Life and Love

Life and Love
Heartbeats Intertwine
Creation Begins

Blooming

Bloom where you are planted ... that's what they say.  I think "they" are right.  But the key is being planted.

For many years, I have not been completely planted.  I've had the hope of being planted, but one can only flourish in small ways while hope is held at bay.  Proverbs was right ... "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life." (Proverbs 13:12)

All this rightness is something I've missed for quite some time.  I kept thinking I could catch up, make up, adjust, connect, somehow get right again when my world was right again. But I kept losing my footing along the way, limping in a sometimes-lovely limbo.  But loveliness was a bit of a mirage.

So, I'm planting myself.  I think my dwindling roots had been loose and ready for quite some time.  But hope does not easily let go.  So when the time came, though the pain of change was sharp and hard and reverberating, drawing from rich soil has brought new life.  It's been two months and deep places are reviving from the inside and beginning to spread.  And now?  I'm finally feeling right, too.

Blooming is not without its challenges.  But it is infinitely better than lying dormant.  I think again of Proverbs 13:12 ... Blooming is longing!  And my longings are beginning to find fulfillment.  There is a sense of awe in the air, and I don't want to miss another moment to breathe it in.

So here I am ... before my beautiful Creator ... amazed by the beauty growing from what I thought I had neglected to the point of destruction.  It would have been enough just to breathe, but now I am blooming.

Winds 'n Roses

(Oops! I edited and published something quite old and thought it would retain the original date. Oh well!)

Exhausted, I lie here sleepless, listening to the wind. My thoughts drift and swirl like the sounds dancing outside my window.  They say a storm is coming. Knowing this makes the wind sound different. I listen a little closer. I hear a threat and a howl. I wonder what will happen ... if we will be prepared, protected.

But as I contemplate, I remember that wind is what one waits for when wanting to fly a kite. I remember that wind carries seeds to perpetuate new growth. I remember that sails were meant to catch the wind and propel a vessel.

So I wonder in a metaphor of life ... what am I holding to the wind? I realize that I feel fragile. What I hold is more like a flower than something destined for flight. I think maybe I have wrapped my wings around myself and they have become soft like petals. I imagine myself as a flower in the wind.  And I worry that the delicate layers will be quickly stripped and my hopes now folded and soft will have been dashed.

I write and let the wondering thoughts wash over me ... Silly me. I know that just as it would make no sense to display a boquet in a windstorm, it also makes no sense to try and fly a kite indoors. Both will result in some kind of destruction! There's a time and place for everything.

Nurture the fragile. Launch the bold.

Turning Entanglement To Art

Sometimes life is bland and flat ... other times it's a tangled mess ... it can be a party ... or it can be the residue from others that is left for me to clean up.  It can look like nothing or an intricate maze.  What makes life beautiful? Perspective.

Maybe my life is all tangled.
Maybe the bright splashes are to be celebrated instead of figured out.
Maybe daily life is a slab of ordinary underneath everything.
But it could be that if I look closer, maybe it's art.

I'm considering adopting a new motto:  Never untangle ... find the beauty.

Venetian Prisons

Decadent Glory
Crumbling Beauty
Cascading History
Decaying Grandeur

I feel this sometimes. Tonight I cannot sleep and feel more of the restraints than I care to admit.  I crave change, yet I feel powerless.

I'm In The Credits!

This is the credits page in the 3DiCD virtual artwork for the launch of Imogen Heap's new project. Can you see my name? YAY!!!

Welcome In A Heartbeat

WOW! Now this isn't final artwork, but as of right now, my image is on the first page of Imogen Heap's new song!  The lyrics say "Welcome in a heartbeat ..." Part of Imogen's inspiration was the birth of her niece (her heartbeat is used in the song) coinciding with the birth of this project.  She became an aunt.  And I became a grandmother (2 days ago)!  So those lines almost give me the shivers, but in a very good way.  I hope this image stays!

Even more Imogen Heap Excitement!

This screen shot of the video concept has me wondering if that just might be my sunflower video projected on her back!  MAYBE!!!  I was catching up on the video blog tonight and in addition to this, there were some MORE specific photo mentions!!!  Imogen was sharing some of her personal favorites, and the second mentioned was one of my dirty rusty things, the third was of my "teal" dirty rusty things.

I'm beginning to think/hope that I might have a chance at being one of those invited to Imogen Heap's house on Monday!  I wonder if I could/should consider going as it is a once in a lifetime opportunity (should it happen, of course).  Hmmmmmm.

Here's the link to the video blog.  You can look for the following things in the timeline:
11:10 - "Somebody's Sunflower" projected on her back ... maybe mine????
26:30 - my photos of "dirty rusty things"
26:52 - bicycle things - not specific, but two of mine are bicycle images!
http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/13496853

By the way, her sketch of the video concept will be going on ebay with the $$ being donated and the person winning the sketch also being invited to attend Monday.

Imogen Heap Excitement ... UPDATE!

This is page one of the favorite images for Imogen Heap's new album project starting with "heapsong1" (and I LOVE the concept - everything released electronically as the songs are created) ... and 8 of my images are in it! WOW! I don't know if what I've done will make it to the final project, but I'm QUITE thrilled as is.  I'm trying not to geek out but I guess a blog post makes me guilty (blush).  IT'S JUST SO EXCITING!

Imogen Heap EXCITEMENT!

So ... I'm working along at the computer, listening to Imogen Heap's live video blog.  She shares about the song, where it's at, plays a bit (I'm loving it all), and then she and Andy Carne (I think) talk a bit about the images being shared.  I hear her mention spokes, he mentions "IndigoBleue" (GASP! ME!), and she talks a bit about liking the concept and how seeing things close up can convey such a depth and width of meaning.

I had to go back later to actually see the footage since I was working on something else ... and they showed my picture on the air!  How cool is that?  My photo ... and Imogen Heap right there.  For family and friends interested in seeing the little segment, here's the link (it happens at the 30 minute mark):  http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/13359689

Glad I got up the courage to go find a bike shop and ask if I could take some photos!

City Girl vs. Prairie Girl

Now this is not something the prairie has to offer!  The view was absolutely breathtaking when I went to the rooftop terrace of my tiny Manhattan hotel.  Like so many of my favorite moments, I had the wind in my hair, a sky full of color, and a quiet moment taking in an expansive view. 

I used to think I was a pretty good combo of both city and prairie.  Maybe I still am ... but I know I am drawn to the vistas and horizons wherever I am and when I'm in a big city, it never feels like home.  If I imagine myself living there, it's imagining myself in another phase of life.  And this moment, as appreciated as it was, seemed like something that might grow old eventually.  I never thought I'd say that - but maybe I think about things a little bit more when I'm alone, or maybe I realize how alone I am and people seem overwhelming, or maybe I'm just not as connected to the citified hopes and dreams I once held, or maybe I'm too tired for the city ... at least right now.