Misty Mawn

home

   

*

 

 

 

Happy, Happy, Happy Fourth of July!!!!

carried away, again

loving this version of this song!    it's wonderful! 

happy first day of July, already?!  

headed back to Pennsylvania for a few days,  someone will be turning 8, time to celebrate! 

 heavy sigh, how can that be? 

life is like a bouquet of flowers?

 

and if so, which would you pick?  

 

 roses perhaps,

 the color; faded peach, a whole bouquet of them?

 cut perfectly & placed in a small glass vase

  centered on the dinning room table,

 

to be noticed each time one walks into the room, 

 

each flower as it slowly blooms.

 

together they fill the room with a lovely & gentle perfume, 

the open window brings in a breeze 

that tangos the scent from here to there,

 

 every so often i find myself standing in front of this arrangement, 

 

 present, admiring, & trying to see 

if i can witness the changes that occur with time, 

how long do i have

until they begin to wilt just a little & fade just a bit?

will it be one petal at a time or all at once? 

 i try to stay aware, but something else grabs my attention.

i am reminded what it was that i came here for,

 i look away, then once again at the bouquet of roses

 to find a petal has fallen off,

just like that,

  how brave & sweet it is, resting there all alone.

i think i will dry the petals & keep them forever. 

~

one week in photos...give or take a few.

~

the very last painting is my first "oil" painting in many years.  

so  f.r.u.s.t.r.a.t.i.n.g!  

 i was reading an article last week by a painter who's work i just love.   i loved his quote and found myself nodding my head after reading it, thinking of myself and my  struggles of painting with oils again.

 "in the beginning it's natural to noodle everything to death, but slowly you can learn to say more with less, to make sure each brushstroke has meaning" ~ Malcolm T. Liepke.  

 "noodle everything to death" is exactly what i did to this painting, well, the first one, the one that was on this board, that got scraped off and painted over, and so i dusted myself off and tried again... i am over mixing my paints and they lean towards dull... but i am still loving the change and excited about it, still eager to learn and figure oils out ...today i found my way back to my comfort palette.... acrylics, for now. 

music this week?  of course... from abc to we are the world and everything in-between.  

carried away

a sonnet

 

all i want

gravity

because, sometimes it just feels so good to get carried away!

*

filling the day...

dropped my children off at their ballet & bible camps

took a walk in the sun with my beloved camera.

had a pot of genmaicha, ummm

found two new books waiting for me at my doorstep

painted with oils  (mixing my own paint using brilliant pigments...this is so exciting...  i can't even tell you... hopefully i can share what comes of this soon). 

picked up my darling two, 

had crackers, grapes, & cheese for lunch... (i know you care ;) 

making stars & tic tac toe boards out of beads

a too short visit with a dear friend,

now, off to the salon for hair cuts

& later... 

mexican rice soup & espresso

~

what is filling your day?

happy summer solstice! 

~

photos from our weekend...  

for over a week i was without my camera, it had to be sent out to be worked on. 

now that it is back i have fallen in love all over again!  

      

Liz has posted all about the light & shadows retreat, i can't wait and would LOVE for

 you to join us!  

*

have you heard.....this song, love it! 

Lynn Fisher has sent out an open invitation for a 10 day collage challenge, i am hoping i can get a few pieces created and posted soon! 

...a few more photo montages from my weekend at Carol Parks. 

