Bijou Speaks: Deliberate Strokes

 In 2014, we were thrilled to announce a new member of the Zentangle Community. It was a celebratory time when Bijou the snail slowly and lovingly glided his way into our hearts and lives. We immediately fell in love with the unique character Bijou shared with us, and most of all we all, we embraced the stories and messages Bijou has told us that align with the Zentangle Method. 
As we move along on this tangled journey we have learned, when Bijou speaks, we listen.

In this Blog series we explore some of our favorite thoughts, quotes, stories and Bijou-isms. Enjoy!

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Julie writes...

Deliberate Strokes – a bijouism that may not roll of the tongue as easily as savor or inspire, but one that embodies so much of the Zentangle philosophy. One that I have chosen to embrace in this new year.

I have always had mixed feelings about New Year’s Resolutions. On one hand, this time of year invites moments of reflection and assessment and goal setting. On the other hand, it is full of promises to do less of this or more of that, sometimes setting unrealistic expectations for ourselves. Personally, I like to make one or two small, achievable goals or intentions for the year. Sometimes they are silly and sometimes they are things I may already do but want to focus on more.

This year, I decided I wanted to tangle more. That shouldn’t be hard, right? Considering my job and all…

For a few days though, the resolution was not sitting right with me. It was too vague – what constituted more? Should I tangle every day? Twice a day? Twice a week? For how long? I realized through all of this deliberation that I did not want tangling to be a task on my To-Do list. I did not want to end up sitting down and rushing through a tile just so I could say that I tangled.

Then, my little friend Bijou whispered in my ear, “Deliberate Strokes.” I decided that I will tangle more… deliberately. Tangle with intention.

When we are more deliberate with our strokes, we are focused on the process of tangling and not the end result. We are focused on one stroke at a time and how it relates to the other tangles on our tiles.

I began a tile with the tangle mooka. Being very deliberate with each of my mooka’s, I made an effort not to plan how all my mooka’s would look together in the end, but on one mooka at a time. I worked through my tile with the same deliberation I began with and when it came time to shade, I focused on one line, one tangle a time.

With deliberate strokes, and all those other, wise words from Bijou seem to fall into place… savor, breathe, focus…

What kind of intention are you setting with your tangling this year? Tell us which Bijiousim you are focusing on this year and we will randomly pick a few winners to receive a Bijou Box!