Jeff Noon revisted

I stroked her soft and green hair for a few seconds as I checked out the flower clock on the wall. Only five petals had fallen. Seemed like I'd been in the Silver for an hour or more, but that's the Vurt for you; it does strange things to time.

Vurt  - page 287
By Jeff Noon

Image via

You are my morocco...

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Morocco 

Enclosed in your room my mind

clouded Morocco – Sanded horizons

and deep heat pressed repeat and

tossed us through the night

and ever since those times

of a disguised routine

emerald fluid

I have been mapping my own path there

Where the language is strange

the air heavy with stares

the night low and warm and textured

with the rhythm that colours my blood

Rhythm that echoes ochre between her mountains

And lies as fine as flour on her planes

You are my mystique

You are my mould

You are my morocco

Image via

For the Love of Kate B

To follow the pattern - or not follow the pattern.....

Ok..... so I found this pattern on Ravelry. 

Beautiful huh?

Clearly..... when I was (ahem) following the instructions -

I wasn't concentrating!!! ...... at all.

But you know - I don't mind the outcome of my lack of concentration.

I added the bead but I'm not entirely sure how I feel about it!

Have you come across a knitted necklace pattern that you'd recommend? That you followed - or didn't!

I think I'd like to give it another go....

Visit some more creative spaces here!

Swimming lessons and a chlorine memory

Our eldest daughter had a swimming lesson on the weekend.

It's a big deal! She - like many little people her age - isn't too fond of getting water in her eyes......

As I watched her - my heart bursting as she sat so straight-backed and courageous on the pool step - surrounded by strangers and noise and splashes of water right into her eyes - doing her very best to do everything her teacher asked of her......

I was astonished to find myself blinking back tears.

Vicki Smith - via

Smell is powerful isn't it! 

That chlorine transported me hard and fast back to a memory from my own childhood swimming lessons.

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I recall loving the free time we had at the end of a lesson. "Free Time for 15 minutes" called by the teacher was like a song.....

There was one lesson when I thought those words had been called - and in I dived.

The most wonderful freeing feeling of silence and weightlessness - I could stay down there for a long time and often did.

When I finally emerged I was met with the teacher yelling at me and a sea of faces staring.

Free Time had not been called. I had been disobedient. There would have to be punishment.

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Punishment was sitting out on the bench while everyone else swam - but worse - my class mate's free time in the water had been cut short to a measly 5 minutes.... because of me.
"That'll teach her!"

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It taught me - at the age of 7 - what shame felt like.... and the stinging heat of humiliation.
And now - it teaches me how heavy and full and lasting the words of adults are upon children.
The responsibility of it.
We all have to experience the weight of these feelings at some time - there will always be a first time - so perhaps it wasn't that this teacher was particularly unkind, but that this was my first time sitting alone with such strong emotion......

Vicki Smith - via

So as I sat there by the swimming pool watching my big girl's brave face - I knew how much I wanted to protect my girls from those feelings - Knowing at the same time - that I can't... and perhaps, shouldn't.

But we can help them to move through them as gently as possible, can't we?

Shake

Speak

Elsa Mora

Have you met Elsa Mora?

Her work is so layered, intricate, precious

diverse - adventurous

and so full with story!

Some of her paper works strike me with the force of their revelations - the emotion in them can knock me over like an icy breeze - lift me like a warm wind.

When writing about this image she added a few quotes. I liked this one:

The mind moves in the direction of our currently dominant thoughts.
Earl Nightingale

I enjoy reading about her journey from Cuba - her reflections on the evolution of her work.

Are there any courageous artists in your life right now?

Rock

Get INSPIRED - by the intricate and beautiful work of this Artist - then...

grab a rock

paint it

and put it in your garden.... or with some other rocks... or next to the letterbox for the posty to check out!

Visit some more spaces here.

Wednesday's words

whimsical adj 1 odd or quaint, fanciful, humorous. 2 capricious
whimsy
whimsy whimsy

A highly used word at the moment......

Via

Via

perhaps because it evokes images of intrigue - other worldliness - mysticism - lace.......

Via

and a touch of darkness.

Lunar para Lisa

Or perhaps it's the feeling in your mouth when spoken - like feathers and whispers and floating

Via

wHhhhimmmsical

I like it. It is soft and misty.
And powerful in it's ability to transport the speaker as fast as light -
straight down that rabbit hole.

