handstories

Friendly Ghosts

    "Floating into Being"

    A happy accident led to a lovely reunion. A couple of weeks ago, I sent a text by speaking rather than typing and hit send before realizing it was going to someone whose name sounded very similar. This someone was a classmate in those painting classes at the local college years ago.  One text led to another, until the two of us, along with a third friend from the classes, were sitting down for lunch this weekend.

    Not having seen either of them for more than five years, it was fascinating to me that my usual social anxieties didn’t kick in (for the most part). I rarely go back in time to meet up with people. It’s usually not about the person from the past, rather more of a fear of running into old, unwelcomed ghosts of myself.

    But this time, there was calm. Near the end of our time together, I told them so, realizing that being with them took me back to those calm, peaceful hours of painting in that classroom. I had forgotten how much I loved being there. 

    "Spells for Well-Being"

    In the Studio...  These two, they are like an old married couple, how they check in with, keep track of, and bicker with each other. And then there are moments like this, when he brought his drawing to show her, and she gave him sincere admiration.  It’s such a gift to be there.

    The Studio has moved to a new location (much further away, challenging my driving anxiety).  A new big room that is all their own, with no need to take down tables, pack everything away, etc. at the end of the day so that another class can come in afterwards. Happily, the artists all seem at peace with this shift.  

    "Into the Unknown"

    Working in the bigness of this (13 1/2 inches square), felt very good.  (With thanks to Jude, Deb, and Tina for their generous sharing in this piece and/or those above.)

    There is also a new book to share.  I will try to put it here in a couple of days.  Typepad was a struggle today. 

Gatherings

    Moon’s graduation weekend was very swell- time with Moon and girlfriend, an unplanned visit with Deb, and a day in Vancouver, BC.

    This one made a while, looking at a fancy box of matches.

    When does the group of something become a collection?  I tried finding the collective noun for matchboxes.  Nothing.  Matches are a book or a box.  Boxes are a stack.  So maybe a stack of books?  A book of stacks?  A stack of boxes?

    Tried flowers.

    Went back to boats.

    And this was interesting to do. Using Jude's stacked stitches I filled in a mosaic printed cloth from Maiwa’s with shades of green, Deb’s threads, and a few tiny scraps. Tension is an issue for me. It was good to practice, practice, practice.

    “Magic Mountain”

    And then to relax, a small simple peace wish made with of more of Jude’s techniques- Seemingly Seams and Glue stitch. Both feel like magic tricks.

    It was left in a neighborhood Free Little Art Gallery while out for a walk this morning. I wonder where it will go next?

In the studio and skies

    "Starlight Shimmer in a Blackberry Sky Held Her"  (with a Threadcrumb moon)

    I've been working on a lot of glittery skies.  Looking for ways to make light and sparkle.

 

    (I was told it's ok to use the names of the artists at the studio.)  Someone had brought in a few marionettes recently, and Matt is quite taken by them.  He's been working on this piece that features one of them for a couple of weeks.  I love the happy land that he is creating for her.

    Look what Pixie is working on now!  (They painted the mountain scene in my last post.)  I was so happy and honored that we were able to have a short communication about it (with the help of their iPad).   Another good moment was during a snack of celery, I told them about the "ants on a log" snack, and they laughed and laughed.  My heart is filled with every connection with these artists.

    Most of my time is spent with Brette, who has a lot of creative ideas, but not as much focus.  Fortunately/unfortunately for her, keeping people on task is a leftover teaching skill of mine!  We've started sewing a nine-patch pillow together.  So far, so good!

    "In Layers of Sky, She Found Her Story"

    I've also noticed that some of my titles are getting quite long.  It may be a wish to work on writing again...

Spring is all around

        “Spring is in the Air” with one of Jude's moons.

    A sign of hope filled the sky the other day.

    I've been trying to push myself out the door more.  Realizing how too comfortable I've become being alone.  With going out and about less and less, it's more and more uncomfortable stressful anxiety filled when I do. 

    So, I've made a few dates, reached out some, gone back to the pool, and started volunteering with a local art program for adults with developmental disabilities.  There are about twenty artists who come and go in the open studio. It's a lovely calm space with everyone doing their own thing- creating three dimensional objects, painting, collage, knitting, etc... 

    M. has made dozens of dragons from sticks, paper, and tape.  There are distinct breeds.  This one is named Yellow Star.  M. is a prankster.  She likes to warn you that there's a dragon behind you and laugh when you turn to look.  After being caught out on my first day, I returned the joke on her.  When she turned to look and realized that she'd been tricked, she shouted, "Flying whoopie cushions, you got me!"

