April = Poetry Month

One of my favorite things about spring is that the month of April is National Poetry Month. A whole month to celebrate and explore poetry. If you have followed my blog you are aware that I enjoy writing and reading many types of poems.

Poetry, like art, is a soul to soul conversation. I would like to share with you some of my favorite conversations, (poems) that have touched my soul.

THE WATERFALL

Orb-weaver shivering
among the filaments: how many
fibers generated from within
transect the air?

How many hirsute, sightless
gropings anchor
these redwood trees, suffuse
the flowery traceries

of the oxalis? The veining
in this hand, these
eyeballs, the circuitous
and scintillating

leap within the brain—
the synapse,
the waterfall, the black-
thread mane of fern

beside it—all, all
suspend, here:
everywhere, existences
hang by a hair

By Amy Clampitt from ARCHAIC FIGURE

The Following untitled poem is by Emily Dickson.

My friend must be a Bird—
Because it flies!
Mortal, my friend must be,
Because it dies!
Barbs has it, like a Bee!
Ah, curious friend!
Thou puzzlest me!

Poem by Mary Oliver from “When I am among the trees”

When I am among the trees,

especially the willows and the honey locust,

equally the beech, the oaks, and the pines,

they give off such hints of gladness…

I am so distant from the hope of myself,

in which I have goodness, and discernment,

and never hurry through the world

but walk slowly and bow often.

Around me the trees stir in their leaves

and call out, “Stay awhile.”

The lifht flows from their branches.

And they call again, “It’s simple,” they say,

“and you too have come

with light, and to shine.”

I hope that you have a chance to explore some poetry this month! Please comment and share some of your favorite poems and poets. 

Coffee

Have you heard the phrase, “coffee snob?”  I have.  It is supposed to relate to people who are very particular about their coffee.  I get it.  I have a friend that is into whole bean dark blends that he grinds himself and drinks it black.  A pot at a time.  Other friends add cream.  Some prefer sugar and no cream.  While others add both.  And I have a couple friends who don’t drink coffee at all.  I like dark coffee with a teaspoon of sugar in the raw and a tablespoon of whole cream.  The raw sugar adds a hint of caramel that is enhanced by the real cream.

Coffee is very much a part of my life as it is for many people.  Do you remember the television show “Fringe?”  In the alternate timeline linked to the main timeline there was a coffee shortage.  I felt very sorry for the people in the alternate timeline. Not being able to have a coffee every day, I am sure would be very hard for me.  There were many scary things in this show, but to me, the coffee shortage was the scariest!

Yesterday, I watched the movie “The Good House” starring Sigourney Weaver and Kevin Kline.  It is listed as a comedy/drama.  There are comedic parts, but I would say that overall it is a serious film.  At one point, Sigourney Weaver’s character is in a fancy coffee shop trying to order a plain cup of coffee.  She says to the blank faced barista, “A plain cup of coffee costs four dollars.”  The barista nods and says yes.   Sigourney’s staunch New England character decides against the four dollar cup of coffee.

A friend, who works in law enforcement told me a story about coffee.  He meets with prisoners who are released on parole.  At their first meeting, He always makes sure that they have a really good cup of coffee with an option for adding sugar and cream.  The idea behind this in his words, “Coffee in prison is vile, at best and one way of welcoming them back into society is to make sure that they have a good cup of coffee.”  He then laughed and said that one really good cup of coffee doesn’t stop them from falling back into criminal behavior; but he hopes that it makes them feel better.

According to an Ethiopian myth, coffee was found when a shepherd noticed that his goats would become energized and unable to sleep upon eating the beans of a certain tree.  When he returned to his village, he spoke to an Abbott at a local monastery.  The monk used the beans to brew a beverage.  The affects of the beverage allowed him stay alert during evening prayers.  Just like that, Coffee began changing the world.

The idea of sitting and drinking coffee in public houses started on the Arabian Peninsula.  Patrons of the “Coffee House” would drink coffee and engage in conversation.  They would also listen to music, watch performers, play chess and keep up on the current events.  Coffee houses quickly became an important center for the exchange of information.  Because of the “ideas” they would brew, they would be called “Schools of the Wise.”  Not so different from the coffee shops of today.

