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Friday, May 17, 2013

Sketchbook Writings

~ From my sketchbook writings, May 17th 2013 ~
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Here is what I love about the sea, the Sound, the great swirl of salt and heaving life.  Here is the outpouring, unlocking, loosening of the throat, the bone striping wind, the olfactory discord of decay and bloom, the bewitching mortality of it all.

I stand at the edge.

I can love her tender, I can rage tempestuous, I can gather her bits of stone and shell, I can throw them back with unnecessary force.  She is not gentle, she is not kind.  Do not be fooled by fairy tales and sweet song.  But she is whole.  Birth and life and death incarnat.
* * *
Whenever I visit these so-called grey beaches of the northern pacific, all I see is color.  The subtle layering of mountain ranges shrouded in a watery reflection of sky and sea, the luminosity of big leaf maples in juvenile foliage - a glow that only comes with the mist.  The warm hues of slick driftwood, the iridescent flash of crows and the hot punch of red-winged blackbirds.  And then of course, the stones.
If you but call out a color, say, Mustard! then suddenly they appear as speckled pockets of glowing chroma.  Coral! and the beach comes alive with vermillion hues.  Teal! and my hand becomes greedy, my thighs gritty with sand as I wipe down stone after stone.
I am the magpie.
I am the wandering gypsy with pockets full of treasure.
Whisper me a salty tale and I'll share with you my trove.
* * *
Good Morning Stardusts, the sea waves to greet you.

8 comments:

Farm and Field said...

I will tell such tales! And share with you my treasure of feather, bone, owl pellet and stone.
Hope you are very well.

UmberDove said...

And we shall swap them over campfire and steaming mugs!!! I AM well, thank you my sister!

MrsLittleJeans said...

oh yes...I share your love for the sea...wish I were a creature of the seas...xx

pencilfox said...

it's funny-strange how i am so fearful in open water, but i love to stand at the edge of the sea, feeling the pull on my heart and soul.

it's so good to be here with you....

x

cloudgathererholdmedown said...

your words are like a prayer.
your love is addictive.

I adore the sea and all it's power and mystery...we sailed out last week on water like glass that glittered in the sun, but as much as enjoy being on and around the metaphor and reality of water, I am without doubt, wholeheartedly a girl of the green and dirt ;)

Jenna said...

These words and images have me longing for the particular wonders of the beaches of the Pacific Northwest. One day. One day.


I'm off to the Gulf in a matter of days and there will be treasures there as well, familar as they may be.

I think I love the sketchbooks writings most of all. Thanks for bringing us with.

UmberDove said...

MLJ - my friend, you ARE a sea creature!

Foxy - I know that feeling completely. Dark water compels and frightens me; I can not stay away but I can not climb in.

CloudGatherer - That my friend, is a sure sign of roots. I love it.

Jenna - I always think of you as such a watery soul; you really much see the northern pacific. It's a beauty all its own.

Cat said...



love and light