Dance for life!

For centuries, dance manuals and other writings have lauded the health benefits of dancing, usually as physical exercise. More recently we’ve seen research on further health benefits of dancing, such as stress reduction and increased serotonin level, with its sense of well-being.

Then most recently we’ve heard of another benefit: Frequent dancing apparently makes us smarter. A major study added to the growing evidence that stimulating one’s mind can ward off Alzheimer’s disease and other dementia, much as physical exercise can keep the body fit. Dancing also increases cognitive acuity at all ages. Read more from Stanford University’s Richard Powers: http://socialdance.stanford.edu/syllabi/smarter.htm

There are shortcuts to happiness, and dancing is one of them.

National Stationery Show in NYC – May 15-18

Amber Lotus is gearing up for an exciting week in NYC come this May. We will be featuring our New RENÉE LOCKS card line, as well as other exciting new products.

Stop by and see the full line at the NSS in the Hartman Cards booth #3520.

Amber Lotus Publishing is excited to announce a new line of RENÉE LOCKS greeting cards. In a style of elegant simplicity, Renée pairs her charismatic sumi-e calligraphy with expressive watercolor paintings to create a delightful harmony of art and words, both nourishing and wise. These cards are offered as greeted or blank inside. They are 4.75″ x 6.75″ and printed on textured watercolor paper. Cards retail at $2.75 each.

To see the full line visit us at the NSS in Hartman Cards booth #3520.
See us online at www.amberlotus.com.

Endorsement:
Renée Locks’ cards have always been the very foundation of our company. Core
customers like the bookshop at St. Martin-in-the-Fields are simply buying
the complete line of Amber Lotus Renée Locks cards. It is rare in the art card world to find classics that do not go out of fashion. We are delighted that Renée is now with Amber Lotus.
—Tony Pol, Vision Antics

Sales information:
Tim Campbell
Director of Sales
tcampbell@amberlotus.com
503.284.6400 x202

The Moon and the Sun!

Mark your calendar. On March 19th, a full Moon of rare size and beauty will rise in the east at sunset. It’s a super “perigee moon”–the biggest in almost 20 years.

Nasa’s full story on the Moon.

Coinciding with the Super Moon this year is Spring Equinox

Celtic Folk Soul

The winter is finally leaving us. With a little more lightness in our steps, we enter the month of the spring (or vernal) equinox. This is the time when day and night are of equal length and we begin to feel the promise of the sun on our faces as the days become longer than the nights. Is it any wonder that traditions celebrating youth, rebirth, and all green things are prevalent this time of year?

 According to some modern groups, the Anglo-Saxon (one of the Germanic tribes) spring goddess Eostre is believed to have been the origin of the terms Easter and east as well as traditions such as painted eggs and the Easter bunny.

 The egg is a symbol of rebirth and the hare a symbol of fertility. She later came to be known as Eostara or Ostara, which is the Wiccan name for this holiday. She is sometimes also associated with the dawn or even thought to be the dawn itself. She heralds the bringing of the light and warmth.
from Pagan Holidays – Spring Equinox – Squidoo

Ash Wednesday & Lent –

Today is Ash Wednesday which marks the beginning of Lent. Common to many Christian traditions, Lent is a 40 day period of penance and preparation leading to up Easter. Practices included prayer, fasting and almsgiving. There is a deep meditation here about sacrifice and connectedness, about giving and giving up. For a thought-provoking Christian perspective, see Sister Joan Chittister’s book The Liturgical Year.
In his excellent book Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism, Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche addressed the notion up giving in a unique way. He was commenting on the Bodhisattva deed of generosity as practiced in Mahayana Buddhism. He said, what if generosity isn’t what we give, but what we give up. And what if what we give up is the basic criteria of demand that we place on every situation. What would happen? Where that demand used to be, there would be space, and in the space others would grow and flourish and live their lives.

Spotlight on Kate Harper – Bright Spots Card Line

Bright Spots Card line - by Kate Harper

Kate Harper and Amber Lotus in the News.
Kate Harper Partners with Amber Lotus: New Kid Calendars and Card Line

Click here for Story!

With designs that are straight forward and whimsical, Kate uses a myriad of mediums–calligraphy, crayons, markers, slabs of ink and cut paper – anything she can find that is guaranteed to make a mess. Kate believes that surrounding yourself with humor brings you closer to those around you – and the everyday experiences of life become more inspired. The Kids Quotes 2012 Wall Calendar captures this literal yet lighthearted point of view with a year full of quotes from everyday kids.

To Preview our New Cards and all our 2012 Calendar Products email us for our current 2011 Catalog -
mcampbell@amberlotus.com

Valentine Greetings – Spread the Love.

Here is a sampling of the many card designs we are offering this year. New and Updated series.

Celtic Blessings by Michael Green

Flowers: A Universe Revealed

Love in a Circle by Brenda Cornett

Renée Locks - Paintings & Calligraphy

Please feel free to contact us for ordering information: 800-326-2375 or neworder@amberlotus.com

When words were like magic

Once upon a time words were like magic. You will see a take on that in the passage below. Even in our age of information overload, words retain their original magic as long as we remember to remember. Our effort at Amber Lotus is to be mindful of the magic of adding words to images.

When Words Were Like Magic

In the very earliest time
when both people and animals lived on earth,
a person could become an animal if he wanted to
and an animal could become a human being.
Sometimes they were people
and sometimes animals
and there was no difference.
All spoke the same language.
That was the time when words were like magic.
The human mind had mysterious powers.
A word spoken by chance
might have strange consequences.
It would suddenly come alive
and what people wanted to happen could happen-
all you had to do was say it.
Nobody could explain this:
That’s the way it was.

- Nalungiaq, an Inuit woman, interviewed by ethnologist Knud Rasmussen

Call of the Goddess greeting cards by visionary artist Helena Nelson-Reed.