Of course, coffee spread to Europe, the new world and around the globe.  The demand for coffee grew so great that coffee plants were introduced throughout the world.  There is a story about a seedling that was introduced to the island of Martinique that not only thrived but is credited to the spread of over 18 million plants!

So where is this blog going?  Why all the talk about coffee?  How does coffee relate to creativity?  Coffee may be the beverage brewed from the beans of one plant, but it is as unique as each person who reads this article.  I’m sure that I am not the only person on this planet, who would be very sad if coffee became an exotic, expensive drink of the rich.  While four dollars may be expensive for a plain cup of coffee…. how many of us pay more than that for a fancy latte, cappuccino, espresso, macchiato, etc.  Coffee can act as welcome.  Coffee came from humble roots, discovered by a shepherd.  Changed culture with the coffee house by sharing and spreading knowledge and ideas.  And now is found everywhere on this planet.

Think about it.  Something as simple as a cup of coffee has the ability to do so many different things.  Welcoming… missed… expensive…. rich…. shared…. spread…. enhancing… simple…. complex….. and many more adjectives.  Instead of thinking outside of the box, I want to be creative like coffee.

Unexpected

One night at Beginning Acrylic Painting Class, I was wearing a concert t-shirt from the band U2.  One of my students, Paul, arrived at class.  He was setting up his area and when he saw my t-shirt he exclaimed.  “I saw them,” meaning the band U2.  Several of the students in class said that they had seen them in concert.  I have had the great good luck myself to see them twice in concert and can say that U2 provide an excellent performance.  Paul said that yes he had seen them in concert but one time he actually got to talk to them.  Several other students asked him how did he get to meet them.

Paul shared his story with us.  He was in Hawaii serving in the military.  If my recollection is correct, it was a fairly new post and housing wasn’t ready or his furniture had not yet arrived, for whatever reason he was staying in a hotel.  He got in the elevator and hit the button for his floor.  At the next floor the elevator stopped.  The members of the band U2 stepped into it.  One noticed Paul’s uniform and thanked him for his service.  They then visited as they rode the elevator.  I can’t remember if Paul said he got out of the elevator first or that they did.  That doesn’t matter.  What matters is the experience.

Paul said that the experience was a bit surreal.  The last thing he expected, or even thought was a possibility was meeting Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr.  His words, “it was so unexpected.”

Unexpected.  The Oxford dictionary defines the word unexpected as “not expected or regarded as not likely to happen.”  It is an adjective which means it is descriptor word or modifier.  Unexpected.  What an amazing word.  Think about it for a moment.  Unexpected.  Five syllables filled with wonder and surprise.

So much of life is expected.  Pay your taxes, go to school, go to work, eat your veggies, brush your teeth, go to bed, get up the next day do it all again.  Day in and day out.  Following the same routine, life can become expected and predictable.

Have you ever noticed that unexpected often happens when we need it most.  Some might call this synchronicity, getting exactly what you need when you need it.  Maybe you have had this kind of experience.  A friend of mine put on a jacket that he thought he had lost.  In the pocket was a $20 bill.  He was at a place in his life that finding $20 was a very pleasant unexpected surprise.

Unexpected reminds us to be open to possibility.  That we don’t always have to know what will happen.  It allows us to be filled with the wonder of being alive.  It teaches us to flexible and have hope.  I hope that you get to experience the joy of something wonderful and unexpected in your life today.

Compassion

In the United States, we celebrate Thanksgiving the fourth Thursday of November.  The name of the holiday implies that we celebrate with gratitude for all of our blessings and everything that we are thankful for.  There are many meditations and writings on and about gratitude.  I have written a couple myself.  This year I would like to do something a little different.  I am pondering the emotion compassion and I am examining how compassion and gratitude are interlinked.

In the 1980’s Eddie Murphy was in a film called “The Golden Child.” Eddie Murphy’s character was a type of private investigator that finds lost children.  His current case looking for a lost girl intersected with a case of a missing Tibetan boy.  When meeting with the people looking for the little boy, they explain to Eddie Murphy’s character that this child is special, if he is killed all humanity would suffer.  One character at this point laments that the last golden child, the bringer of compassion was killed and it was a great loss to all mankind.  The film is fun, adventurous and interesting.  It does address some serious topics, child abductions and death.  If you haven’t seen it and are looking for something fun to watch, this is a good movie.  The thing that I remembered most about the film was the discussion about losing the child, who was bringing compassion.