  

for my dad...

you, with the best sense of humor of anyone i know, who taught me to not take myself so seriously, who taught me the value of hard work,  the same person that made me call you every night when i would get to work just to say i made it okay, or woke up earlier than the dawn to take me to work if it was snowing outside, to the person that introduced me to great music, and ate my cooking when i was just learning how to cook (i can still picture the pizza i "cooked"  flaming out in the snow... how was i to know you were supposed to remove the cardboard before cooking?)  to the person i know that is most like me, to the same person that has encouraged me to be who i am, and makes me feel special,  thank you, thank you. xo

sp

sp= self portrait

it's raining here, i am loving every drop. 

listening to lhasa over and over again... (thank you katie) 

 

"i see these things with an intense joy, and while i observe, there is no observer, only beauty almost like love.   for an instant, i am absent, myself and my problems, my anxieties, my troubles;  nothing but the wonder exist" ~  krishnamurti

~ 

that is just how i felt the whole time i was at Carol Parks, surrounded by inspiration & beauty & so much wonder.  from the very first morning, when i sat outside in a little secret garden, writing  & observing, to the moment my eager students arrived, cozying in around the glowing fireplace, feeling nervous/excited/grateful, to 3 whole days of painting & connecting with 11 beautiful souls,  to the hugs & warm goodbyes on the last day of class... and again, just like that, i am home, feeling energized and ready to soak up the summer days ahead...

more on Carol Parks soon...

(thank you to Carol  & my students for creating & sharing this time with me xo) 

*

have you seen this? so inspiring!  

sp

playing in the sunlight

listening to... moby's new album, a little of this and this.

"waves of a serene life pass over us from time to time, like flakes of sunlight over the fields in cloudy weather." ~ Henry David Thoreau

off to teach at Carol Parks for the weekend...  wishing you a wonderful ... see you when i get back. 

these few days...

"live like the mudfish, whose stain is bright and silvery even though it dwells in mud." ~ ramakrishna

listening to...   Jim White * static on the radio

~ 

tomorrow is self portrait day, hope you play along! 

& hope you are having a wonderful week! 

sp

... i love summer & all that it brings ... 

have you heard...  

of  horse feathers,  thanks to jen i have, &  i love them.

~

i like this rumi quote... as much as i like to think of myself as a handful of herbs or a thread hanging from a robe... 

i am a handful of herbs from the garden of your beauty. 

i am a thread hanging from the robe of your greatness. 

~ rumi

asilomar

revisiting...

a place i love

and finding beauty everywhere

 (and bribing that beauty with bits of my lunch to get him to come closer for a photo shoot... i know, i know... i shouldn't feed the wildlife) 

hearing sounds that stay forever

capturing images that i now crave to see in person once again. 

of course we stopped and then we...

followed the wind

to a place

full of peace

 & gentle guidance

full of fleeting moments

beautiful shrines

 mind silencing candle vigils 

feeling gratified

a time of sharing

& a little resting, 

& a lot of being expressive. 

~

and here is my traveling companion...

wearing the necklace i gave him

here he is again, balancing in the palm of my hand, impressive?! ;) 

~

now,  how to hold on to these memories?!  already i can feel them slipping away. i suppose taking more & more pictures is the best way... 

and yet again there were so many photos i didn't take... 

a huge thank you to all of my beautiful students that were there with me, thank you!

thank you to my dear friends & housemates,  

& thank you Glenny, Bee, & Vonnie for all you do to bring these events together! 

& thank you for checking in.  

~

it's a fresh new month... so what should we do?  

today, like everyday, 

we wake up hollow and frightened.

don't open the door to the study & begin reading.

reach for the musical instrument.

let the beauty we love be what we do,

there are hundreds of ways to kneel & kiss the gound.

~ rumi

sp

 

 self portrait by my daughter  

...and so i am late once again in posting.  casually late.    honestly, i tried to post last night, but once the clock struck past 1 am i knew it was time for me to find a pillow and curl up to dream, so i did... but i am here now, sharing many of the photos that i took yesterday.  it's fascinating how i can go a few days without even picking up my camera and then days like yesterday where it seems to become an extension of me and the memory card say full before i even get too deep in taking pictures.  life is much like that, don't you think?   sometimes it's too much, sometimes it's not enough, and sometimes it's just perfect how it is.    and each day i seem to cover all of those feelings.  ;)  

it's another beautiful day here, hope it is there, too! 

i am off to pack... leaving soon for the west coast.

