this week’s winner
July 4, 2008 · by Christine
Happy Independence Day! I hope your day is filled with celebration and friendship. I will be spending the evening keeping Petunia reassured as she is not at all fond of the sound of fireworks!
The winner of this week’s random drawing for the Poetry Party is Rich at Pilgrim Path. Congratulations Rich — send me your snail mail address and a copy of my newest zine Season by the Sea: A Contemporary Book of Hours will be on its way to you!
As usual there was an abundance of tremendously thoughtful and poetic responses to my prompt this week of Closing Doors. Make sure you click over to read through the poems offered there and soak in some of the wisdom. Notice what the words and images stir in you. For myself, I realize that as a creative person I highly value freedom and possibility. And yet in healthy tension with these values are structure, commitment, and boundary– something I am aware of but realize I haven’t lived into fully in this area of my life. I have been operating under this subconscious sense that the open door is always the more valuable one. Yet, those closed doors help us to protect what is most important, like the walled garden as Wendy put it so nicely. Reading your reflections has been most delightful so thank you again! We are taking a summer break, so our next Poetry Party will be coming later in August.
Just a few more days of preparing for my pilgrimage. You can place your order from the Abbey Store by Tuesday, July 8th to have it sent before I leave.
May the weekend bring you the wisdom to know which doors to open and which ones to shut. On this day of celebration of independence, may you breathe in the deep freedom that brings with it joy and clarity of purpose. May you recognize the freedom that comes from the purposeful closing of doors. May you protect those gifts you cherish most deeply.
-Christine Valters Paintner @ Abbey of the Arts
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July 4th, 2008 at 10:23 am
wonderful blessing, christine. peace to you and petunia on this day of independence. xoxoxo
July 5th, 2008 at 8:16 am
Christine —
Re: Closed Portals and Pilgrimage –
I love this — all the closed doors in this poem! which nevertheless open up into such glorious freedom — Here’s how it is penned in the original manuscript, pretending itself to be a long, winding road of pilgrimage — Emily Dickinson says:
How happy is
the little Stone
That rambles
in the Road
alone,
And doesn’t
care about
Careers
And Exigencies
never fears –
Whose Coat
of elemental Brown
A passing
Universe put on,
And independent
as the Sun
Associates
or glows alone,
Fulfilling absolute
Decree
In casual
simplicity –
Have a wondrous pilgrimage, Christine!
Thanks for all the secrets and all the freedoms of your magnificent blog!
July 5th, 2008 at 3:39 pm
you too lucy!
kigen, thanks for always offering just the right poem for the occasion.
I will be taking a break from blogging very shortly, but I promise lots more secrets, freedom, and magnificence when I return!