According to Webster Dictionary the word compassion is a noun meaning “sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress or suffering with a desire to alleviate it.”  Compassion is the ability to feel the pain or hurt that others are feeling.  This can be the pain of an individual, feeling sadness of losing a loved one or the pain of an illness.  It can be the pain of a group of people, feeling the devastation of a community that has been hit by forest fires.  Compassion goes one step further than just feeling or sympathizing.  Compassion asks that we address the need or wrong.

Why do we need compassion?  Without compassion humanity wouldn’t care about what happens to other people.  For people that we know or unknow individuals half a planet away, compassion is what gives us the drive to take care of and help others.

Compassion goes hand in hand with gratitude.  Compassion gives gratitude a place to put ones blessings and gifts.

A miser feels gratitude for his money, but without compassion for others, he hordes wealth and allows greed to take over.  Compassion can convict the heart of the miser and enable him to share his wealth with others.  Charles Dickens wrote the ultimate example of this in his novel “A Christmas Carol.”

I hope that you, dear reader, will take a moment and consider compassion and gratitude.  Not just because of the Thanksgiving holiday but because of the role that gratitude and compassion play in your life.  What are you grateful for?  How are you compassionate with others?

May your Thanksgiving be full of blessings and your heart full of compassion.

Vacuum of Emptiness

blank canvas, empty container, sheet of blank paper, vastness of space, empty gas tank, acres of snow without a single foot print, the dark water of the ocean…..

We all have those moments where we just don’t feel fulfilled.  Or even like there is anything inside us.  I call these days the vacuum of emptiness days.  On days like these I feel so empty that there is nothing left for me to give, nothing left for me to share, and I don’t want anything from anyone.  I just want to be left alone.

You, me, every person on this planet… we are not going to feel great or be on the top of our game every single day.  It is unhealthy to expect that.  It is reasonable to expect that we are not going to have days where we feel empty and are not at our best.  At these times, it really helps me to move forward if I take care of myself.  Plenty of sleep.  Eating healthy food instead of junk.  Setting boundaries so I can have time for myself.

canvas on easel, glass half full, words on paper, looking at the stars, pulling up to the gas station, snow angel in the field, standing on the beach looking at the ocean….

Other things that I can do during these times of discontent and emptiness, is to do something special for myself.  One student in a creativity class would buy herself flowers when feeling empty, sad and unable to give.  She said that coming into her home or from a different room and seeing flowers on her dining room table always made her feel happy.    Another friend said he would buy blueberries and make fresh blueberry pancakes.  It made him think of happier times and remind him that things would get better.  What simple thing can you do for yourself that helps you feel better?

When I recognize what is happening and allow myself the time and space to get through these moments they are usually brief.  As I said earlier, everyone has these types of days.  No one is happy all the time.  There are ebbs and flows in all things.  Helping me identify when I feel this way, taking care of myself and even doing some small special thing helps me through these tough times.

painted canvas, glass full, poem or story completed, knowing the names of the stars and constellations, full tank of gas, large snowman in the field, swimming in the ocean…

Lost Trail Wildlife Refuge

In October of 2021, I went to the Lost Trail Wildlife Refuge with my parents and niece.  Located about eight miles north of Marion after turning off of Highway 2 onto Pleasant Valley Road, we weren’t sure what this refuge would be like.

We were pleasantly surprised by how beautiful Lost Trail Wildlife Refuge is.  Above is one of the photos I had taken of Dahl Lake.  Everywhere you look there are views worth seeing.

A birders paradise, the website stated that Great Grey Owls, Great Horned Owls, Eagles and Hummingbirds can be seen in the refuge depending on the season.  While talking with the staff at the visitors center, we learned that the refuge is visited by migratory ducks and geese.  She also said that we might spot a pheasant or two.

