All around me the earth flutters. Dreaming of the future, it sends messages like little notes for tomorrow, twirling in gray dawn sky, like rain. The tree is determined to hope. How does the tree know it is time? How am I here at just this moment to witness its innermost thoughts? No one tells the tree,…Read more Unless A Grain of Wheat Falls….
art
Tend Your Soul
Recently I painted a friend's "safe place." Turbulent waters threaten her survival; and in her mind, she swims to a quiet, peaceful space to weep, dream, hope, and gain new strength before plunging back into the storm. Places possess power. Yesterday I wandered one of my own safe places, a prayer labyrinth buried deep in the…Read more Tend Your Soul
Small and Beautiful
When I hold them in my hands now that I am home, each one represents a world unto itself. They transport me to a time outside time, when I was so enthralled I forgot to eat, drink, or relate to the outside world. Each tiny bead represents a human's touch, a woman far away... and yet…Read more Small and Beautiful
Henry the Star
As I begin painting in earnest again, I find myself drawn to a place of simplicity and happiness. I drag out from the shadows a painting I began last spring. At first I think it's a "light" theme, a "warm-up," with deeper visual ponderings to come. And then I realize, the most treasured offerings in…Read more Henry the Star
Painting and Listening
In the last few months I traveled halfway around the world. The trip was like a rock dropped in a lake, and I'm flowing out in the ripples. Opportunities to share the story of Sanctuary of Hope and Pamba Toto abound. I'm swimming hard to keep up. Amidst it all, my children, home on summer break…Read more Painting and Listening
Backyard Boutique
A couple days ago, my friends and I created a backyard fairyland of texture, color and creativity. For me, the most magic moment of the event illuminates a path of perseverance. A friend stopped by and perused the offerings, bought a couple items, and left. But just a little while later, she returned. With tears in her…Read more Backyard Boutique
True Love
I attended a fairy tale wedding a few days ago. Two people aflame with the glory of true love... a blaze I am confident will carry them through the next fifty years. Witnessing the ceremony, the world seemed full of possibility, aching for all that is good and true. These two, I am sure, should the Lord…Read more True Love
Kitengela
Fall down the rabbit hole. Slip through the looking glass. Tip toe across the hanging bridge. However it is you arrive, this is most certainly a magical “other” sort of place. With each step, my eyes open wider and my soul expands. Once over the swinging bridge, glass mosaic underfoot, like a hint of what…Read more Kitengela
For the Ragged and Beautiful
https://www.facebook.com/fragmentsoflight/videos/1283437661683835/ In 2002, my dear friend Nicole Gillin and I volunteered together with a small team serving at Mother Teresa's Home for Abandoned Children in Nairobi. We've never been the same. Last week we collaborated to create this dance to share our changed hearts at the Flourish 2016 Recital. Blessed Are the Peacemakers Blessed…Read more For the Ragged and Beautiful
Art: Mushrooms & Dialogue
After three years of painting almost every day, I'm slowly finding a better flow in my work, feeling less desperate about killing every piece I start. I've developed a fuller body of work. I still have so far to go, areas where I just can't translate the image I see in my heart onto paper,…Read more Art: Mushrooms & Dialogue