clouds

wow! beautiful sky-art!
you hold the key

to what i want to be when i grow up.

boundless, free, unpredictable, evolving.
arting in the heavens and on the earth;
you draw shapes on the land when Her Majesty shines.
you protect, you provide and you are.
i rejoice that my experience of you cannot contain you.
passing by as a fly
over your ever-changing mountains,
i long to jump in and try on that cotton candy dress.
beauty with purpose.
who dares presume such promising?
i strain my ear to hear
and cumulus whispers, "thank you for noticing."

art

think of how much art is a part of our world - there's art in smart, tart, start, partition, mart, fart, participate, dart, arthritis, earth, warthog, part, cart, parthenon, artichoke, farthing, party, chart, BART, partner, and heart. can you add some more words to the list? i'd like to know all of them, please.
and then there are other important things to say about art...

i define art as 'the outward expression of the inward experience'. too often we get hung up on thinking there's a certain way to do it or a certain outcome that's expected; we need training in technique; we need to sell or publish before we're 'legit'. well, those are just the stories flying around in our heads. i used to believe them, but not anymore. the truth is, if you have something to say or draw or cook or paint or write or knit or dance or sing or play or bake or build or sculpt or mold or sew or, or, or...
yep, that makes you an artist. putting something 'out there' that's 'in there' is all it takes, and that's the only story that's true. i love participating in and observing the creation of art. everyone's life-process is unique and there's so much to express.
so, as you jump in to more of you, see what leaks out. maybe it's a silly poem or a crazy-happy-dance or a deep, dark secretive painting, or a scrumptious cake-a-dilly delight. it's all good, and you will know yourself just a bit better for having put something observable out there. art - artist - artistic - artistically - artisticallyfragilisticexpialidocious!

coffee shops

so, i was skipping down the street without a destination in mind, when what should come wafting into my nostrils but the most beautiful aroma of coffee. i could say i was assaulted by it, but that would suggest that i was somehow a victim. on the contrary, i was taken into another dimension by the thought of wandering into a newfound coffee shop. the coffee shop is something quite "other than" in its function. each one is multi-faceted and has something or nothing to offer, which makes it unique from every other one. i've been captivated by coffee shops all over the world, since the revolution swept through from the west coast in the '90s (although credit where credit is due, italy has been way ahead of the starbucks-revolution for centuries).
as my thoughts are flying about this topic, i realize that i could probably write a book as easily as a blog entry. there's much to say. but i will condense for the sake of the reader, who likely enjoys bite-sized bits of reading.
i won't presume to understand the draw of the coffee shop to humanity in general, but will elaborate on my personal feelings about it:
it's a place where one can be utterly alone in the midst of a crowd. this is something i've found that i need much of in my life. together-aloneness.
its offerings are usually of the warm, comfort-drink type and not-so-heavy-maybe even-healthy-food type. and i can often sit down with my tray of goodies for under $10 (even in SF).
there are many interesting people, conversations, decor, newspapers, employees and bathrooms to engage with.
but the very topmost reason for my love is that coffee shops often throw down a huge welcome mat for the creative, artistic soul to come in. there is space at the tables, on the walls, on the floor, in the air. space for thinking, for writing, for drawing, for knitting, for molding, for reading, for graphic designing, for healing, for music, for dancing. even if all of these things don't take place within its walls, there is a space for everything to be born in a coffee shop. i shouldn't say a coffee shop, but the coffee shop. you know the one(s) in the place where you live that opens its doors for you to open your heart. it gives you safety, comfort, affirmation. and a great cup o' joe. if you haven't found it yet, keep looking. it's definitely out there (and it's most likely not starbucks).

dance

i've been dancing ever since i was 5 (at least that's my first memory), busting out my hipster moves in the living room to my "Grease" soundtrack vinyl. dude, i thought i was Sandra Dee. but due to dancing being very frowned upon in the church i grew up in, my moves were kept private for most of my life. then in my mid 20's, i realized that to dance was to breathe for me. it's how i experienced god. i started taking classes of every shape and form - modern, ballet, swing, hip-hop, jazz, african, ballroom, contact-improv, freeform. (oh, side note: recently a friend of mine told me about 'Pussycat Dolls dancing' and tempting though it sounds, for now I've opted out of that one.) i even got so obsessed that i created a large dance studio in my house, just to have a space (which i used almost daily). these days, though, my obsession has mellowed into a healthy respect and awe for the art form.
so for me, dance is not just a passion, it's a tool. i've found that it's a form of therapy and a way of healing, like none other. the music, the rhythm, the heavy thumpa-thumpa, but mostly the movement. that connection between your spirit and body that happens in the space of movement is indescribable. and addictive. and beautiful. go ahead - try it. while nobody's looking.