We caught sight of a grizzly bear near Dahl Lake.  It was hunting something on the southern shore of the lake.  When we were talking to the ranger at the visitors center she said that we were really lucky to see one.  They tend to come through the area in the spring and fall.  We also spotted a Moose in a marshy area of the refuge.  My not so wonderful photo above was my attempt to capture an image of it.  Upon leaving the visitor center, we saw a herd of 45 to 50 elk.  It was an amazing day for seeing wild animals in their natural habitat.

Lost Trail Wildlife Refuge is pursuing an International Dark Sky Place Designation.  This is meant to protect the views of the night sky from light pollution.  There were several beautiful photos of night sky taken from inside the Refuges boundaries on display in the Visitors Center.  There is no camping within the boundaries of the refuge.  However, if you are a stargazer, you can stop at a pullover and set up a camera or telescope and view the night sky for an hour or two.

Before leaving the Refuge and heading home, we stopped at an interactive interpretive site.  Bente, my niece, climbed one of the large rocks at the site.  She was quite proud, climbing up all by herself.

The visitor center had wonderful photos of animals as well as hides and feathers.  The Ranger allowed my niece to touch and feel the animal fur and feathers.  She also had nests from birds, as well as other nature exhibits.  We had a very educational visit with the Ranger about animals and their habits and habitats.

Above is my favorite picture, that I took that day.  To me it looks like an impressionistic painting.  I hope that funding for the refuge continues and that this beautiful place will remain protected.  Going to Lost Trail Wildlife Refuge was an amazing, fun and educational experience.

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

I am participating in a unique type of book club. Each month there is a theme, for example, May was books about gardens. The club sends out an email describing eight to ten books based on the theme. I get to choose which one I want to read or if I want to read more than one. This has been working well for me. There has been at least one book each month that I am very curious about and often there are two or three in the theme that I am interested in reading.

My favorite book, so far, from participating in this book club is from the July theme of beach reads, “The Silent Patient” by Alex Michaelides. The following is the description from the book jacket cover:

“Alicia Berenson’s life is seemingly perfect.  A famous painter married to an in-demand fashion photographer, she lives in a grand house overlooking a park in one of London’s most desirable areas.  One evening, her husband, Gabriel, returns home late from work, and Alicia shoots him five times in the face and then never speaks another word.

Alicia’s refusal to talk, or give any kind of explanation, turns a domestic tragedy into something far grander, a mystery that captures the public imagination and casts Alicia into notoriety.  The price of her art skyrockets, and she, the silent patient, is hidden away from the tabloids and spotlight at the Grove, a secure psychiatric unit in North London.

Criminal psychotherapist Theo Faber is captivated by Alicia’s story and jumps at the opportunity to work with her.  His determination to get her to talk and unravel the mystery of why she shot her husband takes him down a path more unexpected, more terrifying than he ever imagined – a search for the truth that threatens to consume him.”  -The Silent Patient, book jacket cover description.

As an artist and someone who likes to read, the description of this novel captured my imagination. I read the entire book in one night. The story is gripping. The twist is unnerving. And it is very hard to have discussion about this book with someone who hasn’t read it because it would be too easy to slip up and give away the surprises.

I have heard rumors that they are going to turn the novel into a movie. If you have not read this psychological thriller, I would encourage you to read it before the movie is released. I highly recommend this book it is a fascinating thrill ride.

Just Three Pages A Day

I was looking through some articles I had saved for reading later. One was on making room in your life for books and reading. This article was not about the articles, documents, copacious amounts of emails and blather that we have to read for work, day jobs, school or to surive as a human being on this planet. This is about reading for enjoyment. The one key statement that I took from this article was when the author stated that if you only have time to read three pages a day, you had time to read.

As I pondered this article and reading three pages a day, I wondered was the author reacting to modern life’s catch phrase, “I don’t have time.” This phrase can be applied to anything…. eating healthy, exercising, seeing friends, writing a letter, mowing the lawn, journaling, reading a book…. literally anything. Being busy is the badge of modern living.

It sounds very sensible. To schedule a time in one’s day and read three pages. Continue this practice every day until you’ve read the entire book.

An author from another article said that we all have time to read. He stated that “everyone has enough time to read a few pages, here and there.” He also added that if one is reading the right book, a story that you connect with and holds your attention, the reading will inevitably speed up.

