The A to Z of one word messages ~ A is for Awed

word in progress today:
April 1, 2013

At Nutmeg Designs we specialize in one word signs, and even though we have done more than one word those occasions have been rare. This month I am going to focus on words we have made and words I hope to make.

Over on Flickr I sometimes leave a simple one word comment and often it is "Awed."

What do I mean? I hope the photographer understands that I mean I am overwhelmed by beauty, by talent, by colors, by shapes, by emotions, and by the generosity to take the time to share it all for my eyes to see. To be awed is truly splendid. To show you what I mean I made a gallery featuring one photograph from 16 of my favorite Flick friends.

I am awed by flowers, jazz, friends, scientific discoveries, art, glass, birds, and love. I am awed by a God who is involved in all of this.

And finally I am awed by Arlee Bird, who came up with the idea of a to z and has created quite the phenomenon.

So what are you awed by?

Mosaic Woman is going places on her A to Z and today she celebrated a piece of Canada... Alberta

P is for Photos by Purpleface and Paul

My photos don't do them justice, but I love the work by these photographers and I am glad that now that P has rolled around (doing O tomorrow) I remembered that I wanted it to be for two great photographers.


Paul Grecian is one of those people who it is an honor to be at a craft show with because his work is amazing. We loved his work even before we did our first show, before he became our friend, before I lined up to spend this Friday hanging out with the man at one of my favorite places.

Mosaic Woman allowed me the pleasure of picking out one of his photos, we chose Seating For Two ( I say we because I knew she loved the photo and waxwings). But I got to say that Downward Facing Dog (not what you will expect) among others were high on the list.

Friend Paul's art at Facebook.



Purpleface (Sarah Lewis) first entered my life at Flickr, then twitter, then facebook, then my studio. Well her photo is there and it has a special location on the top of a very special book case. On the side of the case are notes from a retreat at The Jesuit Center. Below the photo are many types of stained glass and below that my collection of books on spirituality... That white grid thing is where I cut glass, so Purpleface is close by when I am cutting and grinding glass.

Purpleface said something kind about a stained glass heart I had made, so I thought: Fair Trade Across the Atlantic. But then I had to choose a photo. Life can be hard when you hang out with such talented folk. It was not the speediest of transactions but it sure was joyful when we each finally had art from the other.

The photo is called Crisp, and a much more crisp shot can be seen here.

Friend her art at Facebook. She is one of the best friends I have never met.

Science Mondays--- wartime measures double the universe

Photo by Dana Graves

Cosmic Times jumps from 1929 to 1955, because this happened.

So today I told the story of how blackouts in 1943 LA allowed a view of outer space that indicated there were two types of Cepheid Variables and thus the universe doubled in size.

I spoke of how when the story started Henrietta Leavitt, who was noticing what had to be noticed, was looking at Type 1's.

Shapely would venture into clusters of stars where Type 2's hung out. He would use a bit of parallax data using a nearby Type 1 to start measuring distant stars.

Hubble and Humason (the mule team driver and later telescope master) would venture into galaxies other than our own and see Type 1's and use Shapely's distance formulas.

Then Blaade took advantage of those blackouts, and saw there were two types, he realized Hubble and Humason had used a bad "Yardstick" and now our nearest galaxy neighbor was 1.6 billion light years away. The whole universe had doubled in size.

Read the Science Times Edition

and more fashion of 1955:

Jazz on Tuesday... feeling blessed

I am feeling blessed these days. Science flowing out of my mouth at school, far less clutter interfering with living a full life inside my house (look for our e-newsletter tomorrow ... sign up ), my first mosaic mandala is finished and friends saw my essence inside it (will be featured this Thursday on the blog), and the flickr photostream of Lap75. Yep, that is one of her photos above. Please check out her photos. I always associate Lily with birds and for good reasons. Birds adore her. Even warblers stop by so she can photograph them. And any friend of warblers is a friend of mine.

But last Monday I was searching for an orange moon, and I realized that Lily also has a fine relationship with our lunar satellite. She has graciously allowed me to now post 7 of her moon photos (all those moon jazz posts which were done last week except for Tuesday's photo). I am blessed.

