Gift Ecology - Recent Posts

Three Bananas

Sat, 04 Oct 2008 19:39:19 GMT

Update on Three Bananas: Wow it’s been a fast 6 months! This piece has been displayed on my bookcase, in my living room. It’s the first thing one sees when they come into my home. On the same token, Three Bananas has been present for birthdays, discussions, family moments, and parties. If an object could only talk-LOL

It’s been there when my husband returned for leave from Iraq, and it’s witnessed the teary good byes and hugs from my kids. It’s seen me rush past many times late for work, or on my way to the emergency room, or with a skillet of burned food, or a particularly stinky bag of garbage. It’s also witnessed me get rid of a few door to door sales people and folks promoting their religion. Three Bananas has silently witnessed every naughty thing my cats do when I’m not home as well.

As busy as life is, it’s still nice to be able to just kick back with a cup of darjeeling and just look at Three Bananas. It’s become a part of my quiet bedtime routine. Even after 6 months, it’s something that I still take visual note of every day. Thank you for passing it along!

Posted October 4, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Three Bananas' with Biki

Nasturtium

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:24:57 GMT

Here’s a pic of a pressed nasturtium, grown from those seeds from Dominica last year, to show the pattern. The colours were much brighter when it lived, of course.

Posted September 4, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Seeds from my garden' with Eileen

The beginning

Thu, 22 May 2008 19:46:47 GMT

Last week I had the great pleasure of seeing Harrison and Phil at Zoe’s in Cambridge. Our meeting was a reminder to me that my Mbege Sojourn was well under way and it was time for me to begin recording some of my reflections on the meaning of the Mbege cup. Cup? Nay. This is a super sized mug that brought new meaning to the term “nursing”. Dwight could nurse the contents of this cup for hours on end and it was no wonder given its oversized dimensions.

What a treat it has been for me to share some of Dwight’s and Joe’s entries with my family and friends and open up a part of my life of which my family and friends heretofore had no knowledge.

In the following entries I hope to share some of my stories past and present and then send the Mbege cup on to its next Sojourn.

Posted May 22, 2008 in sojourn 3 of 'Mbege' with David
(2 comments)

Flowers too

Fri, 16 May 2008 21:33:38 GMT

Summer is so close, the grass had its first cut, the birds are here, I’m restless to go.

Posted May 16, 2008 in sojourn 4 of 'La Antigua' with Deb Carey

black cat duo

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 02:59:31 GMT

Down in a little local and slightly posh shop, they sell travel mugs. Each has two sleek black cats, one large, one small, seated, watching you, silhouetted against pale blue or baby pink. They remind me of The Aristocats, in a smooth and silky way.

They will never be taken for cat-fur coats .

Posted April 1, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'Chornaya koshka, Chorniy chai' with metasilk

Just the right time

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 12:03:15 GMT

Weighty Questions has been sitting on my desk for several months in a place where I see it every day. I had been thinking about how I was going to release it into the world when an old friend called to say he was bringing his son on a college tour to my area. After getting over the shock of a graduate school buddy having college age kids, I invited him to stay at my home.

Having talked way into the night about a wide range of subjects from travel to family to national and international politics, it became very clear to me that this friend was meant to have this gift. So I have passed it along to him. I hope it helps him with reflecting on up coming decisions as much as it helped me.

These are times for weighty questions…

Posted March 27, 2008 in sojourn 3 of 'Weighty Questions' with BPVT

the straw hat from New Orleans

Tue, 11 Mar 2008 20:51:01 GMT

Last summer I visited NO for the first time since the storm. I bought a hat at the French Market. Here it is.

Jeanie Riess was graduating from high school- and I was invited! Jeanie is the daughter of my best friend in college, Maida, who died of breast cancer.

I hadn’t been to NO since the Storm. It was a happy occasion for a visit to a place whose essence, the large and native black community, was washed away.

When I returned I wore the hat in Boston. The hat is actually from China, 65% paper, 15% poly and 20% cotton. Poly what? ana?

