Three Hundred and Sixty-Five: The Poet and The Photographer

Post-Blog

2011-01-05T21:16:00.014-06:00

B"H

Dearest Blog Readers,

It is official, this post is post-blog. There won't be a poem and the photograph is a combination of shots from yesterday and today. This project has been one of the wildest rides we have ever taken and we thank you from the bottoms of our hearts for taking it with us.

A little about us when we're not blogging, today just as two ordinary citizens, Eric took over 170 photographs and Jackie, wrote 6 poems which changed and grew as we went about on adventures. Without a deadline our fingers still dash across the keyboard (but without anxiety) and our batteries dying won't destroy the world; if the internet chooses to be temperamental we won't be as tempted to curse the heavens above for taunting us so. The comments and support we have received in the past 24 hours and the past 365 days have been overwhelming and life changing.

We hope you have seen enough to have a favorite post, enough that the images are stuck in your mind, enough that words of your own blossom upon your tongues, and maybe occasionally you remember a phrase.

From the mind of the Poet: Writing on a single moment (trapped in the lenses of a camera), has drawn out my appreciation for the little things in life. The way the beach marks your trail, by inviting footprints into the sand it holds, or the joy of dancing as though nothing else in the world matters. Single moments barely exist in life, for they are linked to a chain of events before and after, so closely that our memories of them are never completely clear. Taking the time to love that truth and push it to its limits has been an extraordinary experience.

From the mind of the Photographer: : Grabbing my camera as I head out the door, my brain automatically goes into “story mode”. Walking down the street, everything I see suddenly has a story. That bird to my left is courting the one on the power lines. The dog across the street is walking his human, trying to get her to run and be healthier. The squirrel running around under the acorn tree is hunting for food to last through the winter. Upon the return to my computer, my stop-motion stories are fixed up and sent off to my poet to be told.

Thank you each from the bottoms of our hearts, to those of you in our home communities, and to those of you across oceans. Our art is the most we can give you, and in receiving it you have parts of us.

