known and unknown

mjd - 2015

all is not known to us.

not at once

not without work

and that is fine.

where would the wonder reside

if everything were easy,

were obvious?

mjd - 2015

where would the desire

to become our best 

and highest 

self

come from 

if there were no obstacles 

to surmount?

mjd - 2015

how indeed 

could we relate to each other -

understand another's joy

another's pain

another's fear?

mjd - 2015

there is something infinite that connects us all

something we can touch

something we can feel

something we can apply ourselves to

for the betterment of all.

embrace the mystery

mjd - 2014 embrace the mystery

life is really about the mystery

isn't it? 

we aren't born with guidebooks

go to location a

meet person b

engage in activity c

life will be d.

no,

it's unknown.

but somehow that word

that idea 

can terrify us.

we can stop our growth

by withdrawing

by looking away from opportunity.

can you imagine

a field full of stunted flowers -

too afraid to grow 

because they didn't know what 

was in store for them?

afraid that the winds would blow too hard

the sun might shine too bright

the rain might fall too cold?

how tragically sad.

but there are people

so many people

who do the same things 

to themselves. 

embrace the mystery - 

the mystery of your life

and what can happen

if you push past the fear

and say 'yes' 

instead of 'no'.

you'll become the flower

that fully blooms -

face to the sun

bathed by rain.

and when your time

comes to an end

you will know

that you experienced life

and what it had to offer. 

------

i find the irony is that instead of feeling better when we withdraw due to fear,

we only feel worse. there is a tension, a pulling, in the heart space. you don't feel better for your choices, you feel worse. for the heart knows what we are capable of and what we need. it is the mind that gets in the way. 

carving, etching & prayer/peace flags

i started carving in rubber block - and love it... 


om, lotus, feathers and a bear totem... i thought i would be using them on fabric for the peace flags project... 

but it seems i cannot escape the jeweler/metal worker mindset... and i'm ok with that... the whole idea for the project was to be interpretive - to send wishes for peace free in your own way... 

my first set of flags are on the small side, copper om and lotus buds alternating... connected in such a way that movement in possible... highlighted with floss in the correct color arrangement... one wrapped lapis drop at the bottom... 

you can read more about the project (and join in if you like) here... 

circling

when i do something new-ish, it can almost be assumed that i have a project i need to begin the physical work on but am at that point where i need to push through to begin... it's that moment when you are half excited/half terrified... 

so naturally, i do something completely unrelated... 

like make my first stamp - 

the flags for peace project has a natural deadline of sept. 21st - international peace day... i had wanted to be able to carve stamps to apply the paint/ink to the material... and i just got the supplies in this morning... 

i wanted my first stamp to be a lotus and i found this image in my book by robert beer... 

it had been suggested that i practice on erasers (though i am wondering if i got the right kind, i know i got the right tools... they didn't go through 'like butter'... so i am either holding the cutting edge incorrectly, or i got the wrong eraser!) thank you, barbara, for giving me a list of the supplies i needed...

as i sat carving - which i rather liked - my daughter came in from a photography workshop she worked at the grounds for sculpture,

and she handed me this - 

a real lotus petal... i hadn't asked for it, nor did she know what i was doing as she had left before the delivery arrived!

i am really happy with it - i wanted a rough woodcut type effect... i know there is practice to be done... but at least i can get going on the peace/prayer flags now... 

lightly

petals in brass - 2012

'lightly, child, lightly.  

you've got to learn to do everything lightly.  

think lightly, act lightly, feel lightly.  

yes, feel lightly, even though you're feeling deeply.'

- aldous huxley island

it was interesting today to realize that while working with a stiff metal, 

heating & reheating

hammering

folding & unfolding

gently bending and forming,

i was, in fact, doing it lightly... 

(contented sigh)

much gratitude to robyn gordon at art propelled  for sharing this passage... i immediately got the book and have since finished it...

a beautiful & worthwhile read... 

petals, cont'd

mary jane dodd - petals - 2012

in nickel - 


'the jewel is in the lotus'


a translation of 'om mani padme hum' from a talk given by the dalai lama -

mary jane dodd - petals - 2012

and red brass... 

gifts from the land of blog

'many people will walk in and out of your life,

but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.'

- eleanor roosevelt

it has taken me all week to share the experience of monday... perhaps because it has been so very much for me to process... 

after dropping the kids off at school, i went to the station and boarded a train headed to the city... 

i was off to meet two people i had connected with in the land of blog - people i admire both personally and professionally... 

barry smith and fiona dempster... 

we found each other and then headed off to the rubin museum where we saw beautiful & meaningful work... 

a yellow tara

lotus blossoms

phoenix and dragons

we learned how to decipher complex paintings - their organization, iconography, composition and structure... thank goodness for the efforts made on the part of the rubin with that - i felt my eyes glazing over a bit... 

we learned where shrek came from -

we found funny signs -

we 'were'... 

what barry and fiona probably don't know is what it meant for me... this was my first venture out into the world after quite some time... 

i was almost dumbstruck by the ease with which our time together felt... surely, blogging provides an initial filter... one knows the others interests, thoughts, work (according to what is shared, of course)... but to meet two people from halfway around the world felt completely natural... 

i am doing an incredibly poor job of describing this - 

i know that... 

i want to thank them for inviting me to meet them... 

for making me feel so comfortable that i was joking with them... 

for feeling safe enough to share my opinions and thoughts without fear... 

for finding out what being free, relaxed and enjoying yourself is like again... 

for welcoming me into their world... 

those footprints will never be erased... 

i am most grateful... 

simple - cont'd

'don't pin much hope on the mail,

and when the phone rings don't expect anyone wonderful to be calling.'