Posted March 11, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Rashoman Vibration IV' with Deb Carey

on the road and home for a visit

Tue, 11 Mar 2008 20:32:26 GMT

First I’ve placed the not too distant volcano in my view. Looking into a walled courtyard. But, there’s nobody there. This courtyard is both a haven and a prison. A lovely composition for the imagination. Is it the right to privacy?

“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated.”—Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution

or is it contemplation and inner reflection?

Posted March 11, 2008 in sojourn 4 of 'La Antigua' with Deb Carey

La Antigua is hibernating

Tue, 11 Mar 2008 13:36:54 GMT

....and has been spending time with a bunch of writers. I think there may be a movie to be made of this sojourn, however, Robert Rodriguez’ Rebel Without A Crew is just out of frame—a bit like this writer, alas.

Posted March 11, 2008 in sojourn 3 of 'La Antigua' with Dominica

Sitting on the desk

Tue, 26 Feb 2008 05:23:06 GMT

Overlooking my new work, new job, it has been quietly checking out my work habits. My husband has names that refer to this lovely creature but I just sit quietly with the Palimpsest, the kula, the gift to be passed after some deliberation and decoration.

We are decorators by trade, film/television/interactive producers who love to create dreamworlds and new realities. This piece of history, of known and unknown origins, calls us to add more, play and be more. It does a lot while sitting quietly on my desk.

Posted February 26, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Palimpsest' with Evonne @ Amoration

2004

Sat, 16 Feb 2008 20:03:14 GMT

Molly Gummere, Peg’s granddaughter was married in Savannah GA, and I took Allene’s photos, journal and scrap book with me. Peg and Janet and I enjoyed reading about the trip.

It was a wonderful southern wedding, and I bought a hat! Here is Allene next to my hat box. Note that I’m beginning to add a little more make up- the white complexion is really not right!

Posted February 16, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Rashoman Vibration IV' with Deb Carey

Peg Blue

Sat, 16 Feb 2008 19:46:59 GMT

Betty lived nearby and mother often said, when things were rocky, she went off to “visit Betty Blue”. Betty and Peg remained life-long friends and Peg visited with her daughters and husband whenever possible. The photos show Peg “mit glacier” and “Allene in glacier mit water dripping down neck”

Posted February 16, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Rashoman Vibration IV' with Deb Carey

The Konigstein

Sat, 16 Feb 2008 20:24:07 GMT

Departing July 3, 1937, the four women took the Konigstein. She was christened the Arawa in 1907, and built for the the frozen meat trade, with passenger accommodation for 220 in three classes. Used as a troop ship in 1914-15, she was converted to a cabin class ship and commenced her last voyage from Southampton in 1928. She was then sold to Arnold Bernstein of Germany and renamed Konigstein. In 1939 she was sold and renamed Gandia, and on Jan. 22, 1942 was torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U. 135.

A note on Bernstein. Arnold M. Bernstein was Jewish and when Adolf Hitler came in power it became difficult for Jewish people in Germany to own and manage a company. In January 1937, Arnold M. Bernstein was arrested, as were numerous other Jews at that time, under the Nazi Aryanization of businesses and was accused of infringements of the foreign exchange laws. He was sentenced to 2 ½ years imprisonment and fined $400.000.
Unable to pay this high amount of money the Red Star Line and another shipping company owned by him were confiscated.
They were placed under the management of a trustee appointed by the German Government who would continue to operate both companies until a buyer could be found. Mr. Bernstein was released in 1939 and went to New York where he founded the Arnold Bernstein Shipping Co.

Posted February 16, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Rashoman Vibration IV' with Deb Carey

1937

Sat, 16 Feb 2008 19:45:55 GMT

In 1937 Allene and three girl friends, Peg and Betty Blue, and Dorcas Darling went to Europe. Peg and Betty were sisters from Booneville NY, and Allene grew up nearby, in Lyons Falls (also San Diego Ca, more later).

In 1937 the brown shirts were everywhere, deepening the troubles which brought on WWII. Visit this timeline
to see more about the situation.

Nevertheless, many Americans knew little about the European situation, and didn’t feel it a threat.