With Peace,

Jackie & Eric

Day 365

2011-01-04T22:19:00.007-06:00

She was in love with the whole world

He was trying to find the world and saw her

The wind in her hair, the way she twirled

Free visions that began to stir

Dreams were drenched that wonder year

In sounds that only spoke in color

Side by side there, they knew no fear

Delighting in shaking the rule they were under

And so it was they were caught in an array of tales

That were not planned in any way at all

Filling the wind of their childish sails

Slowly daring to break down the wall

They made beautiful mistakes in the town

That leaked in tears across the pages of time

Started by wicked joys that pulled the stars down

Turning every moment into the perfect rhyme

He watched her with the eyes of awe, no words to speak

She lived the only way she knew, in love with the world, not a person

The day turned into many a sunshine bleached week

In those days the creativity had only just begun

So he went about capturing the moon

Just that she may reveal its strange light

All they said was with the essence of a tune

One that darkened day and illumined night

Seasons waxed and waned in time with growing

Sunflowers once green as emeralds began to droop

Less was given space, and they stopped knowing

Once inspiring moments could be found on loop

But the golden days returned in fields of hope

That flung words into the sky of freedom

Stringing beads, words and places upon the rope

That lasso-ed the wonders of their kingdom

And now the photographer with the poet at his side

Is pulling forward the messages of rhythmic deeds

Together they fade into the horizon, as the ocean’s tide

Destined to leave a healthier ground for inspiration’s seeds

Day 364 - Always the Ballerina

2011-01-03T23:50:00.005-06:00

Answer the question that covers it all

She is the belle of the whole ball

And yet she hides behind her grace

A ballerina is not about her face

She is about the story that she writes

In the many twists and night time delights

That fills the theatre as she makes her way on stage

Ready to pull all the audience into another age

Perhaps it is the world that was long ago

Or one, which without her leaps we could never know

That speaks in the arch of her arms swaying

All the whispers that lips are not saying

They twinkle in the life she is creating

That has all the world, catching breath, waiting

To see who she is in the world they know not

So purely in her fantastic spell are they caught

Day 363 - Yin and Yang

2011-01-02T20:48:00.000-06:00

Let us hide our answer away

It is too precious to simply say

Lie by my side and trust me, dearest

Things are alright when you are nearest

It is in finding your hand to hold

Turning the deepest lead into gold

So pure that it emanates light

All the while bringing on the wisdom of night

That echoes in shades of the moon

And each way the lovers swoon

Across the pages of every book

In the ways that their eyes look

But only when gazing at each other

The other half to be found in one another

The other answer to the question

The other response to the suggestion

The way the birds wish they could fly

High and away into the azure sky

We are the two halves of the soul

Only united can we ever be whole

She who radiates light at every turn

She needed some shadows to finally learn

She who walked with night as her cloak

It was time that she finally spoke

And so hands held we go on

With the stamping of a bear and the grace of a swan

Day 362 - Night of Splendor

2011-01-01T23:21:00.010-06:00

There was a great boom and the tune we know so well

It holds thousands of midnight kisses and even more stories to tell

The light that was raining down upon the world where we stand

Inspired a hundred dreams as I held your hand

And we danced in the streets singing all the songs we knew

The glee was blatant and honest, no other experience was ever so true

We stayed up late into the night wandering when day would begin

Surrounded by friends just as close as our kin

We pondered at the stars like fireworks stuck in the sky

The collective genius of all the world made us together, sigh

Some things can only be expressed in the miracle of breath

The moving and filling, that keeps us far from death

There was a great boom and the tune we know so well

It holds thousands of midnight kisses and even more stories to tell

Day 361 - Twenty-Four Hundred Times

2010-12-31T22:24:00.003-06:00

I wondered what happened on this block

So much so that it was repeated again and again

So amazing that it was inscribed on the rock

To be seen by the next age of men

Was it the dance that put all melodies to disgrace?

Was it the place where they ended the last war?

Was it the memory of seeing such a fair face

That nothing like it had ever been seen before?

I hope it was the words between the truest of lovers

That cannot be shared between any others

I hope it was the peace that echoes forever

When all of the universes stand together

Tell me if you can with all of your rhymes…

What was it that happened twenty-four hundred times?

