Splash of Life Art

21/08/2023

This photo is very special to me.
These two gorgeous women have carried me through some pivotal moments and life shifts
They may not even know how much I appreciate them both. Of course I let them know, but sometimes words are not really enough
Yesterday we got to dance together, sing together and feel into that buzz that comes from music, connection and collective energy.
SoulFull Julie-Anne has taken me on wild ride of self discovery and healing as I completed my Holistic Integrated Creative arts therapy training through her incredible teachings and college. Now that experience was so much more than a course. It was a healing journey and one of deep trust, inspiration and creative expression.
Dallas from Surfside Sounds helped me find my voice again. To find the joy in singing that i so very much longed for. A block in my voice and stories in my head never allowed me to sing for joy. I felt envious of anyone who could. I now attend a singing group weekly and we sing for joy, we sing for connection and we laugh and allow ourselves to feel free.
To both these women, I am so grateful! These women use their gifts to help others. They put their time and heart into their offerings... just as I now do too.
Things start to shift when we commit to bettering ourselves... healing and growing is an incredible journey. And one that creates a positive ripple affect of change greater than what we will ever know. These women are part of how I was able to begin a podcast, being Ok with how my voice sounded and brave enough to share our stories and learnings with others and create an epic community supported journey which is Soul Presence
Its a journey alright!
Life takes us in weird and wonderful directions and the best part is we dont know exactly whats coming next. How fun is that
Of course there a many more women who have got me to here... one being my soul sister Natalie who I am so bloody proud and grateful to work with to create our magic. Nat saw me before i saw myself.
Wondering what magic we have created together?
I invite you to come have a look
Www.soulpresence.com.au (link in bio)

13/08/2023

Ready to start saying YES to you again and begin playing with the possibilities that await you.
Doors have now opened to INVITE FOUNDING MEMBERS into this new delicious space
A safe, fun and nourishing space to ride the waves of each other's momentum as we connect, explore and cheerlead each other as we move towards a life that truly lights us up.
Lets reignite the best version of ourselves so everyone who surrounds us can benefit
Www.soulpresence.com.au (link in bio)
Natalie and Mel xo

12/08/2023

Last day of our Grab Your Keys and Go, 5 Day Challenge today!
Follow along here if you missed it:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/grabyourkeysandgo/?ref=share_group_link (clickable link in bio)
Nat and I also share some great Grab Your Keys and Go moments at the beginning of our podcasts.
Are you enjoying the podcast?
Are the whispers of change calling you?
Are you ready to say YES to YOU and get yourself back onto your list?
We are so excited to invite you into our new space 'Soul Presence' as a founding member, so we can build this community together and continue to cheer each other on this journey.

Check out the link in the comments to see how it all works.

Mel and Nat xx

19/07/2023

How do I get to Retreat? (and other things I love)

Post 4.

There is one more thing that I often hear women say without using the words….

‘How do I receive?’

For some women they have been giving for so long that the beautiful loop of giving and receiving is way out of whack.

It can feel challenging to take the big leap and swap the roles for a moment and become the receiver.

It requires surrender, allowing, openness and maybe learning how to feel loved.

And the only words of wisdom I have for you is to say yes when things come along, then lean in and get curious about the journey along the way.

Creating space for a soft place to land, like the space we create at retreat allows for the gentle unfolding, where you can learn as you go.

If you have been following our posts this week and have felt in your body that its a YES for you, let’s chat about the things we explored in the posts this week that are getting in the way and together we can find the pathway that feels right for you to get there.

Remember possibility is our specialty!
Welcome to Soul Presence
All of your is welcome here
Www.soulpresenceretreats.com.au

Love Mel and Natalie

18/07/2023

How do I get to Retreat? (And other things I love) Part 3

So we’ve conquered the money chat! (if you missed it check out Part 2)

Today is all about Mother Guilt.

What’s that you say?

Ok so maybe you have heard yourself say something like this?

‘What will happen if I am not there for the kids?’, ‘What if something goes wrong at home while I am away?, What if ……needs me?, What if the routine goes out the window and the family loses? Is it selfish to take this time out for myself, my kids deserve more of my attention.

But let me tell you dear mumma the mother guilt is a sneaky trickster, it disguises itself as concern and love, but often masks the truth that you are doing an incredible job and also you can trust the beautiful relationships that you have built so that the kids feel safe and can trust themselves to work things out even when you are not there.
Reach out. We would love so much to hear from you.
Www.soulpresenceretreats.com.au

17/07/2023

How do I get to Retreat? (and other things I love) Part 2

Yesterday we got curious about things that can stop you from saying yes to yourself whether it’s about getting to a Retreat or sitting and reading a book there are things that you say to yourself that determine what it is you choose.

