Finding a Voice
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
The Story of Stuff
My cousin Michael is a farmer near in southeast Saskatchewan near the town of Wawota. Last week at Arlington Beach family camp, we had several thought-provoking conversations.
Michael and another cousin, Greg, along with Greg’s wife Cathy, are thinking hard about bio-friendly farming. Greg farms the land that his dad and my dad used to farm together. Recently he’s been wondering why the crops were so good 30-some years ago, but are not as good now. Cathy, not having a farm background and being a very thoughtful, inquisitive type, asks, “Well, what has changed?” So they’ve been investigating soil quality, additives, chemicals, and other factors involved in growing crops, and discovering troubling information. Michael has also been looking into and pondering things like land trusts and living in community.
Michael and another cousin, Greg, along with Greg’s wife Cathy, are thinking hard about bio-friendly farming. Greg farms the land that his dad and my dad used to farm together. Recently he’s been wondering why the crops were so good 30-some years ago, but are not as good now. Cathy, not having a farm background and being a very thoughtful, inquisitive type, asks, “Well, what has changed?” So they’ve been investigating soil quality, additives, chemicals, and other factors involved in growing crops, and discovering troubling information. Michael has also been looking into and pondering things like land trusts and living in community.
The lifestyles most of us lead are not sustainable. What will it take to preserve and/or achieve sustainable living?
One of my intentional attempts to make a difference is through selling Norwex Enviro Products, specializing in microfiber mops and cloths, along with other environmentally friendly products. These products are sturdy and designed to be used over-and-over-and-over again, rather than single usage or becoming quickly obsolete.
Today I was looking for information on Norwex in other countries, and discovered The Story of Stuff, a fascinating educational cartoon by Annie Leonard. Just over 20 minutes long, it is both convincting and encouraging. We don’t have to helplessly lament the demise of environments and societies – we can get involved.
Watch it here: The Story of Stuff.
Labels: Arlington Beach, family, health and wellness, life, releasing the nations, work
Friday, July 18, 2008
PROFILE Newschool Arts: so much more than pottery
Perhaps this most recent profile is my favourite: Newschool Arts. Not just because it's my brother, but because I recently read that the best profiles are based on interviews about the person more than with the person. So I asked several people for their impressions of Jeffrey and was delighted to hear what they said. Funny enough, I didn't actually interview Jeffrey for the profile -- I went from my experience of knowing him all his life (he's younger) and of living with him these past months, added bits from quizzing other people, then had Jeffrey check the draft.
BUSINESS PROFILE A Last Mountain Times Advertising Feature
Newschool Arts: so much more than just pottery
July 22, 2008, page 8
Jeffrey Taylor is so well-known as a potter that people are sometimes surprised to learn of his other diverse talents. The proprietor of Newschool Pottery in Duval, Saskatchewan made his acting debut this year, rediscovered his love of painting, and has been working hard at expanding his professional arts to include photography and video.
Growing up in southeast Saskatchewan, Taylor’s family lived on a farm near Parkman in spring and summer, and in the town of Manor in winter. Like many prairie boys, Taylor played hockey, rode bikes, and explored the countryside. Early clues to Taylor’s creative genius were copious drawings, an animated cartoon, carpentry projects like a three-storey treehouse and a nook that transformed his bedroom into a studio, and a greenhouse operation that provided a source of income.
Taylor took grade 12 as a boarding school student in Caronport. Here he fell in love with the craft that would define his life: pottery. After two years of post-secondary education at Briercrest Bible College, Taylor enrolled in the Fine Arts program at Red Deer College, majoring in pottery.
Reluctant to limit himself to a single arts medium, Taylor spent a few years traveling in the States with a construction crew, then working for his brother in Vancouver, BC.
In 1997 friends informed him that Duval’s old school was available for sale. By this time Taylor had recognized that establishing himself in pottery would later free him to branch out into other media. He purchased the building, which was actually a two-room schoolhouse and a one-room schoolhouse joined together. Putting his artistic flare and carpentry skills to work, the larger original school became his home and the one-room addition became his pottery studio.
