Quilting on the Edge

Landside Journal 3: Renewal

                   With Spring finally here in the midwest, I'm been thinking a lot about the rebirth of the earth, and renewal.  I made this quilt I call Renewal this past winter...I was inspired by a photo I took at a park in Florida, of all the dead leaves and branches on the ground, with one sprig of bright green something bossing its' way out. One of the high points of my life in the spring season is taking tours around my home, checking the gardens for signs of anything green......and it is hard to describe the immense joy I feel when I see a sign of new birth coming out of the soil. Here, the crocus bulbs are usually the first, and when they finally bloom in those luscious yellows, purples,and whites, sometimes even through the snow, it's just a delight. They're long gone now, but we're enjoying daffodils and tulips swaying in the breeze.  My perennial beds are awakening, I see starts of my black-eyed susans, coneflowers, thyme, some grasses, sedum, lavendar........it's all so exciting right now because I know there is a whole blooming season ahead.  These flowers are now at their beginning........there will be a middle, when they're blooming fully in summer, and there will be an end, when the dry up in the fall and are ready to return to sleep for the winter. I like to remember that cycle is applicable to all things and all beings.....there's always a beginning, a middle, and an end.  Something to think about as I watch the flowers progress through their phases this season.   

Landside Journal 2: Noted

I want to enter a art quilt show with the theme of "Time", so while considering possible ideas, I created this mock-up on my design wall.  It's just a piece of green fabric with lots of yellow post-its on the surface.  I was thinking of a way to show time in ways other than a watch or clock, and came up with this idea. I am often overrun with things to do, most not terribly important or serious really, just items on my mental list.  I imagine the list as little bits of brain tissue devoted to worrying about a certain thing I need to do, sort of like the image above.  Then, as I do them, the task is erased from the brain and the space awaits another thing to worry about.  In the physical world, the post-its are taken down and scrunched and thrown away, leaving a space on the wall.  It occurred to me that the empty spaces don't stay that way for very long, do they?  There's always something to add, and some of the items never get off the wall..........they just keep getting in line, finally make it to the front of the pile, and are ignored, or possibly looked at a little bit, then quietly relegated to go back to the end of the line.  These are things we don't want to deal with perhaps, maybe they're too big to handle, too serious, too emotional, just plain TOO.  I guess the mental list is never complete then, always something new to add to replace the tasks completed, and of course, there's the hanger-ons that never go away.  Well, I decided against this idea for my project, and since have moved on to another one which I like much better.  What's on your mental list that keeps getting shoved out of the limelight?  Just something to ponder on this spring morning. 

Landside Journal l: Thoughts on the Freeway

I chose one of my latest art quilts for this journal posting since it's called City Lights and it has reference to roads and streets in a cityscape.  You can see the relationship to Thoughts on a Freeway.  Something about travelling long distances on car trips causes me to ponder things that I normally don't do on other occasions.  It must the time factor, loads of it, the monotonous roads, repetitve car noises, I'm not sure, probably all of them combined.  I am a person who is extremely music receptive......I can hear a song on the radio and immediately be transported to a time and place and emotion that is pretty close to the first time I was at that time and place.   My kids would probably be shocked to know that for each of them, there is a piece of music that brings back their memory, it's usually related to a specific time in their lives. Or a type of car brings them to mind.  I have been known to see a certain car on the road and exclaim "there goes (insert child's name)"outloud.  Anyway, long car rides make me remember life events, mull over situations long past, sometimes I even get teary remembering the joy or the sadness or the pain.  It seems like a good thing, this experience while driving.  Sort of like flushing out the corners of the soul from feelings that have been hiding out there, sort of taking up residence and more or less poisoning my outlook, or at least making my outlook too melancholy.   I drive, I listen, I think, I get it out of my system so when I arrive at my destination, I am ready to start dealing with what life has to offer, and I guess, starting to send some feelings that I am unable to express at the time, sending those feelings to the corners of my soul, waiting for the next car trip.  Life really is a circle.   

Seaside Journal 10: Odd Findings

Today on my early morning beach walk I noticed several items on the beach that were not natural.  A large coconut was the first one.  Where did it come from?   Then I saw a endcap to a pier piling, made of molded rubber.  It had the word DOCK on it and an 800 number.  Who is missing this?   I came upon a red and white bobber, someone had been fishing.  A bright pink BIC lighter was embedded in the sand.  Nearby was another pink item, a torn deflated piece of a balloon.  Interesting........was there a party somewhere?   I found a plastic yellow piece which looked like a broken handle from some sort of beach toy.   Then I saw a bright orange molded rubber seastar, like a child's toy.  I guess that's not so unusual.  Finally, a ziploc bag folded on itself right by the water's edge.  Somebody must have brought it with a sandwich inside, or else it was for shelling.  It occurred to me that each of these items could be the focus of a story........ending with how the item arrived to be on the beach this early morning.  Something to ponder.