This is a photo of the four young women in Paris.

Posted February 16, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Rashoman Vibration IV' with Deb Carey

What is a collection?

Fri, 15 Feb 2008 18:56:44 GMT

The concept of collection calls for scrutiny.

For centuries in South Africa, disenfranchised people, such as the Khomani San depicted in this photo, were nomadic desert dwellers. They didn’t construct great monuments and most of their tools, clothing, accessories, arts were made of degradable materials. Their traditional relationship to the world was such that an individual human (insofar as I know as an outsider to their culture) did not own any parts of the natural world (such as land or trees), which means apart from rock paintings, it is difficult to speak of San sites or artifacts.

Furthermore, the Khomani San people’s recent history is long on horrific stories (of displacement, deprivation, abuse, genocide) and short on a lifestyle that would lend itself to the collections of objects. Even now, the people living on the Khomani San’s designated land have not yet been able to determine where they will found their principal town. It has been 7-year long process involving various agencies of the national government and the San people themselves who up till now have not been able to reach a decision.

Now the Khomani San working with the South African San Institute based in Upington would like to found their own heritage center. One of the first questions is with what collection?

Given the traditional and historic relationship of the San to the material world, the situation poses an interesting challenge: How do you represent a culture (not your own) which does not own things and (at least historically) does not embrace the dominant concept of ownership?

In the case of the Khomani San, there is a rich array of possibilities, ranging from indigenous knowledge systems (IKS) and desert tracking information to the San language (which is dying out) to traditional tools and crafts. The plan for the venue, like all heritage venues, will have to follow from this basic first decision about what constitutes the collection.

Posted February 15, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'Museum Musings' with Maureen

Ann's bountiful dish

Fri, 15 Feb 2008 17:47:10 GMT

Ann Player prepared the most exquisite plate of fresh fruit I’ve ever seen or tasted, a potpourri of South African summer treasures.

Posted February 15, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'Speckled dish' with Maureen

Out of Africa

Fri, 15 Feb 2008 17:47:53 GMT

Here’s a photo of Ian Player, a distinguished South African ecology activist, contemplating what fate has served up to him. Look closely at the cream. What do you see? I saw it only after Ian exclaimed, “Why, it’s Africa!”

This pudding was the punctuation of our meal together at Phuzamoya (“Wind Spirit” in Zulu) the farm Ian and his wife Ann have lived on for decades. Along with my Heritance ( Jean, Sheila and Claire) I was invited to spend the weekend with them as part of an initiative to preserve, share and promote Ian’s life work. The Player house which is filled with a rich and extensive personal library, photos and awards, as well as papers, recorded interviews with Zulu trackers and films is a testimony to Ian’s productive career. And Ann’s undaunted support for her husband’s controversial, at times adversarial, stance vis-a-vis the South African government and society.

Ian, renowned for being a remarkable person, is credited with the creation of the national park in the KwaZulu Natal province of South Africa, the founding of the Wilderness School in Durban, the successful initiative to save the white rhino, and the preservation of the Zulu Indigenous Knowlege System transmitted to him by his friend Magqubu Ntombela.

Unfortunately wikipedia doesn’t yet have any information about Magqubu, an oversight which I am sure that Ian would want to see corrected. At a pivotal moment in his life, he recognized Magqubu as “the better man” and dedicated the rest of his life to learning what Magqubu could teach him about the ecosytem and the good life and fighting to preserve and promote both.

Posted February 15, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'Speckled dish' with Maureen

Decoding the Universe

Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:54:50 GMT

Michael pointed me to the open money group and the event coming up in Mexico. The money is information thread made me think of this book.

Posted February 14, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'A Radical Failure' with Gerry
(2 comments)

Garfield and Michaelangelo

Sun, 10 Feb 2008 19:43:38 GMT

Garfield and Michaelangelo were spotted together by the paparazzi. They appeared to be scheming some kind of conspiratorial plot.

An un-named source, close to the case, said they were planning to overthrow the western world and let peace rain down like a tsunami. This could involve far less consumption and would require abandonment of the economy which is driven by corn and beef.

