Voyage

Head upright

webbed feet paddling with confidence and joy.

Eyes ablaze with hope

Compass to the future.

  Heart open to the waves  

Where will the white sail of your mind lead?

photopoem akiba & maryam 

Listening

With the tilt of my head

the inward look

in my eye,

I feel your sadness and madness

for the injustices

weighing upon 

the beauty of your soul.

I will perch here for as long as it takes

listening...

With my blue, black, white and violet feathers

to your sacred pain and wisdom.

photopoem ~ akiba & maryam mermey

Spring Water

Leaps, plays, bounds, bubbles

Green Goddesses breathe out 

Holy Water-beings of Light 

photopoem akiba & maryam mermey 

Swimming in silent communion

  the ripples the only sound

between us 

photopoem from akiba and maryam mermey

Maybe there is something in my soul

that I just can't stop

until the splash is in my face

and I am the splash.

I know I came from water

as a one-celled creature

because when this joy splashes in my face,

this is all I want from life.

 I'm so glad the ice is melting...

photopoem from akiba & maryam mermey

What a beautiful landing 

to be close

No matter where 

we're going

your feathers near mine

and his feathers near hers

It's the nearness of feathers

to each other

to the water lake

to the air heaven

Emerald green, sunflower yellow, orange, dappled brown, sky blue

calling us

to be near...

photopoem akiba & maryam mermey

Glass Mandalas Created by the Women's Healing Arts Circle

Sacred circles of being

Sacred beings circling 

Planets of healing

Healing planets

Spinning the center

of every woman's heart.

photopoem offering ~ maryam mermey

The splash before words...

Tosses our beings into the air

releases our spirits 

in a free for all, free fall

before remembering

we are a lake, a river, a pond, a waterfall

a waterfoul 

taking off

with drops of water words...

Photopoem offered by akiba & maryam mermey

The Promenade

We look very different 

you and I,

promenading through the water,

me in my brown hood

you in your black and white.

Taking turns eating

and keeping watch

for outer and inner threats,

the early morning sun

guides us 

to the longing and belonging

of each day.

photopoem offered by akiba & maryam mermey 

Inspiring Glass Jewelry and Serving Dish (made from a glass bottle) created by the Women's Healing Arts Circle at The Center for Wisdom's Women. The jewelry expresses the qualities with which they are filling their bodies as temples for the spirit. The sunflower is the sacred symbol for The Center for Wisdom's Women.

Peace

Peace is balancing on one foot

not knowing where

you're off to

but taking off

nevertheless...

Peace is taking time

to turn your back

on the world

to fortify your spirit

with the nectar

of those who've gone before...

photopoem offering from akiba & maryam mermey

Healing Glass Workshop

Friday, March 24th 2017, 5pm-8pm

The Glass Academy, Manchester, Maine

$50 fee, includes all materials

Please call: 207-213-4126 to register by March 17th

Instructor: Maryam Mermey, PHD, REAT

In the beautiful and inspiring environment of Stained Glass Express, participants have the opportunity to work and play with glass to create their own mandalas. In Sanskrit, the ancient language of India, ‘mandala’ means sacred circle. No experience is necessary as instructions are given in how to create a glass mandala as a way of beginning the sacred journey to the healing power within. This journey is continued as participants collaborate in the writing of a group story inspired by the most living images and designs in their glass mandalas. By invigorating the senses with glass and story making, images which long to be seen and heard find expression. In this way, the healing power of the creative process is engaged and celebrated in multiple artistic media.

Expect to fall in love with the possibilities of glass but not to become experts in this workshop. This is the beginning of discovery with glass art and the stories they tell, so be on the lookout for ongoing workshops in a range of glass art forms as well as expressive arts workshops. For art teachers, who wish to continue to learn the art of glass, be sure to pick up the Teach the Teacher Program flier. Registration: To hold your spot, please call Stained Glass Express at 213-4126 or stop in to the store at 966 Western Avenue in Manchester by Thursday March 16th 2017 . A 50% deposit is required at the time of signup. Class limit is 10.

Participant Reflections... "Thank you for a special sacred healing arts class. I think we all had a fabulous evening with you facilitating great muse!” "It was a very special evening together!” - Sara M. Dostie

“You are a gentle, enthusiastic & joyful teacher  Thank you for your leadership & knowledge.” - Susan Parks

"Maryam quickly established a rapport with the five of us that allowed her to create a level of intimacy for each of us to express ourselves while delivering technique (glass work) in a very simple/non-intimidating manner. Felt everyone did an exceptional job and this because Maryam is a sensitive person able to deliver instruction without making you up tight. I hope to take another class this summer!" - Bruce McClenahan

Dr. Maryam Mermey, Registered Expressive Arts Therapist, holds a Ph.D. in Arts, Health and Society. She also has an M.A. in Counseling Psychology, a M.Ed. in Arts in Education, and a B.A. in Dance and Poetry. Dr. Mermey studied Art, Fairytales and Healing the Psyche at the Carl Jung Institute in Kusnacht, Switzerland and has advanced training in grief therapy. She co-presented a workshop and film called From the Heart at The Third International Children’s Bereavement Conference in Edinburgh, Scotland. Maryam was also a cheraga or minister in the Sufi Order in the West as well as a member of the Sufi Healing Order. Dr. Mermey was formerly a grief and creative arts therapist in MA and currently has a private practice called Morning Glory Arts Therapy in Maine. She also offers Healing Glass workshops at Stained Glass Express in Manchester, Maine and teaches trainings in Expressive Arts Therapy and Sacred Dance.

Previously, Dr. Mermey taught the first expressive arts therapy courses at Thomas College in Waterville, Maine called Exploring the Expressive Arts and the Advanced Seminar in the Expressive Arts. She also developed an original bully prevention model called Transforming the Bullying Cycle Through the Expressive Arts, which she taught internationally. Her presentation and film on this work received a “Best Presentation” award from the Center for Scholastic Inquiry International Research Conference in San Francisco, California in 2014. She has also written a book entitled “New to the Forests of Selay” with an accompanying CD for elementary age students and teachers on transforming the bullying cycle through the expressive arts. These offerings and documentary films can be found on her web site: www.thetransformativearts.com. In the summer of 2014, Maryam and her husband Akiba, the Program Developer for The Transformative Arts, completed a film called: Norway: Art, Waterfalls, and the Human Spirit inspired by their trip to Norway. This film was shown at Railroad Square Cinema in the fall of 2014 followed by a discussion on The Healing Power of Art facilitated by Reverend Cindy Lepley. Maryam published an article in the 2016 Journal of Maine Education entitled “Arts-based Transformative Learning.”