~

what do you think of this poem? 

The Art of Disappearing

~ Naomi Shihab Nye

When they say Don't I know you?
say no.

When they invite you to the party
remember what parties are like 
before answering.
Someone telling you in a loud voice
they once wrote a poem.
Greasy sausage balls on a paper plate.
Then reply.

If they say We should get together
say why?

It's not that you don't love them anymore.
You're trying to remember something
too important to forget.
Trees. The monastery bell at twilight.
Tell them you have a new project.
It will never be finished.

When someone recognizes you in a grocery store
nod briefly and become a cabbage.
When someone you haven't seen in ten years
appears at the door,
don't start singing him all your new songs.
You will never catch up.

Walk around feeling like a leaf.
Know you could tumble any second.
Then decide what to do with your time.

~

listen & watch here

you can do it...

a favorite song lately, it gets funnier every time. 

and have you checked this out?  themoth.org

~

when you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy. ~ rumi 

~

 hope you are having a beautiful weekend, doing what brings you joy! 

sp ~ a moment to myself

i see the open door, i walk through it, i find a quiet place where i can sit and be still, for just a moment... i need this moment to think, to unfold, to reflect... 

and then? 

 i hear that door.... 

it creaks open and the rest is a joyous blur...

it's fleeting moments like these that make the most sense to me in this hard-pressed world. 

~

i am a day late in posting.. if anyone is keeping track. ;) so much piled on my plate...me & my big appetite for life... 

earlier this week a dear friend lost her best companion, i have no words,  but my heart reaches out to you, now & always.  i am so sorry. 

happy mother's day

"my mom is a neverending song in my heart of comfort, happiness, and being.  I may sometimes forget the words but I always remember the tune."   ~Graycie Harmon

~

always a song...

 mama, you been on my mind  & then there is this version, i love it, too!

art & soul, va

here are the finished (mostly) pieces created by my students in my two day class at art & soul.   i am a very proud teacher!!!     insert cheeky grin here   ;) 

 both of my classes created such beautiful work! 

if you were in my little art book class and have finished your book... i would so LOVE to see it! 

it's days {& nights} like this...

"we should each make our lives as meaningful as possible"  dalai lama

~

wishing you a beautiful weekend 

xo

listening to and loving...  Xavier Rudd

sp at the ocean

*

and then the waves came...

whoosh, home from art & soul...just like that. 

~

i managed to take a few photos from my time there... not many though, so typical of me, but i did get some wonderful photos of my second classes work, that i will post soon... for now i am off to take my company out on the town...

*

 i love this song... perfect on this chilly spring day. 

counting on seeds

i love this video 

 the things children say... like just two days ago when my son and i were out walking, he plucked his millionth dandelion from the ground and quickly pulled all the billowy seeds off and tossed them up into the air, i quietly gasped and asked him... "did you make a wish first?"  no,  he says, they never come true.  my heart sunk  with a thud right to the pavement...   i defensively said,  YES they do!  why would you think that?  well, he says, none of mine have!  big protective sigh.   i wonder?  what is this boy wishing for?  So i asked, he said he couldn't tell me, then they wouldn't come true!   and he didn't seem to want to talk about it anymore.  as for me,  i will continue to make my own wishes and encourage him to make wishes on dandelions, stars, pennies, birthday cakes, anything that wishes can be made on.  and i will also remind him to be careful what he wishes for.....   ;-) 

~

i am packing up, getting ready for a long weekend of teaching, taking my family with me for a few days... back next week! 

 thank you so much for your comments/thoughts/links on my latest post!  i love seeing all the self portraits!!! 

sp

One Flower by Jack Kerouac

One flower on the cliffside Nodding at the canyon ~ listening to... my first love

star light, star bright...

if you get lost on your way the stars will find you... 

*

listening to...  Calexico

....thank you all so much for your words about my painting. xoxo