The National Beef Association had a major beef with this. Of course! Garfield set out on a mission to infiltrate the despondent and demoralized with a message of Pointless Optimism.

Just smile!

Posted February 10, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'G is for Garfield' with Bald Eagle

Teamwork

Sun, 10 Feb 2008 19:15:36 GMT

This puzzle, combining small parts to create a larger whole, reminds me of a Jataka tale I taught to 7th graders this morning.

There was a hunter in a forest. He began to catch quail. A Wise Quail gave the others a plan. This is the plan:

When the hunter catches you, you will be confined in a net. It will be scary. When many of you are trapped in the net, here’s what to do. Each of you stick you head out through the net. Flap your wings together. You will rise up and then land in a bush. The net will get stuck on the bush, and you can drop down, through the branches. Then you can fly free to safety.

The quail did this, and escaped, confusing the poor hunter.

Working together, we can accomplish surprising things.

Posted February 10, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'P is for Pyramid' with Bald Eagle

Mansions by the sea

Sat, 09 Feb 2008 01:21:14 GMT

Houses—so the Wise Men tell me
Emily Dickinson

“Houses”—so the Wise Men tell me—
“Mansions”! Mansions must be warm!
Mansions cannot let the tears in,
Mansions must exclude the storm!

“Many Mansions,” by “his Father,”
I don’t know him; snugly built!
Could the Children find the way there—
Some, would even trudge tonight!

Posted February 9, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Rashoman Vibration IV' with Deb Carey

Disaster!

Fri, 08 Feb 2008 15:35:48 GMT

I moved it to a temporary location upstairs and had a small catastrophe. Most of the glass is in the Sun box under the table. No damage to the poster or mats, one side of the frame is broken. I think I can re-cut some of the larger pieces of glass for other items. I guess I need to get the glass cutter that fits the mat cutter.

Survivable and recoverable, not too bad. Now I’ll be able to get full sheets of UV glass and cut them down for each piece.

Posted February 8, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'A Radical Failure' with Gerry

Flair has its detractors

Sat, 16 Feb 2008 20:04:33 GMT

A google search brings up several interesting sites on flair- perhaps the most salient on Excess Blog Flair, with quotes from Office Space. I wonder if Allene would have thought Office Space funny- a little gross maybe, but probably right up her alley. For purposes of education only I give you the dialogue.

Posted January 27, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Rashoman Vibration IV' with Deb Carey
(1 comment)

Allene and Dick

Sun, 27 Jan 2008 19:53:25 GMT

A description of the flair is in order. There’s a tiny rubber ducky on the top, then a Bobcat Cub Scout pin, several buttons with sayings including KEYS TO SUCCESS 1.Rise early. 2. Work hard. 3. Win the lottery and I AM LOVED, a tractor and Maine potato pin- obvious connection with my father’s business as a potato wholesaler on LI- two identical smiling clown pins, two identical stars and two identical up-up and – away hot air balloons. A pink cat with blue eyes, and the mystery ADA DICK 93 pin finish off the flair. Because there were only 14 pieces I have added a few from my collection- a very nice Presbyterian mission pin, my seventh grade science fair award pin and an accordion flair from our trip to Italy.

Posted January 27, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Rashoman Vibration IV' with Deb Carey
(1 comment)

Sun, 27 Jan 2008 19:47:10 GMT

So, here is the latest Allene in hats, still with her powder under the brim. Note that I had to add lipstick and sunglasses to get the effect here, and an earring too. The earring was difficult with no ear, but we’ve so far hidden that with the hat. Still I’m not sure I have the full effect- for your benefit I’m adding a little montage of the Real Allene with my father on the beach in Florida. The black and white shot on the left is also the real Allene, doing a little contortionist show off for the camera, out in California about 1923.

Posted January 27, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Rashoman Vibration IV' with Deb Carey

Allene had flair!

Sun, 27 Jan 2008 19:51:08 GMT

Oh yes, she did, most literally, on this hat she wore, most summer days, to garden and shop, to beach and beyond. She had flair, and style and panache. Try the new visual thesaurus to see the connections at Visual Thesaurus

Certainly something she would have loved to know about!

