A Stone Girl Dancing

BAD! Kitty Art Studio

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Stones...rocks, pebbles...gravel.

A stone girl is dancing...that's what I woke up with on my mind.

A stone girl dancing.

Recently I had an opportunity to pack up my life into another series of brown boxes.

I say opportunity because even though moving is never easy in the best of situations...this one in particular was emotionally charged and risky financially.

So...that's not what I was thinking about...in particular...what I was thinking about was my rock collection.

(which come to think of it needs to be moved again...that will require the dolly and Mate Man, hhmmm)

I collect a few things...books are my number one OCD, but there are rocks too. (And books about rocks, aaaiiiee sometimes it would just be better on the old back if I collected cotton balls or navel fluff)

I have this little thing...I pick up a rock in just about every place I spend any time...sometimes I pick something up because I remember to do it, to mark an event or a moment or place. Some the best ones have been picked up without thinking...at all, it's a quirk from childhood. I have this one mini bolder (mate man's words because he has to pick it up and move it around) of rose quartz, it was collected on a baking hot summer day in the early 90's.

At a time when broke wasn't even a good description of my situation at the time...and we got invited (Oldest child and I) to join a family vacation of a friend of mine...and we said "hell Yes!" well I did anyway (oldest was only 4 or 5 at the time, but a plucky kind of kid...game for just about anything) Anyway we went rock hunting...that was the trip, walking around in very old growth forests all day looking for crystals laying on the ground or by creeks. As they raced, full and fat from the thaw through the heavy green mist of the trees

and the burn your ass to a crisp meadows and plains we crossed.

We looked at wildlife and hiked and slept and did it again for 3-4 days. It was great. I came home with a ton of stuff.

( really it was a lot of crystal and cool rocks and wood)

I never actually mined into any earth just looking around and finding the coolest stuff laying around. Anyway one of the things that I ended up with was this mini bolder of rose quartz...it is about 18 pounds...but still...we had hiked for 3 days...we had to hike out too...and I insisted that I had to have it, and I carried, rolled, and eventually made a little sled for it...but against all odds...I managed to get it home, the whole time everyone was picking on me and giving me grief for being hardheaded. (this was good natured and funny)

It sits right by the front door...some of the small ones that I have kept

(Note: a rock collection is only successful as a long term thing if you are good at editing) sit along the windowsills in the house.

The thing is this...I have gravel from the Tampa International Airport and a couple of shells from the Bay...to remind me of times in Florida...and this little polished stone that I keep in a silver box from the first time I took Oldest child to see the Pacific Coast.

A lump of petrified redwood from that camping trip, a little black river rock from I have no idea but I like the shape of it, geodes that we have not cracked open to see if they hold magic inside, and coral from a trip I took as a child to Indian Shores beach. A few from Mississippi, Utah, Colorado, Wyoming...you get the idea.

Tales of personal conquest, joy, being immersed in the natural world, moments too precious for pictures to capture...and times to forget for peace of mind.

I carry the rocks around rather than pictures and movies

( I have a fair amount of those too) because of the weight of them. They are solid little masses that explain things much better than images ever could.

For me at least...

I think I get it...

Somewhere a Stone girl is dancing...

What in your most recent past has jogged something internal...profound even...what was your latest "Ah-Ha!" moment?

I'd love to know.

***

Ahhhhh, I feel so much better now that is on the outside of my brain...

clarity for a Saturday workday...now to figure where do I want Mate Man to put the box of rocks this time, and a handy philosophical reason and answer to the question that will come when I make my request..." why do you need to keep all these rocks again?"

Because...

I rock.

Nice huh?

Have a good day,

Heather

www.badkittyartstudio.com

Art of the day...It's Friday!

BAD! Kitty Art Studio

Art of the day...

***

'Release of Sorrows'

18" X 24"

oils

Buy it

Here

***

Here is the quote that inspired the work:

"To laugh is to risk appearing the fool.

To weep is to risk being called sentimental.

To reach out to another is to risk involvement.

To expose feelings is to risk exposing your true self.

To place your ideas, your dreams

before the crowd is to risk being called naive.

To love is to risk not being loved in return.

To live is to risk dying.

To hope is to risk despair, and to try is to risk failure.

But risks must be taken because the greatest hazard

in life is to risk nothing.

The person who risks nothing does nothing,

has nothing,

and becomes nothing.

He may avoid suffering and sorrow,

but he simply cannot learn and feel

and change and grow and love and live.

Chained by his certitudes,

he is a slave,

he's forfeited his freedom.

Only the person who risks is truly free."

~Leo Buscaglia

***

This work was a real risk of departure for me.

I learned so much about myself while sweating out the details on this one.

I am proud of myself for becoming a risk taker, one who is undaunted by fear, willing to go first, willing to stand up for myself and what I believe in, willing to be Raw and Radiant, willing to risk myself and my ego for my passions.

It's not easy to expose yourself, I think it's even harder to expose yourself to your own inner core, because no matter where you go...you are always there. It's not like you can un-learn a truth about yourself.

So, here I am world.

Just me.

Bare Naked to this life.

And loving every skin peeling moment of it.

Life is an adventure...

and I am looking for treasure.

A machine of love...

programmed for living.

***

I may have some new pictures of the three works

I am currently sweating over (aaaiiieee!) to share later in the day...

but in the next couple of days for sure, so stay tuned.

Happy Friday!

Heather

www.badkittyartstudio.com

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