Creative clutter…

The new edition of Artful Blogging has been a bright spot in my otherwise very crazy week. The issue is chock full of some of my favorite bloggers and a couple of new ones besides- it is page after page of inspiration to challenge and fire up the creative juices. And my knitting, which has accompanied me through some very difficult phone calls this week. It's amazing how calming and peaceful it is- it is so frustrating in the beginning when you are first beginning to learn and you drop every stitch and you wonder how anyone could do it for fun. Once your hands get used to the work, though, it is a mindless, yet fully mindful practice. The rhythm of it reminding me to keep breathing, keep listening, keep trusting. James had begun to tease me about the mess which is my space right now, since I am otherwise so neat and orderly. There is gesso and paint everywhere, and another layer of glitter besides. This composition has been in my head for some time- I am probably going to make some more that have more Christmasy type words in a larger font- "peace" "joy", etc. But this one was for me- a prototype. I have had horrible interaction between the gold ink and the modge podge which seals the piece. I don't know how to overcome it. It's unusual for a tsuinkeo ink to do this, so…more working with it until I find a compromise that works. The words are from the Agnus Dei mass, which says: "Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy on us. Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, grant us peace." (Agnus Dei, qui tolis peccata mundi,
miserere nobis. Agnus Dei, qui tolis peccata mundi, dona nobis pacem.) I must say, I am enjoying the color palette of my pictures today…