So feeling blessed I went to twitter and asked, "what jazz song do you see as a blessing?" I got a few responses, mostly from folk pondering it, but this guy had no problem. And now you will be blessed by his response. Thanks Fred for making this post complete. Saxophonist Charles Lloyd playing Prayer





and as a bonus, I also found the title track... The Water Is Wide.





How are you feeling blessed these days?

Going deeper into Anna and Tobit... I desire to shine like a coneflower, like Christ.

We returned to work on Monday to get the promised, but secret if not hinted at big news... our residential program will be closing down as of June's graduation. Much talk among friends since then with more than one assuring me that my position "must be safe." Who knows? Reassurance didn't help Anna and it doesn't help me.


Monday evening I walked to my church. And spurred on by a friend, who thought it wasn't a "great" story to say the least; and a friend, who had never heard it... I let loose into story telling mode. It is my best mode by far and I laughed out loud as we explored scripture.


Before I had walked to the church, I pulled a bright orange/yellow piece of paper out of my Bible to mark a page. After the laughter, I slowed down and with some pausing read...


Dear Jesus, help us to spread your fragrance everywhere we go.
Flood our souls with your spirit and life.
Penetrate and possess our whole being so utterly that our lives may only be a radiance of yours.
Shine through us, and be so in us, that every soul we come
in contact with may feel your presence in our soul.
Let them look up and see no longer us but only Jesus!
Stay with us, and then we shall begin to shine as you shine;
so to shine as to be a light to others; the light O Jesus,
will be all from you, none of it will be ours;
it will be you, shining on others through us.
Let us thus praise you in the way you love best by
shining on those around us.
Let us preach you without preaching, not by words
but by our example, by the catching force, the
sympathetic influence of what we do.
The evident fullness of the love our hearts bear to you.
Amen


That is what was hiding in my Bible, a prayer by Cardinal John Henry Newman, which is read daily by Mother Theresa's Missionary of Charity. This prayer resonates with my belief in God. I want to shine. I have read it every day this week.


Two hours later, I sat to Examen my day and I wrote "Where are your righteous deeds?" into my journal. I decided then that I would focus on teaching science and gardening and let my job be what it is and what it will hopefully be. Basically to live with uncertainty. I decided that I would bake bread with my students the next day as they came back and heard the news. And I would sell none of it. It would all flow into my students, well, I did eat my share.


Then after examining my day, I picked up "Inviting God In" by Joyce Rupp, and the random meditation included a quote from the above prayer.


Then I went to Flickr and found someone had commented on a photo which I had posted six months ago. I looked at the title, and I had no memory as to why I called it SHINE... then I read the comments below, and I saw a Flickr friend had given name to it. I hope to one day shine like this:






peace


...

Picture of grace... transformation

Picture of grace...
Originally uploaded by shorthorse


Early on a Saturday morning I came across this photo, Picture of Grace, by my Flickr friend Shorthorse.

I left this comment: "I will try to be graceful in my garden today." (click on the photo to see the response I got)

Then I went out into the garden. two thoughts tried to stay in my wondering brain.

Be mindful of your body and how it moves. I was entering into a backyard full of dead squirrels and weeds and who knows what else. A few days earlier my sister-in-law came over while I was at work and I was hoping she wouldn't see the backyard. I planned to be there all day with as many breaks as I could give myself. I thought of dancers and how they must be so aware of their bodies. I tried to be with mine. Then again on Memorial Day and then this weekend.

It is about transformation... the garden is unfolding over time. At one point, I roamed about the back yard where I counted 37 perennials and six shrubs which I have added since we moved here a few years back. It has been a process of slowly filling in the backyard, which started by taking down an invasive tree (Norway Maple) and spending a spring with a pick axe digging out its roots which were spread out just under the surface.