Today we are exploring money. Yep I said it!! It’s out there, the elephant in the room is on the move!

We have so many stories around money, believe me I have explored many of mine!

I think in the end it’s not really about the money, but let’s look at the obvious things we might say first.

‘I don’t have enough money’, ‘we don’t have enough money’, ‘Where would I find the money for that?’, ‘there is no way I can find the money for this because we have … this and this and this to pay’.

But maybe what we are really saying is…

‘What I want is not really that important’ and ‘Am I worth the effort?’

So maybe we could ponder this question instead?

If what I really want matters, how could I make this work?
Love Mel and Nat xo
Www.soulpresenceretreats.com.au

16/07/2023

How do I get to Retreat?....(and other things I love)

PART 1.

Nat and I know that everyone’s situation is different.
There are many things that stop women from saying YES to themselves.
Over the next week we are going to get curious about what some of these things are.
Let's start with ‘Time’.
For some women it’s about time - ‘I don’t have enough time’, ‘When I have time I just want to sit and do nothing’, ‘I have too many things to do’, ‘How would I be able to spend that much time away from my family?’
What I love to get curious about when I start thinking this way is....
'What is it that I need right now?'
'What can I start with?'
'What can I move around to clear the path for this?' 'Who can help me make this happen?'
We all have the same hours in our day, so it becomes about being intentional with how we use them, ...and when this time arrives in our space, often our energy is returned, because what we are doing feels sooooo good.

What thoughts do you notice you have around time?

Mel and Nat xo

Picture credit Aron Visuals.

12/07/2023

...‘We didn’t have to be anything else except to exist in this moment, feeling the joy of who we are.’.....

Reflections from Soul Presence Retreat March 2023.
Next retreat sep 16th until 19th
Www.soulpresenceretreats.com.au
This is living right here. The ability to ‘be’.
To ‘be’ in this moment and feel the joy of that!!
Not having to ‘DO’ anything to like yourself.
And we know it can get hard to remember when you are in the hustle and bustle of life.
Soul Presence allows you the space to get quiet for a few days so that you can bring yourself back home.
Back home in your body, back home in your heart.
In the present moment is where you get to experience your life.
In the present moment you get to feel all the feelings of that moment.
And only then can you really feel truly alive.

Nat and Mel xx

11/07/2023

Soul Presence Retreat is a 3 night stay because our Retreaters know what feels good.
After our first retreat our guests asked us to extend the Retreat by another day.
How could we say no.
Nat and I understand the power of the unfolding that occurs when you are given the opportunity of immersing yourself in an activity and then the space for reflection and integration.
From our retreaters hearts....
‘It felt like a whole experience approach, without one or the other the elements might have not felt as impactful.’
‘Each practice allowed another layer to be explored and shed each moment allows another level of deep understanding and sharing to be expressed’
‘All parts uncovering the puzzle that is me.
They all have a role to play’
‘Each session cracked me open a little bit more so I could benefit even more from the next session.’
‘The power is in the collective’
Every part of the day has purpose and is selected with much thought as you go on your journey back to self. Each journey is unique to the individual.
A woman knows when she is being called.

Natalie Greene and Melissa O'Toole xx
Www.soulpresenceretreats.com.au

10/07/2023

We know how much you love to imagine yourself being on Retreat.
Usually we think of it in terms of what we are escaping, or wanting to get away from; like, the noise of the world, your unfulfilling job, your busy life, the busy kids, the mundane treadmill life.
What if we chose a Retreat because of the things we would get from it…..
A quiet space to remember who you are.
Yummy food cooked for you, to nourish your body.
A massage to gently allow your body to rest.
Awareness of where you are at, so that you can open up to what it is you want.
Breath to to bring you back to life.
Art to spark your creative, playful side.
So that when you leave you have a renewed energy, to do your life in a way that feels good to you.
Ready to come retreat with us
Enquire or connect with us at Www.soulpresenceretreats.com.au
Love Mel and Natalie

10/06/2023

We know that relaxing could be on our agenda.
But it's not.
Why isn't it?
Because it feels indulgent? It feels like lots of things need to happen before we get it? It feels perhaps even a little bit like weakness?
I'm here to tell you it feels bloody awesome.
I like resting.
You can find me resting on the couch, painting in my studio, resting on my mat, resting on the bed, resting watching a show, attending a restorative yoga sesh, resting reading a book, or resting in out in Nature.
Nat and I have created a space for you to rest.
We know you will enjoy it.
And who knows you might take it up as a hobby.
Soul Presence Retreat. Www.soulpresenceretreats.com.au

06/06/2023

06/06/2023

Have you noticed how much you hold?

If you took a moment. What would you notice in your body first? Tight shoulders, tight neck?