Posted January 27, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Rashoman Vibration IV' with Deb Carey
(1 comment)

Allene the serene?

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 23:24:10 GMT

I’ve been thinking about the posture and pose of this styrofoam head, and how little it looks like Allene. She was never so unconcerned with her appearance, and always speaking up. My mother was full of ideas; always putting them out for review, discussion and the distinct possibility of provoking some larger dissension, which she would then enjoy watching.

My mother did love to sit in the sun. Perhaps this is the answer- she didn’t talk then, but sat reading a book, for hours in Coppertone. Stay tuned for the next version.

Posted January 25, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Rashoman Vibration IV' with Deb Carey

Chain of Flowers

Thu, 24 Jan 2008 14:05:09 GMT

I have had the chain of flowers for so long, it is a crime. Many apologies to the covetors, but in the interest of love and expansion I have passed the object on to my old friend and neighbor.

Jeff, I have nailed the door up nicely. Staples I had for the chicken fence. We’ll see.

Vicky

Posted January 24, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'A chain of flowers' with Vicky Bippart
(2 comments)

slowing

Wed, 23 Jan 2008 02:17:42 GMT

I notice that with tea pots, I have to go more slowly in my preparation. If I pour too fast—which would be faster than with the kettle into a mug—tea may seep out from under the lid, dripping who knows where.

Go slow. Pour steadily.

Chop wood. Carry Water.

Posted January 23, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'Chornaya koshka, Chorniy chai' with metasilk
(7 comments)

helmeted indifference

Sun, 20 Jan 2008 00:55:42 GMT

Posted January 20, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Rashoman Vibration IV' with Deb Carey

My mother goddess was angry..

Sun, 20 Jan 2008 00:52:28 GMT

and sent down the fire, to burn my hard drive.
Omne initium est difficile. Praemonitus, pramunitus. Was it deus ex machina in reverse? Thus Allene in a crash helmet.

Posted January 20, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Rashoman Vibration IV' with Deb Carey
(4 comments)

About those shoes

Sat, 19 Jan 2008 18:48:43 GMT

While Elphaba and her sister Nessarose are away at school in Shiz, their father sends Nessarode a present. Elphie opens the package for her because Nessarode doesn’t have any arms:

Elphaba undid the cord and opened the wooden box. From a pile of ash shaviings she withdrew a shoe, and then another. Were they silver” – or blue? – or now red? – lacquered with a candy brillance of polish? It was hard to tell and it didn’t matter; the effect was dazzling. Even Madame Morrible gasped at their splendor.

Elphaba drove her fingers through the curlicues of shavings. THere was nothing else in the box. Nothing for her.

“Aren’t they gorgeous!” Nessarose exclaimed. “Elphie, fix them on my feet, would you please? Oh, how they sparkle.”

“How thoughtful he is!” said Nessarose.

“Good thing you can stand on your own two feet, you.” muttered Nanny to Elphaba, and put her old hand patronizingly on Elphaba’s shoulder blades, but Elphaba shrugged it away.

“They’re just gorgeous,” said Elphaba thickly. “Nessarose, they’re made for you. They fit like a dream.”

“Oh, Elphie, don’t be cross”, Nessarose said, looking down at her feet. “Don’t ruin my small happiness with resentment, will you? He knows you don’t need this kind of thing…”

“Of course not,” said Elphaba. “Of course I don’t”

But of course she did.

Posted January 19, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'Rashomon Vibration I' with Jeff

Dear Mona

Sat, 19 Jan 2008 17:04:39 GMT

Welcome in my refrigerated museum!

Thank you so much, Maureen, for this highly symbolic present.
Such a smile is good to be shared.

