Emotions were intense –
and asking for expression –
in the week I began this pot.
As I picked up my pencil,
sorrow still swirled
in the place between my breasts.
No wonder at all
that I fell back on dance…
appealed to the passion of my youthful years
to counteract the heavy ache
of body and mind.
My soul complied…
The child leapt
from the passionate and driven man
that was her father…
leapt into practical, dependable connection
with her mother.
The mother’s love was based on faith.
Her spiritual guidance would be lasting.
Her dancer daughter –
born of opposites –
would not forget the familial dance.
The circular and grounding source
must be repeatedly returned to:
for nourishment…
for rest…
for stabilizing.
And equally,
repulsion and rebounding.
I know this now as I renew the bond
with the women of our family…
renewing also the creative drive.
Even as the body ages and subsides,
the spiritual fire lives on.
So does the dance…
Tags: Aging Boby, Creative Drive, Dance, Decorating Pottery, Emotional Intensity, Family, Grief and Creativity, Motherly Love, Parental Influence, Photography, Remembering Source, Reviving Youthful Passion, Spiritual Fire
A Dance of Balance 
July 1, 2014 at 3:11 pm |
I’m noticing a pattern for myself, of viewing your offerings….first time I read and look at the photos – quickly. Letting it all in and moving in me. Then later I will return and look again with a slower savoring.
The photos this time really capture the intensity of this pottery-painting.
The way you depict the female body includes both the beauty of aging and at the same time there is a child-like youthfulness that seems ever present. That is how I am experiencing my aging
xx
July 1, 2014 at 4:22 pm |
It is gratifying to me – and rare I think – that you give your full attention to my offerings…or anyone’s. In this way, as much is coming from you as is coming from what you perceive. You have a gift for seeing. Sometimes it seems that your comments describe my work more clearly than I could. Thanks again, Gel, for being you…
December 29, 2014 at 2:50 pm |
I love this one more than the rest. I have loved each, but this one is so very special. I am one who is ageing, also, and sometimes I
find it unnerving. I love the way you express yourself, especially in this one, and I love how you speak of your mother. I recently re-read her book, and I enjoyed it even more than the first time around (which was years ago). The first copy that I had I donated to the library in Hattiesburg in memory of a special friend who had left us behind. Now I have another copy that I will keep.
She is my heroine.
Thank you for sharing your talent, which is many faceted. Keep going for us who love to follow your talent.