Seaside Journal 9: It's the Little Things

Lately I've been noticing "little things" that I like about living on Anna Maria Island.  You know, the not so noticeable ones, some you would have to be paying attention to notice.  I like seeing sea stars on window ledges.  Lots of homes have them, check it out the next time you're walking down the street.  I have them too, in many windows.  I like seeing people in crocs, all the color and sizes, especially little kids. I like the old fashioned bicycles many people use around here.  I like that you can park your bike somewhere without locking it and be pretty sure it'll still be there when you return.  I like that you can often see dolphins playing in the Gulf or Bay, often when you least expect it, there they are!  And it doesn't cost a dime.  I like the sand castles I see on the beach when I walk early in the morning. Fancy or just plain, they make me smile.  Sometimes I've seen sand sculptures too, which I always stop and look at closely.  I like seeing familiar faces every time I walk on the beach early in the morning.  The same group of people pounding the sand each day, putting in their miles.  Everyone is smiling and greeting one another. I like all the outdoor tables for eating.  I like the social life of visiting the Post Office.  I like seeing many people walking on the Anna Maria Pier.  I love the sign outside the Roser Chapel that says "Open for Prayer".  I like the flea markets and second hand shops.  I like when I see someone wearing a tee shirt that says "living on island time".  I like the humpback bridge.  I like that I can step out of my door and find something to enjoy without any planning at all.  I like that you can be at the beach and still sit in the shade under pine trees.  I like that Anna Maria has parades, which can be over in 10 or 15 minutes, and full of everyday people riding bikes besides the larger entries in the parades. I like collecting the beads that people throw from their floats or cars.   I like hearing the Little Leaguer's playing ball.......I'm close enough to the Community Center that the sounds carries easily to my home.  I like seeing the geckos darting all around the yard.  I like watching them change color to blend in with their surroundings. I like that there is a small general store.  There's more things I'm sure, these are just a few.  If you come here, or live here, I'll bet you could compile your own list.  Oh yeh, one more thing.  I like seeing sandals and shoes sitting on the beach all by themselves, and wondering who they belong to.  And mostly, I like that when I return each year in the Fall, nothing much has changed, and Anna Maria Island is as familiar as an old comfortable shoe. 

Seaside Journal 8: Nature's Memories

There is a group of very tall pine trees on the Gulf near our home.......they leave these really small pine cones scattered on the sand.  When my husband's parents passed away, and we were sifting through their household in Indiana,  I came across these same little pine cones in different places in their house.  Some in a dish, or jar, maybe in a drawer.  They were often with small shells.  They often visited Florida in their retirement, so I'm pretty sure that's when Mary collected these shells and cones. I recall taking one collection of them to our home and placing them on  a shelf in our bathroom.  Whenever I see them here, I remember my mother-in-law. This year, I decided to take one pine cone each time we went to watch the sunset or otherwise sit by the Gulf under those trees.  This photo shows what I have collected this year so far.......only 27 to date, since I began collecting in November. I am grateful that there is something that brings to mind Mary at the least expected times. That's a nice way to remember someone, isn't it?  It's like her presence is still felt, even though she is no longer of this earth.  There's also something that brings to mind my own mother, altho she is very much alive. She is a knitter, and has placed small bits of yarn outside on the lawn in the spring for the birds to use when making their nests.  Occasionally, I will see an old nest with a remnant of yarn, or see a piece of yarn or fiber outside somewhere, and this reminds me of her.  This causes me to wonder what part of nature may bring me to mind to someone else in the future.  Maybe a garden......or the waves...or shells.  How about for you? 

Art Quilt for April: Turning 60 Series

Back to art quilts........here's my piece for my Turning 60 Series, for the month of April.  This one really comes from within..........I'm exploring the feelings I have as I move ahead into a new decade of life.  Some of the titles I've thought about include Night Voices,  Silenced Voices, and Banished Burderns.  What do you think I'm expressing in this quilt? 

Seaside Journal 7: Wheeling Around

Wheeling around the island on my bicycle is just exhilirating!  And it seems many others think so too.  I am amazed at the number of people who bike here, either for sheer joy or to complete errands.  That's good.....fewer cars!  Besides being good exercise, bicycling is another way to get a little closer to the beauty of the island.  One of my routes takes me down North Shore and onto the path to Bean Point.  It's a short path, but it's narrow and between lots of foliage, and so it seems sort of private and confining.  I like that.  Bicycles can take me where I may not otherwise be able to go, unless on foot of course.  After several years now, I have a few different routes I take when I decide it's time for the wind in my face.  It's great to see the homes and yards up close, enjoy the peeks of the canals and piers, and boats. As a kid, I rode my bicycle most places, and frequently.  Either to the library, shopping, to meets friend at a park, or just for the sake of bicycling.  It's freedom!  Most times I set out on my bike here on the island, something triggers a memory of those times long ago.  Last night it was the feeling in the air, the smells, the breeze.......I felt just like I did when I was about ten years old, pedalling around after supper on a warm summer's eve in Indiana.  The memories were so vivid, I saw the streets, the houses, the people, all in my mind's eye.  I even recall the feelings I had of getting away for my own private time.  Being able to ride a bike is a gift........hope you've found it worth opening.