Be A Tree

More than ever before, I find myself wanting to be like the trees I am drawing. They stand tall, firmly rooted no matter the ever-changing weather, bending however needed to the passing winds and storms, yet always growing, even blooming, despite their losses. Yes. I’d like to be a tree. But my inner life belies … Continue reading Be A Tree

Attention

In the middle of November I started to draw what was happening in my head. Well, it wasn’t only in my head. Some of the ideas that flutter around in my head come through my hands, or at least get started to see if they want to be fully birthed. Not all of the ideas … Continue reading Attention

More Than Meets the Eye

The act and experience of drawing is so much more than what happens between the eyes and hand. To put pen to paper while looking at something in front of you is often a portal to all the other senses and even to discoveries. Take the above drawing for instance. While I drew my sunroom … Continue reading More Than Meets the Eye

Tingle

Our neck of the woods received a wallop of snow last weekend! As if the excitement and delight of SNOW isn't enough, I've also been sensing a familiar tingle, a bit more than I have in previous weeks. It began with sketches showing up in my writing journal. The tingle continued and is now waking … Continue reading Tingle

To Sit With What Is :: A New Year’s Surrender

There is something delicious about standing at the edge of a new year! It feels like starting a brand new sketchbook (oh the possibilities!), or casting on a new fair isle project (the colors, designs and so many knits & purls to look forward to!), or setting out fabric scraps with an eye to what … Continue reading To Sit With What Is :: A New Year’s Surrender

Drawn To Iron

I do not like to iron. At all. I seem to be in a place where my heart needs re-orienting. Something is in need of being smoothed out. Yet I tell myself I like the chaotic wrinkles, the jumble of piles of laundry. I'm well aware that I'm speaking in veiled terms here. You'll just … Continue reading Drawn To Iron

When Magic Happens

It happens at various times along the way. Magic that is. Years ago, when I first swiped watercolor on a white page...I drew in my breath and held it as I watched the color move on the paper, blend with other colors. Something special was happening that was just for me. The magic of watercolor … Continue reading When Magic Happens

Time

I am realizing anew that there's a time for every season under heaven. (photography courtesy of Hazel Kuehn Photography) There's a time for celebrating. And a time for grieving the passing of an era. There's a time for illness. And a time for healing. There's a time for making marks. And a time for white … Continue reading Time

An Artful Life Primer

The topic of this book began to take shape soon after my sickness and surgery in 2013. It was June. I'd been doing a lot of thinking, knitting and drawing as I continued to heal, grow stronger and get used to life without a colon. I stood at the sink washing dishes in the beach … Continue reading An Artful Life Primer

Living Now

The difficulty of living now on this side of sickness and surgery, has been  well...living. I know that sounds crazy and messed up. But there it is. In sickness or trial of any kind, there's an intensity to life. A laser sharp focus. No matter how yucky the circumstance may be, there's nevertheless a funneling … Continue reading Living Now