The old school transformed into a home is full of character, colour, and texture. Some of the old school maps and health posters acquired with the building hang on walls painted gold, leaf green, deep marine, and burgundy. Taylor constructed the front steps from railroad ties, gallery shelves from old timber and his dining table out of salvaged wood from an elevator leg. Massive triple-paned windows provide endless prairie sunlight and picturesque views, with a playground, farm fields, and the Last Mountain hills on the east side and two steepled churches on the west side.
Neighbour, co-worker, and friend, Dennis Hodgins marvels at Taylor’s creativity. “Jeffrey could be creative in any medium if he wanted. Give him a pile of junk and he could create something out of it if he wanted.”
Take sewing for an example. Hodgins recalls Hallowe’en parties at the old school, with Taylor “whipping up costumes” beforehand. “Jeffrey could take a heap of rags and make a Joseph coat out of it.” Of course, trick-or-treaters get pottery cast-offs.
Taylor’s pottery has always been functional art. He serves up dishes for everyday use – plates, bowls, mugs, casseroles, butter dishes, sugar bowls, creamers. While he repeats uniform shapes and sizes, no two pieces are exactly alike. Unusual tools like gear wheels and syringes produce unique imprints, splotches and strokes. Taylor has worked especially hard to design dripless teapots with snug lids, handles for easy lifting, and a special hole in the lid for dangling a tea ball.
“It’s interesting to watch people’s faces as they look at his work,” says Cheryl Wolfenberg, co-owner of Traditions Handcraft Gallery in Regina. “His work gets fondled a lot because of the textures.” Personally she adds, “When my husband and I go camping, we always take Jeffrey’s pottery. I’m sure I’m the only person in the campground with a full set of pottery.”
Even so, not all of Taylor’s art has an everyday function. In experiments with setting stained glass in clay, the function is in the message: a ceramic mask (part of a juried show) reflects on judgmentalism; ceramic spaceship-shaped lamps with stained glass windows consider the relationship between religion and science; large pieces composed of smaller rounded shapes illuminated by mini-lights depict human cells with a variety of colours, evoking the Christian concepts of light and of the Church as the body of Christ.
As an active artisan, Taylor has held memberships with several professional associations. He sat on the board of the Saskatchewan Craft Council for several years. With SaskTerra, he has enjoyed artistic community and professional development in raku and wood fired pottery.
Taylor’s work can be found in several Saskatchewan venues: Traditions Handcraft Gallery in Regina, Silver Street Jewelers in Prince Albert and Saskatoon, The Comfort Zone in Strasbourg, and his own studio gallery, of course.
Occasionally, Taylor has taught art classes for both adults and children. One class led to a contact that led to his involvement with a heritage project at Raymore School in 2008, funded by an ArtsSmart grant from the Saskatchewan Arts Board. Taylor delighted in seeing the kids realize they could create something.
Hospitality is one of Taylor’s gifts. He has hosted several creative retreats for college students, and he holds two or three open houses per year – Christmas, summer, and sometimes Mother’s Day.
Gallery shows have given Taylor opportunities to hone his craft. Traditions’ Cheryl Wolfenberg praises his work as “always pushing the limits, yet always related to what he does in his everyday work with functional pottery. He takes the pressure of a gallery show and improves on it.”
Wolfenberg continues, “The effort he puts into the gallery work has resulted in an extreme change in what he’s doing, whether he realizes it or not. With the first show he went from pale white and blue to soft greens and creams. With the second show he moved to more vivid green with touches of blue. With the third he arrived at exactly what he does now, vibrant green and blue.”
As Taylor expands into photography and videography, he is especially drawn to the fields around Duval for photography and to Northern Saskatchewan for video. He desires to explore, preserve, and document that land. He has also used these skills for online pottery demonstrations, weddings, graduations, and the Last Mountain Times, and is the official photographer and videographer at Arlington Beach Camp.
A non-exhaustive list of Taylor’s other artistic skills includes drawing, painting, carpentry, singing, guitar, harmonica, songwriting, and poetry. Drama has twice put Taylor on the front page of the Last Mountain Times. He is brilliant with computers and is mechanically inclined.
