In eleven days, the esteemed Smoky Joe, handyman extraordinaire, will lumber up our driveway in his big two-tone truck. He will smoke a cigarette he rolled from Bugler tobacco, drink a stout cup of coffee, then begin tearing down the western wall of our house. There will be a huge mess in the house and yard.
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We spent the day at the river with family. It was a micro-vacation. I let myself do nothing and it was good.
I finished another piece Friday night—this time it’s of a trout lily. For your viewing pleasure:
Trout Lily Brings Spring
5 x 7″
pastel on board
Now if you don’t know trout lilies, let me introduce them to you. They are tiny little things, and they bloom very early—one of the earliest blooms I find down by the South Toe River. There I find hoards of their tiny slips of leaves, mottled and coated with a fine reflective sheen, but very few flowers. I’m not sure if these colonies of leaves sans flowers are just too young, or maybe they don’t get enough light to bloom, but I know there are other places where I can find the yellow flowers, their petals peeled back in exuberance. I’m still hoping that one Spring I’ll walk down and find those patches of dappled leaves hosting crowns of blooms.
I’m pleased with this painting, and wish I could capture the magic of pastels for you to see, for the original has far more luster than what you see here. Pastels are so divine, and I am really enjoying working with them on Ampersand’s Pastelbord. This week I am doubling up–I have a commission I am starting on, and I also will be painting the lovely bellwort. Now there’s a fine lady of a flower!
And how will I do this, and harvest potatoes, squash, can peaches and beans, and visit with my mother and sister, and go to a birthday party, and plant turnips and beets? Well, I’m not entirely sure, but I have been utilizing Google Calendar to keep track of all the assorted tasks and deadlines that I have, in the studio, the home, and the garden. It has really helped manage my time better. And this morning Jason and I had a great planning session, delegating tasks to our energetic intern and reluctant kids. Let’s hope we can keep it up and make time management a joyful morning practice! Along with coffee, of course.
Last night I dreamed that I sent a story I wrote off to a contest, and while it didn’t place in the contest, it did receive positive feedback from two of the judges. One was a handwritten note, signed in a precise and sophisticated hand, and the other was a small inspirational card that looked as if it had been pinned to a bulletin board for a long time, with
I worked past midnight in the studio yesterday, and rose late this morning to calm clouds and breezes. This is a distinct change from the weather of late, and most welcome. A few days ago I noticed another distinct change: ironweed blooming, a high cluster of deep violet blooms, and I know that means Summer’s end is upon us. The whirring of crickets reminds me of that too, and I embrace the shifting days. I am ready for cooler nights!
There’s another shift in my life, one I can barely explain, except to attribute it to the workings of Mystery: I have been working regularly in my studio! For me this is a dramatic departure from my usual stance of “mother-and-frustrated-artist.” Not only have I been working in the studio, I’ve also been lining up exhibitions, events, and workshops to which I will be applying. Really, this is an amazing development! Finally subscribing to The Pastel Journal no doubt has something to do with it, as it is a wonderful resource for the pastelist, but there’s something else at work here.
Last Sunday we performed a despacho ceremony, which originates with the Andean people, and which we did under the direction of our passionate intern, Andy. I’d never heard of it before, but ever since he arrived in early July he’d been talking about doing a despacho. It was fulfilling and intimate and luminous. And it has everything, everything, everything to do with that dramatic shift.
What else can I say about that? I believe meaningful ceremony is the raison d’être for humanity’s existence upon the Earth. Not the only reason for being, but high, high up there. So there will be more Ceremony in my life. More fulfillment. More intimacy. More luminosity.
Speaking of fulfillment, here’s the piece I finished last night:
Wake Robin Rising from the Earth
4.5″ x 6.5″
pastel on Ampersand Pastelbord
More finished pieces coming soon! Yay!
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July is a strange month. The heat rises quickly. Long, bright days filled with the whir of bugs bend time. The garden calls in the lush heat, and I answer, covered in soil and sweat in a matter of minutes. The laundry hung to dry gets washed again in a sudden [...]
