have had to adjust their method of learning, modify their organizational methods, and figured out how learn with little to no kinesthetic tools or manipulatives to enhance their learning experiences (I'm not counting filling out a worksheet as a kinesthetic experience). This holiday also celebrates the harvest of the grain, so I will bake fresh bread and we will have our own "feast." Adjust and celebrate.
I wrote "You can move mountains" because I believe we all can. When presented with a challenge, review it, study it, tackle it, but don't go around it. Don't avoid it. That's what this year has been for most people. We constantly have to review the situation and adjust our approach. It might be one pebble at a time, but you can move mountains.
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page #122!
May is Mental Health Awareness Month
#StopTheStigma
Today is day 437 of quarantine and down here in Georgia our local schools are finishing up units, taking end of year tests and milestone tests, completing end of year projects, and preparing EOCs and final exams. Kids and teachers are ready to be done, ready for a break, ready for summer and I don't know about your family, but I can feel the stress in my house. It's Okay Not to Be Okay. I don't just mean about school stuff, about anything and everything. You are allowed to be unhappy, stressed, worried. It's okay to have bad days. Breathe. Call a friend or seek out a therapist. Talk. You can lean on someone to help you through the bad days so it isn't all on you. You are not alone in whatever you are feeling - even if it may feel that way. I'm not a therapist, but I'm always available to talk to my friends and there are many great professionals out there who are ready to talk to you. #StopTheStigma
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page #121!
Copy, Print, , Color and Give this one to Mom!
Day 432 of quarantine. Today's post is a day late because I was volunteering in and participating in a Pitch event on Twitter yesterday to pitch my middle grade graphic novel and was pretty focused on that. Sorry. Today's page is for the MOMS out there. Thank you. I hope you print it out and slide it over to the kids to color for you.
Stay well.
Monday's post will be another for Mental Health Awareness month, so check back here on Monday!
Here's a copy of last year's MOM page...
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page #120!
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Today is day 429 of quarantine and it's May 3rd. May is Mental Health Awareness Month and with the pandemic year being soo challenging for many and those with and without mental health challenges are all feeling additional stress. I started these coloring pages last year because drawing them helps me handle both the stress and anxiety created by everything happening during the pandemic. I'm not going to list what has been causing stress, because I'm not sure that is helpful, but here's a list of just some things that could help you reduce stress or anxiety -
seeking a friend to talk to, coloring or drawing, listening to music, crocheting or knitting or painting, reading a book, doing a crossword puzzle, taking a walk, playing with a pet, baking, watching a funny movie, etc...
Whatever you use to reduce stress is for you. If these suggestions are not enough and you need more help, please contact your doctor and get a referral to a therapist - we have many great ones here in Atlanta.
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page #116!
Today's page is in honor of a good friend, Andy, who is battling colon cancer. He is incredibly strong. Positive. Confident. He hasn't given up. The love of his life hasn't given up. I haven't given up and neither have dozens, if not hundreds, more of his friends and family who love him. He is the bravest and strongest person that I know. He amazes me every day. Keep fighting Andy! You have got this.
Life throws you curve balls, challenges, things that you can't fathom how you will get past, but don't give up.
Inspired by such powerful people like Andy in my life, I don't give up. I was told, 25 years ago, that it was likely that I wouldn't walk again after I crushed my femur and lost the cartilage in both knees. I walk, not fast, but I walk. I was told that I'd have little functional use of my dominant arm after I broke the ulna and dislocated the radial head (same accident as the leg). I've spent more than 20 years drawing with that arm (I have since had to switch to my non-dominant arm, but I'm still drawing almost every day). Don't give up. A favorite quote is "The bend in the road is not the end of the road unless you fail to make the turn." I know that I can walk, I just walk shorter distances and sometimes use a walking support. I know that I can draw, I just had to change how I do it. I wanted to learn how to crochet 4+ years ago and I taught myself as a righty because my left arm doesn't rotate enough.
There is almost always a way around the obstacle. Find it.
Today is day 414 of quarantine. I've had both doses of the vaccine. I'm still at home. I still wear a mask on the rare occasions that I go out. I'm not going to restaurants. We need everyone to get the vaccine, but sadly, Many Georgians aren't planning to get the vaccine. I don't know why and I really don't want to know. It is their decision. It just makes me sad. The sooner we can get herd immunity, the sooner we can get some semblance of a normal life. Stay strong. Get vaccinated. Wear a mask and continue to social distance. We CAN do this.
