Three Pears, Nine Angels, Three Gingerbread Men,  and all the rest.  Hand made clay ornaments by Tammy Vitale.

Tis the season to decorate holiday trees,  based on the ancient celebration of Solstice when everyone calls the sun back [ me too – come on sun – longer days!] and gives thanks around the evergreen, that makes it even through the coldest winters.

Short again today.  One torso drop off at Bronze Door Spa, one load in at the Bead Boutique and come home and pack yesterday for Heron’s Way Gallery for today’s load in  – all accomplished!  And the ornaments sprayed with sparkle and wired.  And the background for today’s AEM,  Sunset on the Chesapeake, done so that I could finish it this morning.  You will note the nod toward Pollock whether I like him or not.  Did everyone catch that I mis-spelled his name in the title yesterday?  I have to send a link to one of the Heron’s principals.  She’s gonna get a really big kick out of the fact that I have made not 1 but 2 blue herons in paintings this month.  The ubitquitous Blue Heron, paintings of which I love almost as much as I love Pollock.  I bow to the area in which I live.  (live here and now, right?)  I have to say, this one is more up my alley – not exactly the traditional blue heron environment, but we do have some pretty spectacular sunsets here.

thought for the day:  Joseph Campbell, a great admirer of and teacher of mythology, defines one genre of mythology as a type of vision quest, a journey tale which is found in the same format in every mythology.  In this type of story, the hero leaves the world to which she [did that pronoun catch you by surprise?  were you expecting ‘he’?  Such is cultural acclimation)  is accustomed and goes into a depth, into a distance, or up to a height.  When she reaches this new territory, she finds that which was missing from her consciousness in the world she formerly inhabited.  When the hero comes to this new knowledge, she must decide how to incorporate this knowledge into her way of being:  forget that she knows it and return to the safe and familiar; remain in the new place and not return to the old work; or return to the old world with the new knowledge, working to find a way to integrate the two.  The true hero will choose the last path, bringing with her the gift of a new way of seeing, a way that will most likely disturb the peace of those who have yet to take the trip or who have taken it and chosen to forget it.  The hero’s return will not necessarily be welcome, and during the travail that follows she will need to remember why she decided to try in the first place.  Campbell, remarking on this undertaking, says with splendid understatement:  "This is not an easy thing to do."   Tammy Vitale, draft book from thesis