changing perspective

"when i let go

of what i am,

i become

what i might be."

-lao tzu

these lovely rust dyed cotton fragments
were a gift from a delightful follower
on instagram (@pwendy). this buddha is
joyfully sporting new threads until inspiration
moves them in another direction!

a comment i made to erik shipley of ship's manor on instagram the other day was very enlightening for me once it took root in my consciousness.  a simple statement made about my style of knitting. something i have said a thousand times about being a process knitter rather than being results driven. one of those *aha!* moments that suddenly through open the drapes that have shrouded my perception about my own creative style. not only am i a process knitter, but i am a process artist!

this was a very liberating realization. freeing me of years of self-judgment and ofttimes debilitating criticism about harboring a plethora of unfinished work. reminding me of the joy i experience in simply creating for the sake of creating, not to race to complete something for the sake of being done with it. the many creations that rest in various stages of growth are just that: resting in a stage of growth. of evolution. all a part of my enjoying their process of creation. no longer accusing. no longer judging. but celebrating whatever process they are in. whatever step they are at along the path each moment. rather like a reminder of the way i try to live my life. in the moment. not grasping and judging but enjoying. celebrating.

there is something to be learned from these emerging fragments of the creative process. something delightful and invigorating!

namasté

the uses of sorrow

-mary oliver

from her book, thirst, beacon press, boston, 2006

mary oliver is one of my favorite contemporary poets. i received a copy of her book, thirst, in the mail today from a dear friend and spent a few hours browsing its pages under the trees down by the river with sachi dozing at my feet. i found this short poem to be quite deep in meaning. it overwhelmed me and i sat there in the shade as tears ran down my cheeks. not tears of sadness. nor of joy. but...of release. suddenly, so much made sense and was at peace...

i believe there is a story cloth in this poem. i shall have to listen to the whispers and see what emerges...

namaste'

an amazing gift

my parents presented me with this most wonderful gift today! it was a custom, hand-built fly tying cabinet that my dad had bought some years ago from an elderly fisherman in washington on one of our trips. i believe he had the thought of using it for pursuing fly tying of his own. or perhaps to house his extensive vintage fishing lure collection. mom and i both fell in love with it. she thought to use it for organizing her art supplies on top of her table, but found it to be much too large for her use. as you can see, i am only too pleased to see it next offered to me!

as you can see, i've wasted no time whatsoever in putting it to use! of course, i only have a small amount of my stitching supplies along with me...but they've all found a drawer, ledge or nook to tuck themselves into and have left plenty of room for their cousins to come join in the fun when i get back home next week.

this is going to be awesome on my design table in the studio and will be extremely useful on trips and treks where my cloth-making projects tag along...

namaste'

belated fortune cookie wisdom wednesday

as you know, i've been helping a dear friend deconstruct his life and prepare to move the fates only know where...so when i was catching up on one of my favorite bone tickling blogs, bent objects by terry border, and came across this pic, i knew then and there i had to share it!  terry has the most amazing sense of humor and i've been enjoying his blog for a long time and hope you will take a few moments to check it out (no affiliations, blah, blah, blah....just an fan). 

in any case, aside from being very funny, it spoke deeply to my friendship, too.  it's hard to see someone's life go to pieces...whether by his own hand or not.  you begin to think about how much he will be missed and how you never had the time to do this and that grand plan... then you start examining your other friendships and relationships and begin to put them into perspective, as well.  gratitude.  definitely the word for the moment. 

i have deep gratitude for my friends, near and far. both in real time and in cyberspace. 

just wanted to let you all know how much i appreciate you!

meanwhile, my house is looking rather like i'm packing up moving myself as i've been the recipient of many of my friend's collected treasures. antiques. artwork. rugs. and so forth. so, essentially, i'm remodeling...

this, combined with sketchy internet services whilst providers are battling it out, and i've fallen sadly behind on my mail and my blog.  both of which, i apologize for.  i have a lovely stack of boxes that i have been refraining to open until i can share them with you all:

there are doorprizes from the one world one heart event this year; some gracious and kind gifts from readers; fun things from auctions; and a few other treasures found whilst on cyber journies. all patiently waiting until i can do them justice and share them with my cyber friends!  don't ask me how i'm restraining myself...cuz i really don't know.  but i am.

hopefully, i'll get to start opening them next week...just as soon as i finish getting my house back into some semblance of order!

until then....

namaste'

heart blessings

the first time her laughter

unfurled its wings in the wind,

we knew the world would

never be the same

- brian andreas

a very special person, wanda, sent me this most amazing gift today. we "met" through the one world one heart event this year and have been exchanging insanity via email ever since.  you may remember that she was the one that licked everything on my blog so that no one would want any of it...especially the one world one heart door prize, sky flower.  she was the one who ultimately won the door prize, too. 

i had lamented that i didn't think of licking one of her dottie dolls that she had been offering on her blog and therefore did not win one.  well....who could have guessed that this amazing person set out to create a very special dottie just for me!  meet george....my very own steampunk dottie doll!  the picture just doesn't do her justice...what with all of the wondrous little cogs and bits and bobs....and the custom steampunk goggles on her hat that you can't even see, but will do wonders at keeping bugs out of her eyes while she is out adventuring!

not only did i receive such a treasure, but i had to dig through piles of other treasures to get to her.  past oversized money (which will be terrific fun to play with next time i bind a a new book), a wonderful daily zen calendar for my desk, an ingenious compass, and the most amazing magic business card holder!

my heart is full. my heart is touched. i am overwhelmed with gratitude. thank you, wanda, for everything! george means more to me than you can know...

namaste'