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page #115
Today, I got dose #2 of the vaccine, so I am happy, and relieved. My plants are looking okay in the garden - not great yet, but this is very early for the garden, so I am happy. My kids are almost done with school for this crazy remote learning year and this also makes me happy.
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page #114!
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Today is day 408 of quarantine. Friends and family are getting vaccinated. I have hope. I get dose #2 tomorrow. I have hope. In case you can't read this page, instead of doodles and patterns around the edges, I have written these words...
HOPE
Health
Vaccine
This ends
You get well
My kids can get vaccinated soon
The sun comes out
Family is Okay
Friends is Healthy
COVID stops mutating
We can get past this
New Pandemic Coloring Page #113
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Today is day 402 of quarantine and the sun has been shining all week. We were expecting thunder storms today and it's been cloudy, but the rain hasn't started yet. My garden could use it, so I'm actually hoping for a little rain. Have a great rest of the week! Stay safe! I hope you enjoy today's page.
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page #112
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Today is day 398 of quarantine and my daughter and I did the most normal thing we've done in a year. We went to the skate park. We had our masks, in case it was crowded, which it wasn't. She had posted on social media that she was having a meetup at the skatepark and invited others to join her. We went, met new friends (keeping socially distant), she skated for 2 hours, and it was a great event. What a nice thing to see after a year of remote school and almost no social interaction with kids her age. I hope you are all being safe this spring break, but also getting to do some normal-ish stuff.
In world news - This week the Pfizer vaccine announced that it is 100 percent effective for 12-15 year olds and we are looking forward to my teens and their friends getting vaccinated.
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page #111!
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page #110
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Today is day 391 of quarantine. Happy Pesach. I know that the vaccine rollout is here and I've even had my first dose, but I also know that friends are struggling. While many of us are eligible to get vaccinated, many are not. We have kids at home who can't get vaccinated yet. We have versions of the virus evolving and changing and we don't know if the vaccines will protect us from them or for how long. This is stressful. Mental health is important. You are enough. I am enough. Believe it. Say it. Color it. Post it somewhere that you can see it.
Some ways to safely handle stress during the pandemic - doodle, color, crochet or knit, read a book, take a walk, listen to music, spend time with a dog or cat, talk to a friend on the phone, dance it out, ride a bike, bake something you love and eat it while it's still warm out of the oven. We all have bad days and that's okay. Choosing an activity that will make you feel better can turn things around - one day at a time.
May is Mental Health awareness month, so look for more positive pages coming soon.
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page #108 & 109!
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High school students can get vaccinated.
College students can get vaccinated.
Young adults can get vaccinated.
Friends in their 30s and 40s and early 50s can get vaccinated.
Roll up your sleeve and do your part.
Let's wipe this thing out and get our kids safely back in school.
Since Passover is starting this Saturday evening - Here's a Passover Seder coloring page. There are 3 hidden pictures in it (not hidden too well so the little ones can find them) - Elijah's cup, a piece of Matzah, and the word L'Chaim!
Free Coloring Page #109!
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page # 107!
Today is day 384 of quarantine and in the last few days, I have had several things to be thankful for.
1. I attended an online event that renewed my energy through a shared art project. Thank you, Illyse. I had the opportunity to see how 40 different women take this one statement and turn it into art. All individual. All unique. All fantastic.
L'Chaim! To Life!
2. I received my first dose of the vaccine last week and I feel a sense of relief, of thankfulness and gratefulness.
3. I planted my frost hardy plants in my garden and working in my garden gives me great joy.
In addition, Passover is approaching this weekend and this holiday brings a feeling of power and survival - and a sense of joy in the new life and new hope that comes with spring and plants sprouting and flowers opening.
*Be healthy. Be thankful. Be grateful.
Passover Coloring Page coming this Wednesday!
*If you have lost friends or family this week, I am sorry for your loss.
New Free Pandemic Coloring Page #106!
Today is day 379 of quarantine - Every day is a new day. I hope you saw yesterday's post and are celebrating small moments. The pandemic can be stressful, so take the celebrations you get. Today's page is about learning. You can learn something from anything and everything. Think about this one. You learn something from everyone, even if it's what not to do. You don't have to judge. You don't have to get angry. You do you. Learn from others and figure out something to use or something to remember not to use from that information, but whatever you choose, you will continue to grow.
In my Get Out and Go challenge for this year. I have ridden 16 miles and I have 484 to go. When we have better weather, my number will go up, up, up. Make a goal. Do your best. Celebrate your progress. #GetOutandGo If you want to join me, leave a message. If you don't walk, bike, swim, jog, skate, *insert any other activity* 500 miles, then celebrate what you do get done.