Would you notice that you are clenching your jaw, or that you were holding your breath?

This is why we have activities at the retreat that help you to release.

The moment you walk through that door the first thing you will do is release the grip on your suitcase, you will release the thoughts from the week before, you will release the need to organise and get yourself dinner. You will release your expectations and just be present.

Sound good?
Www.soulpresenceretreats.com.au

03/05/2023

Patience visited me
And it reminded me
That good things take time to come to fruition
And grow slowly with stability

Peace visited me
And it reminded me
That I may remain calm through the storms of life
Regardless of the chaos surrounding me

Hope visited me
And it reminded me
That better times lay ahead
And it would always be there to guide and uplift me

Humility visited me
And it reminded me
That I may achieve it
Not by trying to shrink myself and make myself less
But by focusing on serving the world and uplifting those around me

Kindness visited me
And it reminded me
To be more gentle, forgiving and compassionate toward myself
And those surrounding me

Confidence visited me
And it reminded me
To not conceal or suppress my gifts and talents
In order to make others feel more comfortable
But to embrace what makes me me

Focus visited me
And it reminded me
That other people’s insecurities and judgements about me
Are not my problem
And I should redirect my attention
From others back to me

Freedom visited me
And it reminded me
That no one has control over my mindset, thoughts and wellbeing
But me

And love visited me
And it reminded me
That I need not search for it in others
As it lies within me.

Words by Tahlia Hunter

Artwork by Jungsuk Lee

23/03/2023

RETREAT DAY FEELS
Pretty happy with our workplace for the next 3 nights
Blessed beyond words for what we have created.
Thank you my beautiful friend She Breathes Natalie Greene for seeing me and trusting in me to bring this vision to life with you
Want to see what we are up to?.... we have a website now so you can have a peep
Next one coming up in September
Www.soulpresenceretreats.com.au

17/03/2023

🤩 The Suppression of Joy 🤩

As we develop through our formative years often we experience an inherent disconnect where we learn to suppress and control ourselves in very toxic ways.

The way we are met by our culture, by our caregivers, by our educators and peers can potentially cause a shutting down of our natural, spontaneous way of expressing who we are in any given moment.

This often causes a split in the psyche, the “I” that resists expression, resists our humanity, and the expression itself. “I” then becomes separate from my experience and my expression.

We learn to contort ourselves, we learn to keep up appearances and fit in as our experience tells us we will not be accepted as we are.

This is one of the original wounds that causes the shutting down of the joy of Being. The suppression of joy is directly related to this split in the psyche, when we experience states of intense joy it is often co-opted by a part in the background that holds back, that is fearful of truly allowing ourselves to let go and express freely.

A kind of subtle or not so subtle freeze response can permeate our letting go into the experience. This form of internal control shows up as knots in the body, if we have body awareness we can feel the resistance when it arises.

It is a natural state and it appears spontaneously as we begin to heal this disconnect, when our body, mind and spirit is emptied of imprints and realises we are allowed to be exactly as we are.

Imagine dancing freely, as if nobody's watching…Now imagine dancing freely, whilst everyone is watching.

Notice the difference between the two imaginings, and you will make conscious the very resistance to allowing yourself to be fully you in the presence of others, or fully you in the presence of yourself..

Joy cannot be manufactured or acquired, joy is inherent in who/what we are. It is a natural state, and it appears spontaneously as we begin to heal this disconnect.

Author - The Centre for Healing

17/03/2023

Hello my name is Mel. I'm a multi passionate creative Mumma local to Ocean Grove. An Intuitive Artist, Primary School Educator, Photographer and Holistic Intregrated Creative Art Therapy Practioner.
As my dear friend Natalie Greene from She Breathes and I prepare to run our 4 day Retreat next week, we wondered if there was a way to package some of the goodness of the Retreat to offer locally on a more regular basis.
I know that for most women, attending a Retreat might happen once in a lifetime and some of this comes down to time and cost, but also often guilt and justification of doing something that is just for you.
So let's make it easy for you.
Together we have created Creative Breath Circle. Bringing together Breathwork and the benefits of Therapeutic Arts, and the power of sharing in safe group setting, to connect women to others and themselves.
Perhaps while you are there you will find your fun, playful side, feeling into the freedom and spaciousness that these circles will offer you.
Our first 90min in person session is coming up at the end of March on Friday the 31st at 12:30 until 2pm
Let me know if you can join us. We would absolutely love to connect. Also if this date doesn't suit but you are interested to find out more about up and coming dates and locations, simply connect through a private message or email info.splashoflife@gmail.com
Love Mel and Nat xox
(two mother's coming together to inspire and empower other mother's to put themselves first on the list)
More info and bookings here at
www.soulpresenceretreats.com.au/creative-breath