~ andy rooney

oh, andy - you obviously never met anyone through etsy!!


i practically skip to the mail - that should have been on my simple things list... dear mellisa from chinook jewelry sent me a business card holder, a ponytail holder, and some gorgeous lotus tiles... you had to see these... she has more - and if i don't snag them all, you may be able to get yourselves some!!

and i also found a lovely woman named lashell on etsy at who hand dyes sari silk in gorgeous colors... do you know how hard it was not to buy more?! almost painful... her mother taught her how to do it... 

'inspiration exists, but it has to find us working.'

~ pablo picasso

here's to getting some time to work this weekend in a way you love ...  

playing with copper sheet

'at the center of your being you have the answer,

you know who you are

and you know what you want.'

~ lao tzu

copper sheet has been randomly stamped with om & lotus punches... hole at bottom is deliberately off center signifying the journey of working towards our center... faceted amethyst used for healing properties... a stone associated with calm, healing and peace... 

'all who wander are not lost.'

~ j.r.r. tolkien

a very favorite quote of mine... drifting, letting go, relaxing, going with the flow... the word 'drifting' has been stamped randomly along with leaves on the copper sheet to evoke the feeling of, well, drifting... like leaves being carried by a stream... lapis was chosen because of the properties it contains - balancing of yin-yang, bringing mental clarity... all things that occur when we let go and set our minds free...

'we all have our own life to pursue,

our own kind of dream to be weaving...

and we all have the power to make wishes come true,

as long as we keep believing.'

~ louisa may alcott

sheet metal here has been textured and punched in many places allowing for the weaving of fibers within it... a contrast in textures tied (no pun intended) together by the flowing line of each medium.. 

did you experiment today? 

music is what feelings sound like ~

art is what feelings look like~

& when they 'come together'... (couldn't resist!)

i usually work in silence... i enjoy it, as it is a rare commodity in my home... but as you know from my blog, the beatles have been hangin' round here... and i like it! i really only take pics by natural light & today it was pouring... so the photos aren't the best...  but...

this necklace is called 'let it be'...

'whisper words of wisdom, let it be.'

 

a really fun necklace for me to make... sterling, copper & vintaj brass... rustic glass seed beads, a beautiful lampwork bead from bleu verre ... i stamped, hammered, wrapped, punched and antiqued the morning away... it is so rewarding to do a lot of this myself... the lotus flower, leaf & lapis are reminders and symbols of self-awareness, inner truth, the beauty of life and love... 

 

these earrings are called 'you say you want a revolution'...

'you tell me it's the institution,

well you know

you better free your mind instead.'

these are a sterling version of the ones in the last post... 

'while my guitar gently weeps'...

'with every mistake we must surely be learning.'

a copper drop with blue/green lampwork glass beads... they reminded me of drops of water or tears for all that is done in ignorance and hate... 

'the distressed feminine'... distressed - you get that part, hammered, antiqued... some bumps and bruises... aged to a fine patina... imperfectly perfect (aren't we?)... the pink beads do not match, are softly etched & are from mika at pinocean...and are a loose interpretation on the feminine symbol...

would love to work more but have misplaced my business cards for tomorrow and now i have to find them! yikes - oh yeah, and the kids are home from school! have to do the mom-thing!

enjoy your friday... 

on becoming

this quote came to my attention as i was reading an article about social change and global warming:

'we must all learn to live together as brothers or we will all perish together as fools. we are tied together in the single garment of destiny, caught in an inescapable network of mutuality. for some strange reason i can never be what i ought to be until you are what you ought to be. and you can never be what you ought to be until i am what i ought to be.'

-martin luther king, jr.

i completely understand the ideas of relatedness and interconnectedness that exists between all living things... and i find this quote to be profound for it reaches further than the personal journey we are on to attain the highest level of consciousness we can... from our practice of working upon ourselves, and then reaching out with ever more to give, the great challenges of our time can be met...

but to be honest, 'i can never be what i ought to be until you are what you ought to be.' made me stop... what do you think? on the most deeply personal level, aren't we supposed to be able to gain great insights through our own diligence? do we need others to attain our own enlightenment? does it help to be surrounded by those that are like minded? of course... but is it necessary? i don't know, i am still thinking about it - and i still have a lot of work to do... i suppose that is why dr. king wrote, 'for some strange reason'... as applied to the species, this statement rings loud and true... we need to be a part of the solution and not a part of the problem... we can achieve more together if we are on the same page, working toward a common goal...

these earrings are about becoming what you ought to be... the lotus flower is one of the eight auspicious symbols in buddhism... the roots of the lotus are set down in the mud, the stem growing and rising up through the murky water until it reaches the surface, where the flower turns its face to the sun... the white flower is a symbol of enlightenment, of the purity of body, mind and speech... these earrings are made in 3 layers... the bottom is a paddled copper drop representing the roots... the center is a spiral headpin with moonstone representing growth and the flashes of insight gleaned with emotional understanding... and the dome shaped disc is stamped with the lotus flower itself... hammered and antiqued... i made all but 2 of the pieces - the split ring and the spiral headpin which was made by rocki at rockis supplies... in truth, i didn't realize how i was building these, how the 3 parts were symbolic, it only came later when i was finished...

imagine whole water gardens of lotus where each blossom represents an enlightened human
& what could be accomplished if those were to be...