Caprice n 1 a a whimsical change of mind or conduct b a tendency to do this. 2 a work of lively fancy in painting and drawing, or music; a capricco. (French)

Leah Tacha

Don't think twice, it's all right!

"I am wearing my red markings - the way you wear your sweet mouth.

Dylan spills - smoke secrets spill...."

Anyone else out there got the love for an old Bob Dylan tune?

Sun

I know that talking about the weather can be a little dull......

but I've gotta say -

I am feeling the love from that sun today!

Hello warm shades of light - Come On In!

This moment

Playing along with Soulemama

My creative space

I'm not great at sewing! Really, really not great...

But I'm lucky - I like a rough edge. A raw, incomplete, irregular, surprising edge.

And I enjoy sewing.

I found some inspiration in Growing Up Sew Liberated (great title don't you think?). 

The project - seen here - that I (sort of) followed, uses numbers instead of letters, straight edges instead of....., colourful fabric cut-outs instead of basic outlines, pegs and branches instead of velcro and double sided tape.

But I'm happy with my adaptation. And sometimes my 3-nearly-4 year old is too.

I don't have a strong interest or inclination toward 3 years olds learning the alphabet. The world for them is pretty big on sensory stimulation and learning as it is.

In growth

In relating to their surroundings and to others

In themselves

In play - most importantly 

In Play

But providing opportunity in learning, as opposed to the possible anxiety of expectation, certainly has weight for me.

At the moment our letters are used as tools for actions. 

Play, Dance, Fun, Make, Cake

Or a friend's name

The letters themselves aren't of much interest as yet - except that it's fun to put them in different spots, and feel their texture, and hide them.

And when that interest evolves and grows into something else, these rough edged - sewn with love - softly textured letters will be waiting..... well, at least the ones that haven't been hidden too well!

What's been happening in your Creative Space?

Paint

My friend Jodes paints these beautiful oil paintings. 

The colours she uses move with vibrancy and strength around, and from within, the characters that are created by them.

I enjoy seeing how an artist's work evolves over time.

For a chance to win a commissioned painting, visit her here.

C.W Stoneking

It's still cold here!
Spring sprung for a moment - then pulled her Shy head way back in again.
Way. Back. In.

So I'm inducing a little warmth by listening to this bloke daily!

1920's Blues sounds and some brilliant storytelling.....

This one is my favourite:

Reminiscent of hot nights - wide verandahs - homemade lemonade - a southern drawl - black and white.
And an era I've never known but travel to regularly through his tunes.

He is coming to Visit!
I Am There

What are you listening to?

Bombing for peace is like.....

Via

Courage

Thinking on beauty today. In it's many forms...



especially in courage!

What beauty are you seeing today?

My creative space

I've been inspired by quite a few posts from Kootoyoo in the past.

But this was a particular gem that got me very busy sewing lacey fabric pieces around jars.... lots of lacey fabric pieces, lots of jars.... lot's. 

Most of them were used as lanterns for a 'rather big bash' we had at the start of the year.

We used candles. It rained.

Never mind. Fun was still had and the lanterns still looked beautiful - drowned as they were.

I recently decided to make a few over - give them new life - new perspective.... 

I filled them with soil, chucked in a succulent and hung them from a circular metal frame we found at the market. Then hung that at the front of the house.

So far - succulents, jars, lacey fabric pieces and myself, are quite happy with the new (dry) arrangement.

The favourite still lights our way at dinner time!

What's been happening in your Creative Space?

Health

Lungs

I've been watching the world through heavy lungs this past week.

Cold, pained, brittle lungs. Fighting lungs. 

It's a nasty flu this one. Very few have been spared....

Caring for the littles - on laboured limbs - hurts. Helplessness hurts.

Still. It is fleeting for us. Severe but brief. 

Do you have those times where your sickness sees you begging for relief?

'I just want to feel well again - I just want to feel normal. I will appreciate my health when it returns!'

And our health returns. And the appreciation lasts a day before we are swept so brilliantly back Up with all those smaller things that make that great big whole.

My thoughts turn to those who - simply - not even in the least - 'have their health'.

I am grateful that those littles of mine are well again. And in a few days my lungs and I will be grateful to be in the world again. The fresh, colourful, vibrant world.

And maybe. Just maybe - a few days after that - I will spend some time thinking on what good thing I can do with that health of mine.

I hope you and your health are on good terms today!