Jean

Posted January 19, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Museum Musings' with Jean
(1 comment)

The Institute of Error and Discord

Sun, 27 Jan 2008 04:38:32 GMT

No study of systems is complete without an understanding of how things fall apart. Health cannot be understood without also understanding disease and vice versa, but most theory in social and political sciences is utopian in one or more critical ways. Liberal political theory assumes altruism, and conservatism attributes magical properties to the market. These are examples of what Soros calls fruitful fallicies. They work really well and are re-inforcing, right up until they stop working. It is important to learn the signs that a fallicy is about to fail. These are the small bits of data that are showing that the prevailing wisdom is wrong, but we don’t know how it is wrong. This is the space in which genius can create a new paradigm, a new set of fruitful fallicies that work until they don’t.

When we accept that our understanding will always be partial, incomplete, we can look at the world a lot more clearly and maybe notice when a once productive fallacy is about to fail. These are the small bits of data that are showing that the prevailing wisdom is wrong, but we don’t know how it is wrong. This is the space in which genius can create a new paradigm, a new set of fruitful fallacies that work until they don’t.

When we accept that our understanding will always be partial, incomplete, we can look at the world a lot more clearly. As it is, rather than how we wish it to be.

Posted January 19, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'A Radical Failure' with Gerry
(14 comments)

Synchronistic Origins

Thu, 14 Feb 2008 12:32:52 GMT

As I have been beginning the creation process of objects to circulate in a Handmeon gift circle I experienced a synchronistic shock, and could not help but laugh at myself. I have been thinking and writing about George Soros’ idea of “radical fallibility”, and how I think it may be an important fundamental principle that has long been overlooked. I have decided to call the first Handmeon object I am creating “Radical Failure”. My MIT friends would insist that it should be “Radical Falure”, as that’s what they insisted should be the name on my T shirt for intra mural sports, well just “falure”. I was famous for misspellings, that’s what started the synchronistic chain event. I even misspelled my last name on my thesis. One of said friends noticed it after I had turned it in, and then would modify my name to match my spelling.

I was thinking about that appellation and remembered my high school class of math geniuses. We called ourselves “Biddulphites” for our math teacher. Those friends would call me “radical Gleason”, though I was far from the only
radical thinker in that bunch. And so it occurred to me that I am a radical failure, and that it is a good and wonderful thing, and so fitting for a Dumpster Dweller.

Posted January 19, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'A Radical Failure' with Gerry
(13 comments)

In fact, she belongs with a large neighborhood

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 21:50:45 GMT

The painting of the Mona Lisa, as remarkable as it may be, is a single “object” among many which are important to the history of humanity.

This Mona—a fridge magnet acquired at the Louvre Museum shop which finds itself hanging among a variety of icons “representing” diverse cultures— serves as a humorous and poignant reminder that what we call “art” is most often an object first and that once “treated as art” assumes a special role—perhaps you could say sacred role— in the social imaginary.

Objects “elevated to the status of museum collections”—whether they have extremely modest or immodest social origins—help us define who we are as individuals and as cultures, contribute to our sense of aesthetics and shape our conception of cultural representation itself.

Posted January 18, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'Museum Musings' with Maureen

Mona is not alone

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 21:18:07 GMT

Posted January 18, 2008 in sojourn 1 of 'Museum Musings' with Maureen

Seeds of the future

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 17:51:55 GMT

Thank you Dominica!

The idea of ‘handing on’ seeds is one that appeals to me enormously. It’s one of the great natural traditions of gardening, along with cuttings, plants and spare fruit and veg—you just give them away without thinking twice about it. I like the idea, too, of handing on something that is both the same and not the same. If I do as you suggest, the seeds I hand on will be the next generation seeds, not the ones I’ve received. So will I hand on the same gift as I received? Yes and no! I like the ambiguity of this.

These nasturtium seeds look like tiny shrivelled brains, the surface formed of complex corrugations (is there such a word?—never mind, there is now). And that is what they are. In each of those tiny forms lies the intelligence to grow into a whole new plant, and it doesn’t stop there. It also passes on the intelligence to reproduce again, indefinitely. Maybe flowers and plants are simply the mechanisms by which seeds reproduce themselves?

