Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Finally...back to the posts! Maybe :)

A couple of weeks ago, I attended a watercolor workshop given by Myrna Wacknov. We talked about a lot of things that week, and one of those things was painting tissue paper. I love tissue paper in collage, but I've been informed that commercial tissue paper isn't light fast, and, instead, fades very quickly. So, when she mentioned that she painted her own, I listened to how. Tonight, I spent a few hours painting tissue paper--made a mess and covered myself with acrylics and ink, but I've got some really fun, unique paper.

Sunday, January 6, 2008

Asking the Questions


I’ve spent most of my 58 years knowing all the answer, and only valuing the answer, but it seems with the coming of the age of 40, there have only been questions. That unsettled me for so long—I thought there was something wrong with me, but I’ve come to know that it’s only by asking the questions that there can be growth. The questions are important, and they must be asked. I remember Sr. Mary at the Cenacle saying, “If there’s anything the Church must confess, it has to they that She hasn’t allowed the questions.” And so it is.

For too long I’ve been afraid of the questions, but at long last, I’ve come to love the questions, to look for them, to explore them—no longer looking for the answer, but instead looking for the next question. It’s not about the destination, but instead, the journey.

I’ve been reading everything I can find on Mary Magdalene—it’s been my “Christmas” assignment, and I’ve savored every morsel and loved every minute. This morning I finished The Secret Magdalene, a novel by K.I. Longfellow. It’s strictly a novel told from a totally different point of view, beautifully written, and raising tons more questions. Lots more possibilities!

There’s a short conversation recorded on page 341, that sums up what I’m trying to say. It’s a conversation between the Magdalene, Mariamne, and her friend Seth. They find themselves taking refuge in a “koinos bios, a place where lives are lived in common and in peace”, with the Carmelites. Mariamne asks Seth:

“Tell me Seth, how can you leave such a place?”

He answers instantly. “How is it my Queen Bee asks such a thing?”…”Can you, so full of questions, wonder that I, so full of questions, would come away from a place where there are only answers?” Only answers? I do not know what he means, and he knows I do not know. “They have found their answers here, Mariamne. Having found the answers they seek, they ask no more questions.”

No more questions? Impossible. I understand him now. (end of quote)

Sometimes I think that’s why I can’t find a home in institutional church—they have found their answers, and ask no more questions. And most of the one’s I’ve been in allow no questions. But questions are necessary for growth. If the questions aren’t allowed, our spiritual growth is stunted, and we eventually die. As for me, I plan to continue to question, expecting that each question will bring another and another, and so the journey continues. And finally, I’m no longer afraid that there may not be an answer. At least, I don’t think so.

Thursday, January 3, 2008

1-2-08 Poor Harry! Third Act Hangs Their Show


Can you just imagine being one guy among 17 female artist, trying to "decorate" walls and hang a show???
Our Circle has been meeting for one year on January 10. What a journey that's been! First working the Artist Way book, then sharing Crones Don't Whine--this group has really bonded and shared some great experiences. And yesterday was another one! Who would have know how much we would grow to care for one another! Life is full of surprises!

Tuesday, January 1, 2008

Following the Wind

Not a good picture, but you get my drift...

The wind blows where it pleases; you can hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit. Jn. 3:18

For years, I would receive a Scripture from Godde for the new year, but it’s been a long time since I’ve read the Bible and gotten any “word” from Godde, let along a verse for the year.

But it happened this morning. The wind has been blowing so much for a while now. In times past, I would have asked Godde what the wind meant, but I haven’t done that for a while, either. So a few days ago, I asked, “What’s with all the wind. It’s leaving such a mess behind (broken branches and fallen palm fronds everywhere!)…so, tell me, what’s with all the wind?”

This morning as I read in John, I came upon this verse in John 3:8, The wind blows where it pleases; you can hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.

And it was one of those synchronistic moments when heaven and earth seemed to meet, and I “knew” the word was from Godde and for me and for this new year.

One of my joys is to take note of the numbers used in the Bible, knowing that to the Hebrew/Greek writers of Scripture, many numbers were symbolic and were hidden numerical codes giving the reader “new light” on a passage. The number 3 is a number representing Godde and Godde’s presence, and the number 8 is the number for new beginnings, new birth, “newness”.

So the numbering of the John 3:8 passage and the synchronistic discussion of the wind, along with a “knowing” deep inside of me, helped me receive this passage from Godde for this year of 2008.

And the mess the wind leaves behind—seems to be the story of my journey. I know that my call for this new year has been to cut some ties so that I can be free to follow the Spirit wherever. People don’t seem to understand—especially church folk, but I can’t follow the Wind if I have obligations elsewhere. So once again, I seem to find myself “loose” and “on the move”. Where will I wind up this time? Who knows, but the Wind is refreshing; I recognize it, and I “know” that I’m once again journeying with the Spirit. And it feels good and “right”.