    P. is so talented, nonverbal, and works alone in the back corner.  I hope for a moment of connection someday.  It's filling to be building relationships again.

    I'm also trying to learn Italian on one of those free apps.  This is day nine.  My new motto is:  If I learn it, I will go. 

    I can order you coffee or tea with milk and sugar, point out town buildings, take you shopping for a black sweater or a small backpack, and get through a meal of fish, chicken, or pasta at a restaurant.  I may be making K a little nuts as I comment on how tall he is, whether or not he's nice at any given moment, and remind him that we do not need tomatoes from the store.

    Spring is turning out to be very full!

    Spring spaces with fabrics dyed by Tina and Deb.

First gifts

    The season is off to a beautiful start... 

    On Thursday, we traveled up to Bellingham for Moon's acapella concert.  First, there was dinner with Deb!  She brought the most beautiful gathering of her wonderful creations- pigments, dots, star, boat, and more!  A perfect first gift of the season, and it was (as always) a lovely and too short of a time together.

    Deb's colors with a bit of hot pink thrown in.

    Saturday was spent with a friend at a fundraiser dinner for Islandwood, the outdoor school I went to some years ago (I wrote about it here.)  It was fun to visit this amazing place again as an adult with no responsibilities!  We toured, wined and dined, and met such interesting people.  

    I was especially happy to see the cedar baskets gifted to the school by Vi Hilbert again.  She was a tribal elder of the Upper Skagit.  The figure above is "Grandmother Vi".  She welcomes everyone into the Great Hall.

    On Sunday, there was dinner out the neighbors across the street.  Time with these guys is always easy and comfortable.  We are really lucky to have good neighbors all around us.  There was also a little stitching- a new square for the moon cabin quilt.  This one is kind of a weird combination of prints, but that's ok!

    Marti sent a sweet photo of her tree that she described in the comments of the last post.  I thought we should all enjoy it!

    She wrote, "The tree is decorated very simply as I am not a glitz and sparkle kind of gal. A long red and cream striped ribbon, from many years ago, dances around the tree. Tiny pine cones are affixed to the branches by red yarn. Many dried orange slices cover the tree, to signify the coming of the light of Winter Solstice. A couple pieces of worded ribbon are also on the tree, the word JOY printed on the ribbon. At the top of the tree, 2 red cardinals and a colorful patchwork tree ornament, a gift from a dear friend."

    Thank you for sharing, Marti!

    So far, I've done next to nothing on the to-do list, and it's been swell.  Maybe tomorrow...

Braiding Connections

    "And Still... the Moon"

    The flying dream was a great one.  It was actually more like swimming in the sky.  Keeping my arms close to my body and wiggling like a fish, a mermaid, the movements lifting me towards the stars...

    A morning at my friends' hanging out with him while she took the cat to the vet (the cat is having health issues too).  Again, parking is an issue in their neighborhood, so I pulled up to the building, she and the cat left in my car, and I headed into the condo.  Neither he nor I are morning people, nor had we ever really spent any length of time alone together, so the plan was for us to have our coffee and tea quietly in separate rooms. 

    When I brought him his coffee, he was sitting in a comfortable chair in their bedroom listening to music.  "Here you go.  I'll just be stitching in the living room.  Just let me know if you need anything- more coffee, company, whatever."

    "Yeah, there's a book that I'm listening to that I want to get back to...  My sister told me about it, Braiding..."

    "...Sweetgrass?"

    "You know it?"

    "Yes, I've been hearing about it for years.  I've checked it out of the library several times but haven't actually opened it.  Are you liking it?"

    "Have a seat!"

    "Let me get my tea..."

    He shared about the book, and we wove in and out of topics- connection, and community, how the last weeks have been for him, them, what might come...  Two hours later, she returned, the time had flown by.

    "Robin"

    Coming home, I sat down to stitch, after going to the library website, checking out, and opening the audiobook of Braiding Sweetgrass.  What an amazing, beautiful, spirit filling book, and listening to the author, Robin Wall Kimmerer read it with her soothing rich voice is an added gift.  I'm halfway through.  It's the perfect thing to listen to while stitching.  I can't believe it took me this long to get to this book, but then again, sometimes things happen at just the right time in our lives.  I imagine that I will listen to it again and again, each time remembering a lovely morning conversation with coffee, tea, and connection.

