Year's End

January 31, 2005

The last day of the year………My mind is filled with questions; what have I done to make this year count? In what ways have I honored the gift of this life during the past 365 days? How many days have I wasted in negativity? How much time has been lost to self-pity, self-doubt, and self-criticism? How many days did I allow myself to be my "best self?" How many mornings did I greet the day with gratitude and energy? Have I managed to strike some balance between gain and loss, positive and negative, simplicity and complexity, work and relaxation? On a day to day basis I couldn't say. But overall, I think there has been some kind of balance.

I do not make New Year's resolutions. They seem to be yet another way for me to set myself up. Instead, I set goals and intentions. And those are made of incremental baby-steps for the most part. After all, it's those baby steps that eventually take me where I want to go. One of my intentions for the coming year is to challenge myself at the beginning of each day to live in the present, honor the gift of that day, and to be able to look back at the end of the day with a sense of satisfaction that I made the absolute most of this precious gift that is my life!

How will you make the most and the best of life in the New Year?

Peace and blessings to everyone!

Not to be forgotten.............

I've not seen these images side-by-side until now! On the left is a snapshot of a self-portrait done by my daughter, Diane, many years ago after having been ill for quite some time. On the right is my altered version of it. Printed on fabric with all kinds of things done to it: glitter, glue, paper glued down and ripped back up, beads, stitching, holes punched and brads added. Layered with a variety of scrap papers and ripped/pulled, frayed gauze.

The past week was one well-spent! I don't always feel a true sense of satisfaction with the time I spent creating something, but this time I am well-pleased!

Finished!

The finished result of my pile of "stuff" from my last post. I am not a scrapper by any means. I admire the ability that some people have to create beautiful scrapbooks. But I don't have that talent. And that's ok. I have others. I suppose if someone needs to categorize or classify this, then scrapbook would be an appropriate term. For me, it is a collage/montage of memories of a very special time. As special as it is to me, it is now treasured by my daughter.



And now, on to other projects and ideas!

Shhhhhhhh...............

don't tell anyone! This pile of "stuff" is the makings of a memory book for my daughter. They took me to Cozumel with them last May and now, for Christmas, I want to give Cindy something special. Although she has done her own things with photos and memorabilia, I want to share my own vision and version of it.

I have papers and maps and fibers galore. Tons of embellishments. Photos and various sized copies of photos. I have stickers and rub-ons. I have "page coasters." I've got the stuff, i've got the ideas percolating, and I have the weekend!

Here goes....................

Memories of summer

A bottle of wine shared with my dear sister, Lake McDonald in Glacier National Park. August 15, 2005. It was just the beginning of a week of fun, wonder, marvel, excitement, and delight.

I love you, Kathy, and I love the times we spend together!

Today's project

I recently celebrated my 50th birthday. Just about anyone who knows me is aware of that. I made a pretty big deal out of it. Not because it bothers me--just the opposite, actually. I find it exciting, awesome and thrilling to get to be 50. One of my friends said that she love turning 50 because it meant she didn't have to take anything off of anyone! I don't know that being 50 means that, but it is a huge milestone.

During the year before this birthday I did a lot of things to celebrate and honor this passage. I did 50 things during the past year that I had never done before--some simple and ordinary, like eating buffalo, and other pretty exciting, like parasailing and snorkeling.

This collage honors not only my passage into my second half-century of life, but honors many of the people who played an important part in me becoming who I am. The quote at the bottom right is my brother's. He is two years younger than I. His comment to me when we saw each other on Thanksgiving was "it seems like just yesterday we were turning 40!" Of course that had to become a part of my collage. The background text is words that reflect some of the things that are most important to me. Some of the words are reflections of things people have taught me about myself. And some of them are values and ideal I continue strive to achieve.

Today I honored and celebrated my birth and many of those who have made my life the rich tapestry that it has become.

New treasures

Fabric and dolls--- indulgences from my trip to Paducah. The dolls hang and dance in the air. And what will I do with the pile of fabric-----hmmmmm, add it to the collection, of course!

Back online

The roadtrip with mom was great---lots of good food, tons of fun, and art & fabric out the wahzoo! I came home loaded down with new STUFF--some to look at and enjoy, and some for makin' more stuff. I'm in heaven!

Since then, my week has been a blur of activity. Work has been frenzied and darn-near overwhelming. Today there is a slow-down and I think I can relax just a bit. That means I can have some fun pics from the trip to share later on tonight!

Road Trip

My mama and I are ready to head out for a weekend in Paducah. I have never been there, but she has---many times. There will be quilts galore, that's for sure. Fabric out the wahzoo, and ART ART ART. The city has a program that assists artists who relocate there. So there are lots of open studios and galleries.

This shot is me and mom on another grand adventure: Seattle, 2000!
And now, off we go!