I planted 12 tomato plants and eight pepper plants. I added a few perennials and many annuals. I cut flowers for a vase in our kitchen. I added azaleas to an area that had been weeds. I harvested 1.5 pounds of leeks which had survived the winter then planted Cosmos where they had been. I created a larger arrangement of flowers with ones that came into being this week. I sat and weeded the bed of Hostas which had I moved out of the front yard to fill in along the shady shady shady side of the house. I weeded and swept and weeded and swept the brick patio. I watched robins and catbirds and bees and worms and beetles. I drove to work on a Saturday to water plants in the greenhouse and I brought home seeds for green beans and zucchini and cilantro. I took ornamental grasses to work and came home with our porch plants, which over winter in my classroom. I added some Coleus and Torrenia to the area with the Azeleas. I hauled compost and mulch into and weeds out of the garden... and I thought about my body. and how it moved.

Three days and it has been transformed into a garden that keeps calling my name. in fact, as I finish this on Sunday morning, I have some time... there are those Anaheim Chiles I brought home yesterday, and the front yard needs some weeding, and that area back by the garage...


...

Lori d--- a return to flickr Sundays. fine art mosaics and so much more

winemosaic
Originally uploaded by lori.d

Been bantering with my Flickr friend "Lori d" ( Lori Desormeaux) today and realized it has been awhile since I highlighted a friend. And I do consider her a friend, so I am sorry I didn't know her when Mosaic Woman and I travelled up to Buffalo.

I know my Episcopalian friends will dig this mosaic backsplash.

Following along the life of someone at Flickr is not that different from reading a personal blog. I have watched many of her private commissions come into place. Click here to see her recent mosaic inspired by the vines that produce the wine.

Her love of old cool houses won even more points in being a favored flickr friend.

For those of you who want to know 16 random things about her... check out this great in action shot of a mosaicist...

and finally if you are in need of a wonderful mosaic and you live in the land of more snow than we ever get (and I know we may get a foot tonight)... And if you explore her website or her flickr site you will also see that she paints murals. My love of birds have me favoring this one.

Lori... thanks for all the fabulous reassurance about the longevity of geological wonders and the likely reemergence of spring. Now can you tell me the chances of my school closing tomorrow?

Flickr Sundays-- elize.avery

Here is how she describes herself in her profile... "Grew up in Asia, live in the US rustbelt (where we get an average of only 55 sunny days per year) . I'm an artist, writer, mom, mosaic maker, and great fan of anything silly."

It isn't always silly at her site, but when she is focusing on vintage LP's and magazine ads... I often call mosaic woman over for a laugh.

her stained glass mosaics (which I hope to see more of)... she makes mosaics on clear glass so that the light can sign through... very cool. click on any of them to see her title, her comments, and the comments of those who love visiting her. if you need beauty click the top one, need a laugh go to the bottom.






childrens book illustrations:





and old advertisements: here a recent one from a 1930's Redbook.

Flickr Sundays-- Atelier Teee's Riverwalk Fountain

Riverwalk Fountain
Originally uploaded by Atelier Teee

Flickr Sundays, a new habit. Sunday mornings before church I have dedicated to my Flickr site. I thank and comment back to folk who have visited my photos, I post new photos, and I visit my friend's new photos where I leave a comment on a photo that speaks to me. I am all about the communication

I want to show of some off these wonderful folk to my blogger friends, so lets start with Atelier Teee. Have you been to Chicago. This man is documenting the city and I think he should be on their pay roll. He has a great eye for architecture. Check him out. The Photo is called Riverwalk Fountain, click it to see it at his site. I commented on this one two months ago.

Mosaic Woman and I lived down state Illinois for two years, but did get a five day weekend in the big city before we headed east. I was introduced to Jerk Chicken at Taste of Chicago. Timing is everything. Maybe I should dig out some of my Chicago photographs and post them, I know one person who would get a kick out of them, just like he knows I will be drawn to his captures of stained glass.

stuff in my bag.. emptied out.

stuff in my bag-- still working on the notes
Originally uploaded by stratoz

to interact with my stuff, click on the photo then move your mouse over the tiny boxes. This may be more telling than all these spiritual posts???

Mosaic woman thought it was time for a cleaning out.