I love...

Last Friday I struggled my way through a post on gratitude. My mind was in the right place; my heart just wasn’t quite there yet. I was talking with the lovely Liz about my dichotomy the other day and she suggested I write about the things I am loving right now. Sometimes it is a good idea to focus on all the things, great and small that make us feel lighter; that put a smile on our faces. It just might be my ticket back to a place of lightness, of gratitude. So, with her sweet permission, I am barrowing her format for sharing my current faves.

Singing
I am currently listening to a few mixed CDs from a friend from art school, Andrew Bird, Ryan Adams, and my son playing “Why are There so Many Songs About Rainbows” on his piano.

Watching
I am having a deep and lasting love affair with the animated work of Hayao Miyazaki. I most specially adore Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, and Princess Mononoke. His imagination is boundless and storytelling thoughtful and many layered. I am always discovering something new in the movies each time I see them. He is endlessly inspiring.

Reading
I am always reading several books at once. The current list is:
Broken for you by Stephanie Kallos
The State of Africa by Martin Meredith (this one should come with a warning label!)
Art and Fear (a must for all creative types! Should be read at least once a year)

Creating
I am finishing up a painting of a girl with a bunch of ravens landing on her head and flying around her.
I am hoping to start a painting, a happy one, soon!
I am starting two skirts and a dress for fall.

Enjoying
The weather!! It is cloudy, grey, sprinkling rain and there is a cool light wind that is carrying the smell of the ocean to me. I know many do not like this weather, preferring the sun, but I find it so soothing. It is like a big cozy sweater that you just want to snuggle down into. I love to dress is cozy clothes, light candles, make some tea and paint (or if time permits just read) on days like today.

I am going to savor every bit of this Fall and Winter as it will be my last for several years. It is pretty much sunny and 80 all year round in Uganda.

Drinking
Water. I cannot seem to hydrate today! I am thirsty no matter how much I drink.

This week I have been drinking way too much coffee, tea and wine! Could explain the dehydration ☺

Anticipating
Spending next week locked in my studio. The list of household chores will just have to wait!

Spending my birthday weekend (11/4) with some amazing girlfriends!

Thinking
That it is time to stop thinking so much! I have been trapped in my head for too long and I need a break.

Loving
I ‘m loving a lot of things right now, here is a random sampling:
The smell of my son’s hair, buying fall flowers and plants and decorating my house for the season, book tapes (thank GAWD for books on tape!), the sound of my son’s fish tank (it sounds like a little waterfall), the necklaces my husband’s Tutu let me pick out (she is giving me some amazing antique necklaces a pre-Columbian 500+ year old one a’ la Frieda Kahlo, a turquoise one with a carved tiger from Tibet etc…amazing things!)