...

mjd - 2016 

darkness 

is just as much a part of life

as light -

but we will go great lengths 

to avoid it.

it can feel unbearable,

but it isn't.

and while we find ourselves

dragged down,

quick sand slippery and stuck,

it can feel endless,

but it's not.

what if 

instead of putting up a fight,

we opened

maybe even accepted 

allowing ourselves to just stay with it.

 

when we feel

our humanity is affirmed.

we develop compassion

and selflessness.

its brutality can yield

exquisite and unexpected 

results.

the light returns

winter's frozen ground gives way

to fields of flowers. 

the sun can break through

even the most ominous clouds.

and quiet little seeds

bide their time

and become mighty trees.

perhaps we learn to embrace

darkness

because in the end

it takes us places we might never dare go on our own

and because in the end

it's temporary.

everything is. 

everything but love,

that is. 

inspired by warriors of peace

small metal pieces - 2014 mjd

we live in a troubled world

we live in a beautiful world

we live in a world where each one of us makes a difference. 

some people do it quietly

some people forcefully

but all do it courageously. 

find your way.

we notice the light most 

when it's dark.

we notice peace most

when there is chaos and unrest.

but each should be constant

however else the conditions might be. 

simple things can carry great impact. 

i try to hone my pieces so that messages 

are clearly stated

and the wearer will feel 'more' for having them.

i have this hope that my physical act of making marks in metal

sends the message out into the ether

like a chant in hammer strikes.

the new addition of scallops 

represents the way things can radiate - 

all those good things we can choose to put

out into the world. 

the shining sterling orbs

are physical representations 

of light and self realization.

peace, love, kindness, compassion, grace

coupled with accountability

abstract in nature,

but ever so real 

and ever so needed now. 

-----------------------------------

the recipients of the 2014 nobel peace prize were announced yesterday - 

one is the youngest ever. you can read about them and be inspired here. 

and might i share these words with you

that come from young holocaust victim  etty hillesm

ultimately we have just one moral duty:

to reclaim large areas of peace in ourselves,

more and more peace,

and to reflect it towards others,

and the more peace there is in us,

the more peace there will be in our troubled world.

mjd - 2014 - fragile strength talisman pouch - moonflower

it is no mere coincidence that the moonflower blossoms at night. 

it requires darkness 

and the silvery light of the moon

for the creamy white bloom to open.

reverse - fiddlehead

there are things that grow in the dark night of the soul

that, quite simply,

would never come to exist in any other way.

these gifts are meant to come to you in times of struggle or sorrow.

don't miss them because you are looking for the light at the end of the tunnel -

be in the tunnel -

and be aware that surely they are present there along with you.

fiddleheads in the yard 2014

within the darkness

within the darkness - mjd - 2014

when you are ensconced in darkness

it may seem as if darkness is all that exists -

that there can only be more 

of what you are experiencing 

and feeling. 

but the truth of the matter

is that at the core of the darkness

one finds light. 

as long as you live and breathe

as long as you have choices to make,

it's there. 

you must trust 

and open,

because the light is you.

set yourself free

and shine. 

for when you do,

you illuminate your world. 

---------------

this focal is made with a vintage foil-backed cab - so that you might see yourself when you look into it. 

shine

we know
we know.

and  yet we fight it.

fragile strength talisman - shine - mjd 2013

to know light, 

we must know darkness.

in the depths of the pit,

when it rises past your nose

and your eyes are at risk of sinking beneath
that which is known
and that which is unknown,

you'll see it. 

the light.

it may be small,

seem dim,

but it's there. 

it is all you need to begin the ascent. 

you define how you rise. 

mjd - 2013

and while the work is yours, 

you have never been alone.

as it grows in strength

you notice, 

it's no longer in front of you,

but within you. 

what you saw from the deep

was the light of another.

the opportunity is revealed - 

with your strengthening glow

will you show the way

to another who is lost? 

mjd - 2013

shine on.