Day 360 - The Angel's View

2010-12-30T23:17:00.014-06:00

Well far out and away

Are the places the angels used to stay

The mists would lift their wings higher

Riding the winds like a horseman his sire

The deepest of the angels were the seraphim

In the blackest of night, they make the stars gleam

The true blue angels with loyalties to match

Dance about the clouds with dreams to catch

They throw the dreams down to messengers of a lighter shade

Who then put the dreams in our minds to later fade

Those who dare to perch on the buildings man creates

Spin the threads that each our destinies elevates

And the final in golden rays high up above

Those angels send down the showers of who we love

Day 359 - Top of the World

2010-12-29T20:00:00.004-06:00

I stood perched on top of the world at sunrise

And it revealed glistening white majesty

That flashed in the clouds and bright blue skies

The wonder of birds flying free

I stood perched on top of the globe at sunset

Watching the orange glow spread out in rays

The glowing life is something I will not forget

Not until the end of my dream soaked days

I stood perched on the top of the earth at dusk

To better understand the graying sky above

The aromas of death and the living musk

It told me a tale of the deepest love

I stood perched on the top of my soul at birth

It had a melody that sang for years to come

It held sunrise, sunset, dusk and all the earth

Painted by God and the angels; the eternal memorandum

Day 358 - Recipe for a Rainbow

2010-12-28T19:52:00.012-06:00

The icicles freeze like the dreams we never complete

They stop like the casual clapping off beat

The frozen calls Time to examine itself

Like the wise and ever immortal elf

The points they build up between seasons life

They point to the ground as sharp as a knife

With a magic they keep to shied this space

If you look closely there is a shimmering about this place

The glistening poetry that bends and glows

Comes with the recipe of sunlight, crystal and snows

It is the blessing of the dancing rainbows

Day 357 - Ice Cream Island

2010-12-27T20:23:00.005-06:00

The trees that are poking through the cream

Are thriving off the magic of the chocolate stream

The pink piles of ice are cotton candy clumps

All the trees grow from colorful lollipop stumps

If you sleep on the white ice cream it is as soft as a feather

And just take a moment to appreciate the weather

Here it rains ginger ale and ice cream floats

That run on currents of wind, towards you in boats

It is more sweetness and joy than you can understand

Ah the wonders awaiting you upon Ice Cream Island

Day 356 - Walking in Flames

2010-12-26T16:31:00.003-06:00

Well you used to walk on fire

I always wondered how you did that

How you danced over the pyre

As gracefully as the proud king's cat

But now I understand better I think

You were really walking in the cold

Miles without a drop to drink

All of your dreams long ago sold

To a man who promised you light

To keep you warm and safe from everything

So he gave you flames burning bright

And in wishes for the snow you began to sing

Day 355 - Fairy Lit

2010-12-25T19:41:00.014-06:00

Well the evening was pulled together

Darkness fell as soft as a feather

Then the fairies of the season appeared

Upon the snow covered homes, with roofs tiered

They flitted up to the stars high above

And painted acrostics in them with love

"Jolliness always meet you here"

"Over the rainbow, is rather near"

"You are the weaver of your dreams"

They brushed in light with stars for seams

At last it was true for each girl and boy

The night sky was lit with joy

A Season Special - To Write A Letter

2010-12-24T21:22:00.000-06:00

Dearest Readers,
Today the Photographer wrote a poem, and the poet graciously took a picture for it. Happy Holidays!

Let's revive the art of letter writing,

A skill unpracticed in these modern days.

Perhaps we can make it more exciting,

By filling the pages with long essays.

We can buy stacks of stamps and envelopes,

Some pencils and even a feather pen.

Our hands will prance around like antelopes,

Glide over from one side and back again.

Sign your name craftily and lick the seal,

Close the parcel and place it in the mail.

The postman will arrive with all his zeal

And your written story to me may sail.

The journey ends and I'll read the report,

Then begin narration of my own sort.

Day 354 - A Christmas Eve Wish

2010-12-24T18:12:00.009-06:00

Let me blow you a kiss

You can make any wish

Perhaps tonight it will come true

But if the love is to its mark miss

There will only be coal for you

Let's cozy up by the firelight

And wait for Santa to come tonight

Though I think my present is clear

Even as I dream it is in plain sight

In my visions you are right here

Your Secret Santa is me

Spreading seasons of glee

Packaged without a ribbon or bow

But still a delight to see

Make your wish.. and here we go

Day 353 - Make A Wish on Your Dreams

2010-12-23T21:19:00.005-06:00

I used to believe in things I could not see

They were there, how could they not be?

