Hey, brave souls! As the leaves blaze and the air gets that perfect, crispy chill, we’re standing right in the middle of the most magical time of year. Whether you’re saying “Trick or Treat?” (October 31st) or setting up marigold altars for Día de Muertos (November 2nd), this season has a secret invitation for you: to embrace your inner darkness.
Don't worry, we're not talking about anything under the bed! We're diving into the coolest, most liberating concept from the legendary shrink, Carl Jung: The Shadow.
Your Shadow Is Your Unlived Life
Jung taught us that the Shadow isn't a monster; it's simply the part of you you’ve locked away. Think of it as "the attic of the psyche."
From childhood, we learned to be "good," "polite," and "acceptable." Everything else—that sudden flash of rage, the urge to be totally selfish, the intense jealousy, or even a wildly untamed creativity—gets shoved into that forbidden drawer.
| "The attic of the psyche." AI generated and digital work by Hands and Heart |
The Problem? What you repress doesn't disappear. It just gets stronger! It whispers, it lurks, and sometimes it erupts in unexpected ways:
The sweet person who suddenly unleashes whips of contempt.
The disciplined soul who only allows excesses on the weekend.
The immediate, fierce judgment you throw at someone else (that’s often your own flaw reflected back—a projection!).
Happy day of the dead! AI generated and digital work by Hands and Heart 💖 This Season Is Your Permission Slip to Be Whole
Our culture usually doesn't give us a healthy way to deal with this darkness. But this season is the blessed exception!
🇲🇽 The Deep Healing of Día de Muertos: Look at the vibrant calaveras (sugar skulls)! Mexico doesn't deny the darkness (Death); it invites it to the party, adorns it with flowers, and makes it sweet and comforting. We dress as Catrinas and Catrines, acknowledging the inevitable with sacred lightness. It’s an act of profound psychic hygiene!
"Catrina" Acrylic on canvas by Monica Zuniga 🇺🇸 The Play of Halloween: It’s our annual chance to wear a costume and flirt with the mischievous! We get to embody archetypes—witches, monsters, villains—and give those usually hidden parts of ourselves a night out to play.
"Trick or treat" Acrylics on canvas by Monica Zuniga
The goal is not to become "bad," but to become WHOLE. Integration means recognizing that your anger might be assertiveness waiting to be used healthily, and your selfishness might be healthy self-preservation.
AI generated and digital work by Hands and Heart Painting Your Shadow: A Final Invitation
Seeing your Shadow can bring immense healing. Learning to recognize it in our own reflection—to allow it its space without it becoming a harmful whip—is the first step to healing that unseen wound. The Shadow is not the enemy; it is the part of our Being that yearns for us to be whole.
In this spirit of playful integration, I've created a fun digital collage sheet of sugar skulls to celebrate our "happy Shadow" and encourage you to play with this energy. You can be inspired by this simple skull paper doll tutorial to give your own inner darkness a beautiful, dazzling costume or follow the next instructions!
"Día de Muertos" Digital collage sheet
Right click and download 🥳✂️ Simple Instructions for Your Paper Sugar Skull Doll
Materials You'll Need
Easy Steps
1. Prepare and Cut Out (The Integration)
2. Basic Assembly (The Structure)
3. Decoration and Personalization (The Expression)
4. Presentation (Turning Up the Volume)Creating a fun paper Catrina or Calaverita using Hands and Heart day of the dead digital collage sheet is a simple and playful way to "paint your Shadow" and celebrate the season.
Your Digital Collage Sheet (Printed on paper or cardstock, preferably matte for better color). Go upwards, right click and download.
Scissors (or a craft knife/precision cutter if you prefer more detail).
Glue stick or liquid silicone glue (for attaching accessories and the body).
Optional: Wooden skewers or pipe cleaners (for mounting the doll to stand up).
Optional: Glitter, small faux flowers, or feathers (for extra decoration).
Cut the main pieces: Carefully separate the head (the skull), the torsos/dresses, and any accessories you want to use (flowers, hats, gloves, etc.) from your collage sheet and collage pieces of papers. (Find some freebies here! 🥳
Choose Your Shadow: Select the skull head that most attracts you or challenges you to decorate, and the dress or body you wish to use.
Glue the Body: Apply glue to the top of the chosen body/dress piece and attach the skull head. Make sure it's centered.
Reinforce (Optional): If you want the doll to be sturdier, glue the back of the body onto an extra piece of cardstock before cutting around the excess.
Add Accessories: Use the glue to place the flowers, hats, veils, or bows on the head. This is the moment for creativity!
Give It a Unique Touch: If you have glitter, use liquid glue to trace the eye sockets or skull patterns and sprinkle the glitter over them. If you have feathers or ribbons, glue them to the back or shoulders.
For Display: If you want the doll to stand upright, glue a wooden skewer or thick pipe cleaner to the back of the body (as a spine). You can then insert it into a base made of styrofoam or clay.
"La Catrina" Watercolor on paper by Monica Zuniga Have fun and enjoy the profound magic of this season!
Happy painting and creating brave souls. 👻🎃🎉