6/02/2015

Pennon takes flight

24

There's quite a lot of rigamarole involved in mailing a package to Australia.
A lot of addressing & declarations & valuing to be done
but true to my word to myself [which doesn't always happen]
I actually made my preset deadline of June 1st, stood in the slow post office line yesterday
with pen, tape & details
and sent my Solace pennon off to Andamooka.

I sure hope she gets there on time.

There's also quite a tale still to tell about creating this little flag for I chose to abort my first version 
covered in buttons because I'd messed up & not followed India's specs.  But I'll leave those details
for another post when all the photos have been edited and I've pulled my thoughts together.

There were attributes of this construction process that I really loved and in the end
flag #2 became a symbolic weaving together of many things I hold dear
and much of what I consider truth.
This was not at all where I thought I was going with flag #1 .... 
this went another direction entirely.
Much more personal,
much more about transparency

where fabric like silk organza can symbolize a veil,
where a narrow strip of indigo dyed cotton from a workshop 4,000 miles away
can symbolize the importance of always moving forward toward
the edges of places,
the boundaries of emotions
or past limits I do not want to set.

All the hours stitching were a gift of time which had me looking deep into what's passed
and reflecting on a whole bunch of tomorrows.  I wasn't to know when I started
that a bit of a health fright was headed my way [all reconciled now].
What began as a peace project aimed out at the world
suddenly became the exact path I needed to find my own.

Now my little pennon is crossing a great expanse of water
carrying my words on her ragged sleeve,
hurrying [through the good graces of the postal system] to join the 
collective poem about to be written
where she'll be dyed a rich blue, hang above a beautiful red desert ...
a most grateful guest of the elements
and time.



24 comments:

  1. Would love to know what words are winging their way across the brine ...

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    1. Telling remainder of story in next post, Liz, as it all hinges on why the #2 flag came into being .... ;>)

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  2. waiting for the remainder of the story, you are a compelling story teller.

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  3. and i'm off topic, wondering if that photo of Her Royal Fluffiness was made on a day that i happened to be at play in the same bay?

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  4. This is an amazing and thought provoking post. It was born from the deep place our favorite projects come from. The commentary with details of each piece and what you were thinking about their inclusion is woven into in your work. We await the words that speak the prayer.
    xx, Carol

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    1. It was so peaceful to stitch for so many long, concentrated hours. Of course, I was in an extra race with time due to my, uhhm, slip up, but nevertheless I loved the mind-wandering time of it. Why do we not give that to ourselves more often? A question - along with many others - that I don't want to lose sight of ....

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  5. ah the best laid plans of mice and (wo)men... look forward to seeing your pennant dipped in blue & flying free in the desert light

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    1. me too, Mo, will be a joy to see all those flags flying!

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  6. Oh your colors.................. i so love them!

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    1. .... playing with some photo apps to overlay some blue water .... imagining my flag bathed in blue indigo ;>)

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  7. 1. the picture book story these tell are lovely.
    2. I want to FEEL it!
    3. health fright?? whaaa??? don't you go anywhere missy!!
    4. the process you describe ... wending one's way with endplace different than intended... is similar to mine. it's a journey fo' sho'! xo

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    1. 1. thanx JJ dear
      2. too late, must imagine flapping in yonder Oz winds
      3. not anytime soon, you betcha!!! xo
      4. improv name of game, no? Cloth has taught me a lot about letting go. For you, must be da bones and da body parts and that wild imagination ....?

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  8. ooooooooooooo I LOVE this one ---- I finally got my small solace offering in the post a few weeks ago (I held on to it for ages - hoping to slip another wee something into my parcel.... and then realised I had run out of time in a big way! ----- oooooo I'm imaging that our flags may touch, even briefly, as they take flight --- or the small fabric pieces will disintegrate and drop to the ground to mingle with each other...... isn't that a lovely thought? xxxxx

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    1. so love how you describe the *being there* process of our flags, ronnie - have imagined the very same numerous times! I'm looking forward immensely to seeing how they are hung & then watching [hopefully thru India's pix] the disintegration over time .... fraying, shredding, dropping "to the ground to mingle with each other" as you say. Have you seen images from Nepal ... prayer flags in complete tatters, bleached from sun & many rains but still lined up together, still blowing in the wind? They are us. That is the point, I'm thinking although there are many "they"s ......

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  9. How beautiful and how perfect that this piece was in your hands as you made your way through a health problem. Stitching is just the right antidote to fear, worry, sadness and anything else negative. It brings peace, it grows beneath your fingers and you have something wonderful to show for the time you spent worrying *smile*.

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    1. There are definitely worry stitches in this flag, Penny, altho I like to imagine them becoming somewhat weightless stitched with silk threads. I'm betting you are no stranger to this ... I'm betting your own handwork serves as a great balm for whatever ails.

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  10. Christi , already in the blue and theese foto , always so speciel i do not know what you do ? great , great , of course you reach it in time !!!!

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    1. I am keeping all my fingers & toes crossed for arrival on time, Bodil !

      As for the blue, these photos are double exposures. I played with a favorite photo app, 'TheDianaPhoto.' I took my stitching photos and combined them with images in my collection of the sea, which added lots of blue. Also, some of the fabric strips had been dyed in indigo .... so my flag was not all white anyway. Soon, they will ALL be completely blue! ;>)

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  11. Your flag is absolutely wonderful. I love it. xo

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  12. of course I love these double exposures -- apart from the project and your descriptions, which are quite amazing as well.

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  13. Beautiful photo-stitch and writing. x

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