When we were children, our parents took us fossil and rock hunting in the summers. Continue reading “Ancient History, Coming Soon!”
Category: Meditation
The Return of the Norwegian Mittens
“All life, living or ‘dead,’ is interwoven like silk
threads in a fine brocade.” — Philip Kapleau
I was in Utah for my birthday this year, visiting my sister. She pulled–from where, I do not know–a pair of Norwegian mittens and a reindeer hat my mother had knit before she went blind, long before she died in 2017.
Continue reading “The Return of the Norwegian Mittens”
Coming Together In Imperfection
Funny, the things that bring people–and sometimes, things–together over time and distance. A friend, Matthew, had broken his favorite tea mug and was upset over the loss of the vessel that fit his hand so well. “The moment I picked up that little mug in the local Goodwill, it felt perfect in my hand. The bumpy smoothness of the ribbing, the heaviness of the glass… holding it just made me happy,” he said.
Continue reading “Coming Together In Imperfection”
Creativity Talks: Vicki Teague-Cooper
I met Vicki Teague-Cooper in the 1980s, and bought one of her encaustic paintings while photographing her in her Santa Fe studio. She has been making and showing her art for about 35 years.
Primarily a painter, her work has included oil paintings, encaustic paintings, drawings, watercolors installation art, and monoprints. Continue reading “Creativity Talks: Vicki Teague-Cooper”
Creativity Talks: Pamela Viola
In January, I announced a new feature of my blog: Creativity Talks, short interviews with creative people about what drives them to create, how they work, what advice they might give us, and whatever else comes up…
Pamela Viola is a photographer and mixed media artist who lives in Old Town Alexandria, not far from me. I met her about 14 years ago, in creative writing classes at Duke University, in North Carolina. I recently reconnected with her.
Continue reading “Creativity Talks: Pamela Viola”
Prayers for the Earth
Since 1970, and the first celebration of our planet, Earth Day has been an important day for me. I set aside time that day to meditate on my relationship with the Earth. And I inevitably feel enormous gratitude for being sustained by this planet in body, mind and soul. Not just sustained, however, but inspired to create, to respect and protect the environment and all life. Continue reading “Prayers for the Earth”
Creativity and Solitude
A psychic once told me that I had been a monk in a silent order and I scoffed and said, “That’s so not me. I hate being alone.” In fact, I feared being alone, something very different than just ‘not liking’ it. Where would ideas come from if I were not able to collaborate and brainstorm with people? Continue reading “Creativity and Solitude”
Handwork: Knitting and Comfort
Such a sense of peace that descends on me as I watch, over and over, the colorful strands of yarn slipping from one needle to the other, twisting into shapes before my eyes. Time slides away, along with anxiety and stress. Continue reading “Handwork: Knitting and Comfort”