The more I thought about reading and reading three pages a day, I began to wonder if the act of reading had more to do with one’s reading style than actual time. I confess that I go through periods of voracious reading, five or six books in a week, late to bed because I want to read one more chapter, forget other projects until the book has been read, etc. And then go for weeks of being unable to focus myself enough to read. Not even three pages.

If one enjoys reading, are they more likely to read more pages at a time? Does the three pages a day equal out if one reads six books in a week and nothing for the next three weeks?

Does the subject matter of what you are reading determine how quickly you read it? I was in a book club that we all put a title of a book in a jar. There were twelve of us, twelve book titles, one for each month of the year. January was a Scottish philosophical story by an author that I was aware of. It was okay. Took me two weeks to read it. February was a Jodi Picoult novel. I hated reading it and it took me the entire time to read it March was a classical novel. It was okay (chunky language) and took the entire alloted time to read. April was a novel by Anita Shrieve. Tolorated it slightly above the the February book. Again took forever to read. May was my book. Nonfiction travel book that I read in two days. When I saw what June’s book was I tried but I couldn’t finish it. July was the same way. I quit the bookclub shortly thereafter. I’m sure that reading the books by authors I would not have read in any other way were building my character. But they were also torturing my soul and I was not enjoying them at all. If you enjoy or like something, reading goes a lot faster.

My thought is this, if I don’t have to read something for a grade or day job, and it is on a subject I am not interested in, it won’t happen. I won’t read it. Reading for pleasure should be reading for pleasure. Not hard work.

If you have followed my blog, you have seen posts on different books that I have read as well as my great joy of reading. What kind of reader are you? Do you schedule time? Do read every book in series that you can get your hands on? Do you stay up late for one more chapter? Are you in a book club? What kind of books do you read? Do you go through cycles of reading a lot and then nothing at all?

Never Be the Same – Poem

What’s wrong? He asked.

Nothing. I replied

Are you sure? He pressed. Your voice changed.

Everything has changed. I answered.

And it will never be the same.

Heat Wave

It says a lot when temperatures are in the 80s degrees (Fahrenheit) and you are excited because that is cooler than it has been in a week.  When temperatures climb over 100 degrees (Fahrenheit), it can be too hot.  However, I do know how to take care of myself in the heat.  Wear a hat.  Wear sunglasses.  Lots of sunblock.  Hydrate. Hydrate. Hydrate.

This got me thinking about situations that are too hot to handle.

There is a saying, “If you can’t handle the heat, get out of the kitchen.”  Popularized by U.S. President Harry Truman who served in the office from 1945 to 1953.  This saying states that if one cannot handle a situation, that one should step aside and allow someone else who can stand the pressure or difficulties to take over or control of the situation.

I have conflicted feelings about this “heated” saying.

For example, I am not the appropriate person to rebuild your car’s engine or perform open heart surgery.  Those are not my areas of expertise.  I would gladly step aside to allow the qualified mechanic to rebuild the engine and a surgeon perform the surgery.  Those situations would be way to “hot” for me to handle.

However, in some cases we need a little heat.  Ever want to learn something?  Really learn it?  Then you are in for some “hot” times.

I do feel like I am the appropriate person to teach about colour theory, acrylic painting, book making or many artistic and creative pursuits.  Those are my areas of expertise.  Even though I am comfortable with a variety of artistic materials, techniques and multiple theories on creativity, this was not always the case.

When in college getting my art degree, I remember feeling very uncomfortable with having to take a printmaking class.  I felt like I wanted to learn intaglio printmaking skills.  I knew I would have to learn acid etching and that scared me.  Was this class to hot for me to handle?  But I had seen the beauty of finished prints, from the masters to pieces from other students.  I really wanted to learn how to do that.  So I signed up for the class, purchased my supplies, and jumped into learning with my whole heart.  Intaglio printmaking turned out to be one of my favorite classes and joyful way for me to create.  Today, twenty years later, I have a printing press of my own and I still enjoy creating art through print making.

My thoughts on this heated topic…. know yourself.  If it is something you are just not willing to learn or qualified to do, then get out of the way and let someone else handle it.  But if it is something you are set on learning and getting better at?  You are going to have to take some heat!