Dream Days

"Sip of Dreams"

    Many swell happenings over the last few days...  Friday- to Bellingham for Moon's a cappella concert.  It was great to hear him sing, watch him have a great time, be so happy.  And then the treat of meeting up with Deb for dinner.

    After that, a night in Vancouver, B.C. in a room with a city view (across the street from the Coliseum-ish library), strolling Granville Island (Maiwa's!), a delicious Italian dinner...  It's been so long since we've gone somewhere, just the two of us.  It was a very nice time.

    On the way home, there was an extra dose of Deb time!  Tea in her cozy sweet house with two of the friendliest cats you'll ever meet (Widget wasn't interested in socializing).  

    Her GOOD Enough quilt is even more wonderful in person (as is she!).

    Today I potted up her gift of indigo plants, with hopes for their survival under my blue thumb.

    Sunday night I dreamt in cloth.  The memory became the morning painting.  By afternoon, the image was fading, but not the incredible feeling.  A cloth began...
 
    I didn't refer back to the painting at all and was surprised this afternoon to see the differences.  The tree had completely slipped away.  Dream to paper, paper to cloth, maybe I'll complete the circle and keep going, back and forth, forward and back, in and out of the dream.

Taking Time

    Waiting outside of the post office this morning at 8:58, waiting for it to open at 9:00, a man approached with his package.  Read the sign, sighed heavily, stood behind me. 

    At 9:01 he announced that it was 9:01. 

    9:03 a woman with her letter joined us.  "Isn't it after nine?"

    "Is anyone in there?!" he asked. 

    I looked through the window, "There's a light on in the back."  I knocked politely on the door.  (In the past, the regular postal worker has said that sometimes she gets so busy that she forgets to open the door.)  Nothing happened.

    9:05- The man approached the door and banged on it.  Woman and I raised our eyebrows.  Yelling something about google reviews he stormed off.  Woman and I looked at each other, more eyebrows.

    "The post office has a lot going on right now," I said to the woman.  "We don't have a regular mail carrier right now.  We seem to only get deliveries every other day now, after 7:00pm.  They're just doing the best they can."  She agreed, pointing to the "Help Wanted" sign on the door.

    9:08- A postal worker (not the usual one), scurrying, keys in hand, opened the door and held it open for us.

    We told her to take her time.  

    I have poked away at these stars off and on for two days.  Looking for something in them?  Answers?  Hope?  A path An escape?

    Liz saw a pendulum.  That feint pink line--- all of it hanging by a sketchy thread.  Will it swing back?  Crashing everything in its wake?  Or is it secure?  Swirling in the sky, sharing its light?

    I think I need to make some boats.

blurry

    Yesterday's and today's...

    While drawing today's, thinking of the children, the teachers, the families, my years of teaching, the lockdowns we practiced and experienced, remembering this day for Blue, and wondering what the story was for a broken boy who was able to get guns, but not help...

    While drawing, eyes closed, there was a skittering noise at the window above.  I opened my eyes to see a hummingbird trying to land on the window frame, one of the thin crossbars of wood around one of the small panes.  It was only a moment of seeing each other.  "Thank you," I said, as it zipped away.

    And then a walk in the arboretum near home.  Walking and walking, listening to the crows and ravens and a hummingbird.  These are quick blurry photos.  It's how it was.

    The blackberries are blooming.

Songs for Our Circle

"A Pocket for the Burnt and Broken Heart” by Mo 2014

    Reading the posts that hold Rod and Mo in our hearts reminds me again of the strength and beauty of this circle.

    Mo's pocket hangs next to my worktable.   Inside of it are things and thoughts for love and healing.  In a long ago post about it, I wrote, "This beautiful "Pocket for the Burnt and Broken Heart" by Mo arrived a bit ago.  It came holding Mo's amazing spirit and stitching, along with a heart stitched by Jude, and many treasures and inspirations.  I love thinking of all of the journeys contained in it's parts, and how it represents a little corner of the community Jude has created.  I am so grateful to Mo for sharing her heart . . . both kinds."

    Thinking of this community, I thought of the song "A Circle is Cast" by Libana (listen here), and this one...  and remembered being at one of their concerts in the early 90's.  It was an intimate space in shadowy light, with these gorgeous voiced women circling us in song.  It was beautiful and holy.

    For Mo and Rod, holding them, and each of us, in the circle of light that this community is.