Terri Windling's Blog, page 229

Morning prayer

Some days start out good and then go rapidly downhill. At least I have the memories of this weekend's lovely outing (which I wrote about earlier this morning, in the post below) to sustain me when Life Stuff gets tough. And the pictures here -- snapped by our friends Rima Staines & Tom Hirons last year, of their dog Macha running down our hill with Tilly -- remind me that even things careening downhill can have a positive aspect.

My prayer today: May I always have my eyes and heart open wide enough to see it.

On Poirot and the pup

This past weekend Howard, Victoria, and I decided to take Tilly off to the sea -- but instead of heading up to our favorite dog-friendly beaches on the north coast of Devon, we drove south this time: to Burgh Island, on the southern coast near Bigbury-on-Sea.

We're big Agatha Christie fans in our house, and Burgh Island, with its gorgeous Art Deco hotel, inspired the setting of the Poirot mystery Evil Under the Sun. It is also where the ITV television version (starring David Suchet as Poirot) was filmed. Christie, who was born in Torquay, Devon, has many connections to this part of England, and she mainained a country house here, Greenway, that is now open to the public.

But Tilly had no interest in literary connections. With wet sand below, blue sky above, and shrieking sea gulls to chase, who needs Belgian detectives? While we were day-dreaming of the 1930s, Tilly was completely content with the present. The day was cold, but that didn't stop her from plunging fearlessly into the waves. She loves the ocean. She's meant to be a springador (half springer spaniel and half labrador retriever), but we think there must be a bit of seal in there too, for she's never happier than when she is covered in sand, salt water, and sea foam....

"I like living. I have sometimes been wildly, despairingly, acutely miserable, racked with sorrow; but through it all I still know quite certainly that just to be alive is a grand thing."  - Agatha Christie

The photos are captioned if you run your cursor over them.

The palette of winter

It's the first snow of the season. Tilly and I woke up to a world that's been dusted with icing sugar.

Admittedly it's not much of a snow, not compared to the storms of last January....

...but this lighter touch of snow has a magic of its own, painting the landscape with a whole new palette of colors: of snow gleam and shadow, silver and ash,  subtle greens and ochres and reds and blue-greys, composed into quiet beauty.

Tilly loves it, of course. And so do I. It won't last long, and that makes it more precious...

...much like life itself. A reminder this morning, from old, wise Mama Nature, to treasure it all while we're here.

Tunes for a Monday Morning

Today's tunes are from North Carolina's The Avett Brothers, who've been on the CD player in my studio quite a lot lately. I just can't get enough of their bluegrass-flavored harmonies, backed up by Scott Avett's piano and banjo and Joe Kwon's gorgeous cello. When the sun sets behind the Devon hills outside the studio windows, I turn up the volume and lose myself in their music, and on tough days that helps.

Above: a live version of "Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise."

Below: "I and Love and You," performed on NovaFM radio.

In Memorium

"I want my life to be a good strong one - not strong like a Mr. Universe,
but like a good strong cup of tea, full of flavour."
- Thomas Samoht Hine

This post is in tribute to the work and life of Thomas Hine, who many in the Mythic Arts community will know from his West-Country Folklore group and blog. Thomas passed away on Wednesday morning, at much too young an age. My heart goes out to his wife (writer/artist Lunar Hine), their young daughter, his aunt and extended family....and to everyone in his wide, wide circle of friends here in our village.

In addition to his work as an author and folklorist, Thomas had trained as an archaeologist, and was also an artist, fiddle player, and organic gardener who love all things mythical, magical, hand-crafted, and home-grown. That's Thomas above, arranging an exhibition of his artwork at the Courtyard Cafe here in Chagford...and below on fiddle, making music with Jason Hancox, Steve Dooley, Rima Staines, and Howard at an Equinox bonfire last spring. The final photograph was taken by Thomas, a few months later, at a local May Day celebration, and posted on his Westcountry Folklore blog.

It seems just a blink of an eye ago that Howard, Victoria, and I were dancing at Lunar and Thomas' wedding. Yesterday, friends and neighbors gathered again, this time for a memorial celebration. I wish Thomas had had many more decades of time to make his mark on the Mythic Arts field...but his life was indeed a strong one, just as he'd wished, full of flavour, full of art, and full of people who loved him.

He will be missed. And he will be remembered.

Morning prayer

"I feel that art has something to do with the achievement of stillness in the midst of chaos. A stillness which characterizes prayer, too, and the eye of the storm. I think that art has something to do with an arrest of attention in the midst of distraction." ― Saul Bellow

Grant me stillness today. Attentiveness. And, most of all, a creative focus that is quiet, patient, and rooted in these beloved hills...no matter where life's storms may take me.

Early morning on our hill

"Home is a name, a word, it is a strong one; stronger than magician ever spoke, or spirit ever answered to, in the strongest conjuration."   - Charles Dickens

Morning prayer

"Quiet minds cannot be perplexed or frightened but go on in fortune or misfortune at their own private pace, like a clock during a thunderstorm."  - Robert Louis Stevenson (via Liz Loveday)

Spirits of churning white water and moss, spirits of moorland, tree, and stone, please grant me a quiet mind.

Tune for a Monday Morning

Today's tune: My friend (and fellow Faery Godmother) Elizabeth-Jane Baldry performing Pachelbel's Canon in the music room of her magical, Pre-Raphaelite cottage, autumn 2010...

...because it's just beautiful.

On learning to bounce

"Life is not about how fast you run or how high you climb, but how well you bounce. "  - Vivian Komori

We've had a setback regarding the Big Life Stuff we've been dealing with, so I'm afraid my blog posts will be sporadic (rather than daily) for a bit, while we digest the news and figure out the best way to go forward. I truly appreciate all the support and prayers we've been sent from so many directions.

I also appreciate all the fabulous responses to yesterday's post ("On motivation")...and look forward to continuing that conversation.

The Magick4Terri auction site has officially closed now, with a very beautiful final post by auction organizers Mia Nutick, Liz Loveday, and Deborah Brannon -- featuring another lovely video by David Shane Odom, with music by the Bone Poets Orchestra.

My heart is full to the brim with the magick all these folks have created, along with the auction's creator & fairy godmother Ellen Kushner, and contributions by so many of you in the international Mythic Arts community. My family and I still have a difficult path ahead despite the enormous pile of  "Tilly bones" collected -- but those bones are giving us the resources to travel the pathway to its end, with expert guidance along the way; and for that we are so very grateful. The power of Community never ceases to amaze me.

Tilly and her Very Big Bone