Portals

We stand today at the end of the calendar year, tomorrow is the beginning of 2011. I think of this time of year as a portal from where and who I have been to who I am becoming. There is intention and conscious decision making involved, but also there is the Mystery to engage. We can aim at our future, and participate willingly, but we do not control it, there are so many factors involved. That is what makes it so fun!
Today, home, time to clean and cook and be with family. In the back of my mind I am musing on where I am headed. It has been a challenging but good year, and moving forward, I don't think that I could ask for anything else. I like to stretch, reach and grow, as well as I like the rewards to be found in doing so.
Here is to the best year that we can imagine, with a little more thrown in, for the good of all.
Namaste.

Several months ago I was in a local coffee shop and to my surprise and delight, saw this. It is one of my handmade dolls riding atop a toy motorcycle (and seeming to enjoy it at that). I make these dolls out of natural fibers (wool, silk, cotton) that I have dyed in natural dyes from marigold blossoms and onion skins, leaves and tree barks. The blue is from indigo, and the bright orange hair here is from onion skins. I haven't made any of these dolls for sometime as I have been so bus with school and other parts of my life. but just running into it unexpectedly made me want to get back into the studio and make a bunch more. It felt good to see it in a new location, having adventures and being seen by people I will never meet. What a nice surprise. When we wake up and venture out into our worlds, there is always a possibility of something amazing happening. It feels good to be reminded of that from time to time.

Solstice - 2010

Snow, cold, dark and yet, there is a brilliance about Solstice that feeds the soul. We need this time to curl into ourselves and rest. We need this time to sleep, to recover and heal and then dream the world back into being as the light strengthens and the days gradually grow longer and brighter. I think sometimes I would like to live somewhere that winter was not quite such a survival test, but then, winter without the challenge seems hard to imagine. I am finishing my tea, planning to shovel my car out yet again so I can rejoin the world of business and commerce. But there is a part of me still tucked under the comforter and blankets, head under the pillow, dreaming the great dark of the year, waiting for spring to pull me out of my hibernation. Blessings to us all.