Tag Archives: creativity

A Rising Star

Today I’m thinking about transitions, those in-between times that can be both unsettling and energizing. I worked in higher education most of my life, and for many years I oversaw the annual rite of passage known as commencement. An overall celebratory event, this occasion proved bittersweet for graduates as they hugged friends goodbye before leaving,Continue reading “A Rising Star”

Reverence

It is a wholesome and necessary thing for us to turn again to the earth and in the contemplation of her beauties to know the sense of wonder and humility. Rachel Carson, The Sense of Wonder, 1965 When I began this particular quilt adventure back in September of 2020, I didn’t know where it wouldContinue reading “Reverence”

These Truths

I designed These Truths during the summer of 2020 when George Floyd’s senseless death replayed on cable news. The officer’s knee pressed against Floyd’s neck became emblematic of America’s painful perpetuation of racial injustices. Floyd’s invocation of his deceased mother and his unheeded pleas–“I can’t breathe”– gave new life to Black Lives Matter. In aContinue reading “These Truths”

Provence

It was a trip like no other. Just me and my daughter for three weeks in Portugal, Madrid, Barcelona, and the southern region of France known as Provence. I can’t describe our entire journey, so I’ll offer a glimpse of Provence, which had been a dream destination of mine until, together, we made it aContinue reading “Provence”

Elements

Mighty ocean waves crash forward with rhythmic predictability, and hefty winds howl with disregard. In defiance, we put up thin wooden fences to hold blowing sand grains in place and erect stilt houses to outsmart surging tides. While these powerful forces threaten to overtake us, we tenderly embrace our fragile existence and hope that weContinue reading “Elements”

My Corner of the Universe

Like cosmic explorers gliding into another world, we gently land under a canopy of stars and audaciously stake our claim here—at the edge of everything. Down the way, at the intersection where sunrises and sunsets cross, fellow travelers ebb and flow with the seasons. We stay—along with wild horses, deer, and coyote—to ride out epicContinue reading “My Corner of the Universe”

Home and Wanderlust

Years ago our family’s garage housed a series of bird nests. A missing plexiglass window in the garage door allowed the birds to enter and exit as they pleased. Each spring the birds nested on top of the garage opener and tossed twigs on our car below. We could hear the babies chirp and seeContinue reading “Home and Wanderlust”

Crown of Thorns

Creative ideas can flow from things we see and know, but what about things we can’t see and don’t yet know? Do they have a role to play? That’s where this story begins. Wanting to make a contemporary medallion quilt, I started with a modern variation of a “bear paw” block. I liked the lookContinue reading “Crown of Thorns”

Wrapped in Love

(Cocoa Beach, FL, c. 1964) Frothy waves and gentle currents push me along until I emerge on the shore like a small sand crab, happily drenched and sand encrusted. At a distance I see my watchful, worried mother summoning me to return. She greets me with a colorful beach towel–wrapping it around my entire body–untilContinue reading “Wrapped in Love”