They were like the scents on the wind

Very real but never to be pinned

Down, and given a real name or title

For mundane men to fill a boring recital

I used to trust in the magic of sound

It flew through the air, vibrations all around

It filled up the lungs of those who want to share

The joys of each moment both sorrow filled and fair

It echoes long after the giver is gone

In the sounds of notes tinkling they still live on

They still write messages to we who live

They gave all that they could ever give

I used to believe if I wished hard enough

Nothing was impossible, no problem too tough

I would just imagine things straight into being

Paint them like the dreams I kept seeing

Pluck them from the roses and stars up above

Pass them on in packages of love

Leave them on the street for the common man to find

Dream them up day and night, keeping them in mind

One day I would wave the thoughts about and all around

Then thrust them onto the ivory to create a perfect sound

Now I know deeply the things I cannot see

I know the loss if they are not to be

I know the sounds and melodies are true

They are the only answer to meeting you

I know that when I wish on my dreams it is not in vain

It brings a little bit more hope, and takes away some pain

Day 352 - The Typewriter

2010-12-22T20:50:00.007-06:00

Here it all begins

The lines and verses; the triumphs and sins

They cross the page in ink that runs in my veins

Until on the page it forms shapely stains

Here it is carefully placed

Upon ivory pages: so many that will go to waste

So many that cannot contain the breaths

That while making us live now - in halting - bring our deaths

Here it is and here it will go

Dancing off to places we can hardly know

Until we land there in the majesty

That teaches us so simply, how to be

Day 351 - The Red Age Begins

2010-12-21T18:57:00.014-06:00

Bewitch the night with the life you hold

In the quivering breasts of all breathers

The red light that you have cast out, so old

Making a world of all the eons of believers

The stars that sparkle about its reign

So willing to tell tales of their own glories

Becoming planets every now and again

In the red age, they become their stories

The ones that bards spun from below their light

Of long drawn out wars still to bleed from Earth

All the wonders and the holy spaces such a sight

The magic of Time and all its fathomless worth

Aye after tonight the red age has begun

Burning so bright, with the flames of the sun

Day 350 - A Hawk's Soliloquy

2010-12-20T21:39:00.005-06:00

Wing span means we can fly farther

Closer to the stars that hold the dreams

Of the world and tiny humans below

Today it means making my mark upon the blue sky

Golden sun lightening my very heart

As I soar as my grandfathers did before me

As I dive to the depths of the world in delight

Just as my sisters taught me to hunt

I build my world in these windy moments

And wing span just means I can fly farther

Day 349 - The Picture Show

2010-12-19T19:18:00.007-06:00

Take me back to the grand slamming nights

When it was a wonder to see those city lights

They twinkled as tinsel town called your name

Promising you red carpets and sparkling fame

Line up at the little glass window with me

Pointing in awe at the picture we are going to see

Take me back in time and we'll go

To the glowing and magical picture show

Day 348 - Staring Match

2010-12-18T19:14:00.014-06:00

I had a thousand questions to ask you

Before I stood face to face with you

Now staring until you have the answer

To every single one of them will have to do

You seemed to have so much to say

When I was young and in my mind we would play

Now it seems you do not possess a tongue

But from my face your eyes do not stray

If ever I could manage to break this gaze

And untangle the mysteries so like a maze

I would leave this place once and for all

And yet all I can do is stay here in this daze

Day 347 - Twice Upon a Time

2010-12-17T22:55:00.006-06:00

Twice upon a frozen eve

Fairies sparkled dust high and low

Inspiring each of us to believe

In the magic of a brilliant snow

That keeps our sweetest dreams saved

In frozen icicles of protection

Such an adventure always braved

By those who call upon nature's perfection

How strongly in the glistening world I believe

On this the glowing, enchanted eve

Day 346 - Cage Match

2010-12-16T19:34:00.009-06:00

One corner and another

We are held back from each other

The announcer comes over the speaker

The likelihood of a fair fight becomes bleaker

And so the match begins now

Can we make it out some how?

Day 345 - The Banister Awaits

2010-12-15T21:38:00.001-06:00

Slide with me! Down we go
Come, much faster! Don't be slow
Race you up the steps again
Then down we zoom to the den.
How we love this game of ours
Pretending we have super powers
And we are actually flying
The wood support is our wing.
Oh how we squeal in glee,
This is the magic of being free.

Day 344 - The Other Suns

2010-12-14T21:32:00.010-06:00

Extended sunsets flash before my eyes, and all this

Below the flames of suns ardently begin to kiss

This galaxy of ours where time stands still

Is filled to the brim with a building will

Laced with the story Ra's journey through space

Into the hearts of men who were bewitched by Moon's grace

Meeting the horizon to claim the final moment

Before night gains the ground and the skies rent.

Stars of hope that dance before us set afire

All the tiny hearts with a sweeping desire

Like the driest call of dead plains and brush

Call the fire to lick them up in a rush

This ancient battle so ultimate always stuns

As our lives are overrun with the power of the other suns

Day 343 - Wishing Wall

2010-12-13T19:52:00.021-06:00

If I could just click my heels together

And disappear off to a dream land

All the world would fade for this moment of forever

I could be the singer of every band

The painter of every canvas

Defenders of the great and small

The keeper of every kiss

So that is what I ask you for wishing wall

One day years later he came walking on by

And saw all wishes that I made once upon a time

He saw the ones painted as blue as the sky

The words that only came out in rhyme

He added to them and became the giver

Of the kisses I always hoped for, wishing wall

His smiles and rhymes make me happily shiver

Nowadays we show you to our children so small

And they each add pictures to you with wishes all their own

They will do the same with their children when they are grown