Short Story Long

A bush full of marigolds:  When you're young, "old" people will tell you how fast time goes by.  And when you're a new parent, people will go on and on about how this stage "won't last forever" and you should cherish it all, even the annoying parts.  It's just amazing, though, how many things will not fit into the time I have.   It strikes me how much more I get done in a span of time if I turn off all social media and email.   I have been accused, more than once, of being completely out of touch with what's "in," and of being old-fashioned.  Tone of voice aside, it's not the insult it was meant to be.  The more life experience I have, the more I begin to see the value of quality over quantity.  Frankly, there are so many more valuable uses of my time than racking up a high number of Friends, which, let's face it, are actually Acquaintances.   If you wonder, here are some of the recent experiences causing my m...

My husband was flipping through a magazine and absentmindedly stated, "I already know what my 'spirit animal' is."  To which my youngest asked, "What is a spirit animal?" Dad:  "Oh, it's an animal you identify with." Youngest:  "OoOOooh.  Mine's a sloth."

The buzz around schools these days is that the new kids coming up through high schools are the first class learning about 9/11 from a historical point of view, as opposed to a personal point of view.  I don't know, it's still personal to me, and I don't see how that would mean nothing to my kids.  I guess we're not talking about it much anymore.  Time for some remembering.  

Continuing my photo project on artists and craftsmen, allow me to introduce you to Marilyn, of Black Water Abbey Yarns .  Marilyn and I were introduced by mutual friends (who knit) and since then, I have had the opportunity to photograph some of her beautiful pattern collections.  Marilyn distributes high quality wool directly from Ireland, so it is no surprise that many of her patterns feature elegant cable work.   Through the process of photographing her work, I have had the opportunity to get to know Marilyn as a person and an artist.  As she travels to yarn and fiber shows around the country, Marilyn sells not only her own beautiful yarn and patterns, but also a selection of items such as cards, soap, and pins, from small-business artists.  In other words, she is helping the creative women around her, too.  Whenever we meet up to transfer projects, I walk away from our conversations feeling newly inspired.   I am pleased tha...