::by post:: (august 11, 2010)

(front)

(back)

one day she realized,
to find her way to center,
(some days)
she must let go of looking for speed bumps
and fears
and coulds
and what ifs.
one day she realized,
to find her way to holding on,
(some days)
she must look up. 

*****

::By Post:: is a collaborative series of virtual postcards posted between Jenna and me, conceived to celebrate the week we're spending on opposite coasts of the country (Jenna on Nantucket, me in Oregon). Visit Jenna's blog to read hers. See other posts in this series here.

::by post:: (august 10, 2010)

*****

::By Post:: is a collaborative series of virtual postcards posted between Jenna and me, conceived to celebrate the week we're spending on opposite coasts of the country (Jenna on Nantucket, me in Oregon). Visit Jenna's blog to read hers. See other posts in this series here.

::by post:: (august 9, 2010)

(front)

the minutes after dusk navy blue sky atop the arched-against-the-shore never-ending water.  

(back)

when i sleep, i hear your song
the tumbling chorus of
push
pull
letting go
holding on

i hear your song 
and i open up
to find pieces of me 

*****

::By Post:: is a collaborative series of virtual postcards posted between Jenna and me, conceived to celebrate the week we're spending on opposite coasts of the country (Jenna on Nantucket, me in Oregon). Visit Jenna's blog to read hers. See other posts in this series here.

::by post::

jenna and me at fort worden earlier this year

a little over a year ago, jenna traveled to this corner of the world; she had an extra couple days at the end of her trip. and i was lucky because she decided to spend them with me. during our email exchange prior to her trip, i said something like "i am moved to say this: do you want to go spend a night on the oregon coast?" and even though we had just met briefly at squam, she was moved to say yes! and as we drove to the coast and stood by the sea together, we pretty much knew we had found a true kindred spirit sort of a friendship that would change our lives in the way those "oh your really see me" friendships always do. as our friendship has continued, we have looked for ways to collaborate (see Lanterns) and we have become quite the brainstorming partners. during a recent skype chat we had this aha moment: 

this week will find me (and family) on the coast of Oregon.

this week will find my girl Jenna on the island of Nantucket.

realizing we would each be on opposite coasts from one another for the same amount of time, it seemed too serendipitous not to come up with a project. (if you spend any sort of time with me virtually or in person, you will learn i am all about the collaborative projects. lately, i can't stop myself.)

so, inspired by an exercise in my book, this week we plan to send (virtual) postcards of poetry to one another from coast to coast (by way of our blogs).

i hope you will come along and see what adventures unfold for each of us on our travels by the sea...

PS i now have a pretty "preorder" page for Inner Excavation complete with a special preorder package for your viewing pleasure. when i return from the coast, i plan to introduce you to the book's (amazing, fantastically wondrous) contributors. 

get outside. (notes to myself)

 

when the clouds roll in and you feel the weight of your heart,

get outside (even just a few steps out the back door)

and breathe it all in baby girl.

truth.

A few weeks ago, I shared a bit about our "welcome to this world ellie jane" ceremony. Jon read her the book Blueberry Girl by Neil Gaiman, and I read her the poem "My Daughter Asleep" from the book River Flow: New & Selected Poems 1984-2007 by David Whyte.

When I read her this poem seven and a half weeks ago, it was like a wish I wanted to whisper to her and all that surrounds her now and in each moment to come.

But now, on this day, when I read this poem aloud, it became this parent's holding-on-by-her-fingertips truth, in the disguise of a poem by David Whyte.

May the universe hear me speak the words of this poem and hear them as my truth. And hold us in her gentle arms...

(To hear me read this poem, click on "a poem for a friday" below. Visit David Whyte's site to learn more about him and read more of his words.)

a poem for this friday

this day.

 

on this day, we took an early evening august break and explored point defiance park (with the new rebel and the new "oh my goodness i love it" lens)

a cover (or rather, the cover)

imagine it a blue sky with a warm soft breeze in the air sort of day and you have just arrived at my little house in the pacific northwest. in this moment, we are sitting down to peach tea (probably of the iced variety as it is august) with a sprig or two of mint and happy pink cupcakes with chocolate frosting and a bowl of blueberries and a blue plate with white polka dots that holds a bit of cheese (because there must always be a bit of cheese). a jelly jar full of dahlias cut from the backyard and a short pile of books with a paper resting on top of them sit between us on the table; paolo conte sings while the warm yet refreshing breeze floats through the open windows. after we each take a sip of tea, i flip over the piece of paper and say, "this is it. this is the cover of my book." and then we toast with cupcakes before we dive into an afternoon of laughter and poetry readings and truth sharing.

yes. let's imagine this is just where you are in this moment.

because here it is...the cover of Inner Excavation that will be appearing at a store near you this fall...

 

this dream really has come true. 

*****

and i must confess that i did plan to share more here about the process and experience of writing Inner Excavation when i was in fact writing it. but because i was so ill the first few months of my pregnancy (when i was doing the bulk of the work on the book), i just didn't have the energy to share the details. but now that the little one is here and i am finally able to focus on the truth that this book really did happen (that i really did write it and i did take photos that are included in it and i did gather artwork and poetry and photographs from some amazing contributors that appear in it), from now until its publication later this fall, i am going to share pieces of what this book is all about and why i am so very excited to introduce you to this inward journey of exploring where we are on our paths through photography, poetry, and mixed media art.

(oh and the pile of books between us as we drink our tea includes a few i have been opening lately that i want to share with you:

Mostly True: Collected Stories & Drawings by Brian Andreas

When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times (Shambhala Classics) by Pema Chodron

Colors Passing Through Us by Marge Piercy

lately, the words from these books have been like a hand to hold on the journey.)

Edited to add:

PS I keep forgetting to tell you that I will be offering pre-orders of my book here through my site. The book will come with a signed note from me (to whomever you wish) and a free little surprise of goodness. Stay tuned as I will be posting more information about this very very soon.