Fog enshrouds my house this late fall morning. A warm cup of Chai at hand, and my Cat lies at my feet while I type. All is hushed, a perfect morning to blog, think, just be with myself. There are no outside distractions that I must attend to ~ not just yet. Winter will not be here officially until next weekend ~ Winter Solstice. The garden is covered in frost, tattered ruins of Summers glory. I have been unable to tend to its upkeep, working overtime for my employer (and wallet) and the seasonal buying frenzy. The new year will see me unleashed from the bondage of keeping my job ~ and again will be able to trim, dig, mulch, and transplant. The garden awaits me with patience. My studio awaits me with patience as well.
Meán Geimhridh (pronounced Mawn G+ev+ree), midwinter, or grianstad (pronounced Gree+awn+stod), “sunstop,” is one of the key points of the year in which the veil that divides our world and the supernatural Otherworld ~ non ordinary reality ~ is at its thinnest point. I love all the seasons for their own particular beauty. Winter is the time when the earth sleeps, self nurtures, readying herself for the push of Spring and the warming Sun. Like the Bear, I am ready for hibernation. Living in the modern world forces me to hibernate in spurts, only on weekends and evenings when I can shut the door and just be. It is what it is, I am patient.
I have been working on a new idea for my next piece. I found a daguerreotype, circa 1890, of a young Japanese woman for my central figure. I have Photoshopped it already, and it is ready to be printed. This idea is nurtured by a symbolic phase from Dane Rudhyar’s An Astrological Mandala. I have had this well used book since I was a young woman; drawing wisdom from its symbolic archetypes aligned with my natal astrological chart. The symbol for my Saturn placement in Scorpio. “A woman draws away two dark curtains closing the entrance to a sacred pathway.” This is the woman within, the mystic’s path, to face the darkness of the unknown and walk through the door. With faith and intuition, that all will be as it should be.
I bought some more decorative paper from Hollanders a couple days ago. The papers should arrive next week, a Christmas present to myself. I have not chosen the paint color palette, that will happen after the paper arrives. I am thinking it will be in gray and gold tones, with a touch of pink. The Japanese woman is sepia toned, she wears a flowered kimono, her long hair is down. I tinted it a bit with a magenta pink to give it more depth. I so look forward to having the time to let my own hair down and begin to work on a fresh new board.
I am a hollow bone, and welcome in spirits healing energy. My body is healing from the shock of the surgery, carefully I nurture myself. This will take some time ~ I am patient. The scars on my belly are still red, but have healed. My digestive system will never be the same, and so I adjust. I have lost some weight, and that is a good thing. I revel in this mornings quiet peace, far from the madding crowd.
My studio awaits me, hibernating, ready to spring forth, fecund with the birth of new artwork ~ A room of one’s own.
Sacred Spiral Design 