Seeds are a deeply political matter—and probably always have been. Genetic modification and razing of habitats have meant that the need to conserve seeds is as vital now as it ever was. But ‘conservation’ in this context isn’t about just saving and keeping, that way nothing happens and we die. It’s about planting, a process by which the seed dies…

Seeds are an appropriate gift to receive at this time. It’s the dead of winter and life has changed irrevocably following the death last Spring of my much-loved partner, Tom Ryan. The seeds represent death and rebirth, new life and hope and the future. Maybe that was the idea behind this gift? If so, it was a good one!

My own garden, I cannot deny, is a complete mess by now. In the past eighteen months there was no time or energy to spare for it. Now it is full of plants that have no business taking up so much space (aka weeds). Friends and neighbours have come in and helped to stem the chaos, but ultimately Nature is more persistant and possesses infinitely more energy than we do. That’s why it’s so laughable to talk of ‘protecting’ Nature—she protects herself much better than we can imagine. But maybe that’s just our displaced way of looking sideways at the need to protect ourselves, since in the last analysis we rely on her.

Maybe these seeds will be part of the new beginning for my garden too. Some of the previous inhabitants of the house I live in were Italian and Czech and French, and the garden retains traces of their belief that gardens were useful places, not simply ornamental. There’s an apple tree (James Grieve variety, any relation to Mrs Grieve the herbalist?) which I have only recently begun to pay proper attention to. It’s apples are good for both cooking and eating raw (quickly straight from the tree, they don’t keep). Chutney makes good gifts (but probably not suitable for a handmeon!), and the stewed fruit is great in the winter from the freezer as a sweetener for porrige. I’ve allowed the wild blackberries to spread, and after the hot spell in the early summer they produced very sweet fruit. The raspberries are sheer delight—only a handful each day, but do they taste good, and all the better for being free! The bed Madame Bras used to grow her potatoes and onions in is now another ornamental bed, but maybe that will change when I have the time and energy to plan. If these nasturtiums are edible, then that’s a start!

Posted January 18, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Seeds from my garden' with Eileen
(7 comments)

Ganesha

Thu, 17 Jan 2008 21:09:59 GMT

Ganesha,
Here with me on my desk. My writing desk. the desk where I shall complete my book on liberation from addiction.

Ganesha came to me shortly after Christmas 07 via my beloved Sister and co-creator, Suzanne, in Etna New Hampshure.

Ganesha, bestow your blessings on the witing and promotion of this book that its message may bring healing and hope.

Nancy W. Dudley

Posted January 17, 2008 in sojourn 4 of 'Ganesha' with Nancy Dudley
(1 comment)

Ordinary puppets are another story

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:00:49 GMT

Image from Holbein’s illustrations for The Praise of Folly

An ordinary puppet is designed to delight and instruct, while a sock puppet is designed to deceive and mislead.

“Through puppetry we accept the outrageous, the absurd or even the impossible, and will permit puppets to say and do things no human could. We allow a puppet to talk to us when no one else can get us to speak. We allow a puppet to smile at us even when we have not been introduced. We also allow a puppet to touch us when a person would lose an arm for the same offence.” – Anita Sinclair, quoted in the Wikipedia entry on puppets

We could probably do with a better term than ‘ordinary puppets’. Any suggestions?

Posted January 14, 2008 in sojourn 2 of 'Handmeon Hints' with Macklemoyle

Gift Ecology - Recent Posts

Three Bananas

Nasturtium

The beginning

Flowers too

black cat duo

Just the right time

the straw hat from New Orleans

on the road and home for a visit

La Antigua is hibernating

Sitting on the desk

2004

Peg Blue

The Konigstein

1937

What is a collection?

Ann's bountiful dish

Out of Africa

Decoding the Universe

Garfield and Michaelangelo

Teamwork

Mansions by the sea

Disaster!

Flair has its detractors

Allene and Dick

More

Allene had flair!

Allene the serene?

Chain of Flowers

slowing

helmeted indifference

My mother goddess was angry..

About those shoes

Dear Mona

The Institute of Error and Discord

Synchronistic Origins

In fact, she belongs with a large neighborhood

Mona is not alone

Seeds of the future

Ganesha

Ordinary puppets are another story