Archive for » June, 2011 «

Jun

embodiment

wholly jeanne

BannerClothBordered

paint the picture you want to hang.
make the trip you want to remember.
take the photo you want to view.

build the house you want to live in.
cook the meal you want to eat.
lay the stones you want to walk on.

run the race you want to win.
dance the dance you want to feel.
plant the tree you want to sit under.

sew the dress you want to wear.
write the music you want to sing.
craft the play you want to star in.

stitch the quilt you want to use.
weave the cloth you want to stitch.
write the book you want to read.

tell the story you want to hear.
create the blog you want to visit.
live the life you want to live.

(psst: that’s me there
in those last 6 lines.
starting something new
today,
putting a new spin
on something quite familiar.
skip on over to
rootsofshe.com
to find out more.)

Category: cloth, my life in stitches, planet jeanne, stories in cloth, stories in stitch, storystitching, telling stories, writing cloth
6 Comments

Jun

My Tree Of She

wholly jeanne

MyTreeOfShe1

i am a grove
a copse
a rich, fruitful orchard.

my tree of she
bears the fruit
of music
and cloth
and sparkle
and words.

MyTreeOfShe3

my tree of she
bears blooms
of food
and flowers
and a strength
so soft,
it’s often mistaken
for weakness.

my tree of she
bears leaves
of dance
and duty
and generosity.
leaves of
preserving
and nourishing
and protecting.

MyTreeOfShe2

my tree of she
is rich
in the red roots,
of blood
and hearts
and spirit,
and tears,
in the determination
and tenacity
and quiet boldness
of the women
who precede me.
their fierce independence,
their unbounded love,
their unending creativity,
unlocking the wonder
and the aching beauty
that is
my tree of she.

MyTreeOfShe4

Today’s post is inspired
by the lovely Lindsey Mead
who sweeps me away regularly
with that special brand of wisdom
she shares over at a place called
A Design So Vast . . .

Category: autoquiltography, bioquiltography, legasee cloth, stories in cloth, stories in stitch, storystitching, tribute
9 Comments

Jun

piecing

wholly jeanne

Hardhead

do you see the silhouette there?
the face in the stone?
you need to know this about me:
i am bad to personify.
equally bad to tell stories . . .

every morning
at dark thirty,
she pulls her soft, wispy white hair,
a gift from her matriarchal lineage,
into a bun at the nape of her neck
to keep it out of her way
while she feeds fabric
under the needle
that dances up and down
in direct proportion
to the cast iron pedal
she pumps up and down with her feet.

the steady whirring
of the old singer machine
fills the air with music
as she creates quilts -
one for each child,
one for each grandchild -
from assorted scraps of fabric
purchased from
her friend across the street,
paid for with one of her
award-winning
pineapple upside-down cakes.

Category: bioquiltography, quiltraitures, stories in cloth, stories in stitch, storystitching
10 Comments

Jun

she dances in stitch

wholly jeanne

She1a

around and around
and around we go.
where she’ll stop,
we’ll soon know.

Category: bioquiltography, quiltraitures, stories in cloth, stories in stitch, storystitching
12 Comments

Jun

she, more

wholly jeanne

Wovenwhole

in the beginning
there was light:
the lightness of laughter,
the lightness of femininity,
the lightness of self-assurance.
she was fiercely delicate,
this one,
fluent in the strength of vulnerability.

eventually her sure and tender feet
encountered the straight and narrow,
a path lined with directional signs
and dire warnings,
a path with unwavering rules,
a path that blistered unprotected souls.

then came the day when she
stopped -
she just stopped,
i tell you.
picked up the fabrics of her life,
and ripped them to find the straight grain.

she wove
then stitched
the strips together,
the up/down
in/out
over/under
eventually blurring the lines,
fraying the edges,
unraveling things just enough
to form
a whole cloth,
a blank slate
a stout, staunch cloth
on which to write
the rest of her life.

Category: bioquiltography, quiltraitures, stories in cloth, stories in stitch, Story Specks, storystitching
7 Comments

Jun

weaving blooms, 2

wholly jeanne

i see darkness.
mourning
what was
and what
never was.

i see bruises.
life tends to give you those.

i see the softness of
melted butter
and early morning sunshine.

and maybe
a teensy bit
of fear.

She

let’s review: julie daley posted a photo on facebook that set me whirring.

Category: bioquiltography, quiltraitures, stories in cloth, stories in stitch, storystitching
9 Comments

Jun

weaving blooms

wholly jeanne

first, the seed.
from my writing partner and friend julie daley:

Julie

which sparked this in me:

Blossom1

which became this:

Blossom3

and you know how it goes.
one seed blooms,
then another,
then another
which is to say:
there’s more.
just you wait.

Category: autoquiltography, my life in stitches, stories in cloth, stories in stitch, storystitching
14 Comments

Jun

genesis

wholly jeanne

Wisp

But the beginning of things,
of a world especially,
is necessarily vague, tangled, chaotic,
and exceedingly disturbing.
~ Kate Chopin

Category: planet jeanne, stories in cloth, stories in stitch, storystitching
2 Comments

Jun

wishes

wholly jeanne

Lotus

i wish
i had something profound
to share with you,
something that would
change your life
or better still,
enhance your life.
something that would
validate and confirm
what you already know to be true.

i wish
i had something profound
to share with you,
something that would
make you see the world
or yourself
or even your cat
differently.

i wish
i had something profound
to share with you,
something that would
encourage you,
give you the nudge
you need
to start that project
you’ve carried around
for so long.

i wish
i had something profound
to share with you,
something that would
make you smile
or better still
laugh right out loud.

i wish
i had something profound
to share with you,
something that would
erase all the bruises
that have made you
tuck yourself in
and be smaller
than you really are.

i wish
i had something profound
to share with you,
something that would
convince you
that your life
is precious to me
and to so many others.
something that would
convince you
that the world
needs your project,
your talent,
your words,
your ideas,
your creativity,
your love,
your laughter.

mostly, though,
i wish
it was as easy
as serving you
a page full
of words
for you to know,
to know at the cellular level,
how precious
you are.

Category: planet jeanne
5 Comments

Jun

blues

wholly jeanne

TheBlueLovelies

It’s been such a lovely day – filled with such productivity and possibility. At one point, I felt totally in control of my life – like I am right where I’m supposed to be.

But now . . .

See these lovelies? They are from the talented hands of my friend Glennis who really knows her way around shibori. I have held these bits of cloth in their cellophane wrapper for so long, keeping them segregated from the general fabric population. Today I pulled them out not just to look at and drool over, but to weave together into cloth for a Very Special Project. Then shoot, before I could start, doubt crept in and hissed me into paralysis. So I return them to protective custody and prepare to stitch on an existing cloth – one I created last night – one that’s ready for layers of embellishment – while the blue lovelies resume their patient, optimistic wait.