In the wider community, Taylor is an active member of the Strasbourg Alliance Church, is on staff at William Derby School as an educational assistant and special needs bus driver, and is a member of the Duval Optimists. He likes to tease the ladies at bingo by calling non-existent numbers.
He loves the outdoors and cares deeply about the underdog. Anyone who knows Taylor finds him creative and fascinating, generous and welcoming. Dreaming big dreams, Jeffrey Taylor continues moving forward.
BUSINESS PROFILE A Last Mountain Times Advertising Feature
Newschool Arts: so much more than just pottery
July 22, 2008, page 8
Jeffrey Taylor is so well-known as a potter that people are sometimes surprised to learn of his other diverse talents. The proprietor of Newschool Pottery in Duval, Saskatchewan made his acting debut this year, rediscovered his love of painting, and has been working hard at expanding his professional arts to include photography and video.Growing up in southeast Saskatchewan, Taylor’s family lived on a farm near Parkman in spring and summer, and in the town of Manor in winter. Like many prairie boys, Taylor played hockey, rode bikes, and explored the countryside. Early clues to Taylor’s creative genius were copious drawings, an animated cartoon, carpentry projects like a three-storey treehouse and a nook that transformed his bedroom into a studio, and a greenhouse operation that provided a source of income.
Taylor took grade 12 as a boarding school student in Caronport. Here he fell in love with the craft that would define his life: pottery. After two years of post-secondary education at Briercrest Bible College, Taylor enrolled in the Fine Arts program at Red Deer College, majoring in pottery.
Reluctant to limit himself to a single arts medium, Taylor spent a few years traveling in the States with a construction crew, then working for his brother in Vancouver, BC.
In 1997 friends informed him that Duval’s old school was available for sale. By this time Taylor had recognized that establishing himself in pottery would later free him to branch out into other media. He purchased the building, which was actually a two-room schoolhouse and a one-room schoolhouse joined together. Putting his artistic flare and carpentry skills to work, the larger original school became his home and the one-room addition became his pottery studio.
The old school transformed into a home is full of character, colour, and texture. Some of the old school maps and health posters acquired with the building hang on walls painted gold, leaf green, deep marine, and burgundy. Taylor constructed the front steps from railroad ties, gallery shelves from old timber and his dining table out of salvaged wood from an elevator leg. Massive triple-paned windows provide endless prairie sunlight and picturesque views, with a playground, farm fields, and the Last Mountain hills on the east side and two steepled churches on the west side.
Neighbour, co-worker, and friend, Dennis Hodgins marvels at Taylor’s creativity. “Jeffrey could be creative in any medium if he wanted. Give him a pile of junk and he could create something out of it if he wanted.”
Take sewing for an example. Hodgins recalls Hallowe’en parties at the old school, with Taylor “whipping up costumes” beforehand. “Jeffrey could take a heap of rags and make a Joseph coat out of it.” Of course, trick-or-treaters get pottery cast-offs.
Taylor’s pottery has always been functional art. He serves up dishes for everyday use – plates, bowls, mugs, casseroles, butter dishes, sugar bowls, creamers. While he repeats uniform shapes and sizes, no two pieces are exactly alike. Unusual tools like gear wheels and syringes produce unique imprints, splotches and strokes. Taylor has worked especially hard to design dripless teapots with snug lids, handles for easy lifting, and a special hole in the lid for dangling a tea ball.
“It’s interesting to watch people’s faces as they look at his work,” says Cheryl Wolfenberg, co-owner of Traditions Handcraft Gallery in Regina. “His work gets fondled a lot because of the textures.” Personally she adds, “When my husband and I go camping, we always take Jeffrey’s pottery. I’m sure I’m the only person in the campground with a full set of pottery.”
Even so, not all of Taylor’s art has an everyday function. In experiments with setting stained glass in clay, the function is in the message: a ceramic mask (part of a juried show) reflects on judgmentalism; ceramic spaceship-shaped lamps with stained glass windows consider the relationship between religion and science; large pieces composed of smaller rounded shapes illuminated by mini-lights depict human cells with a variety of colours, evoking the Christian concepts of light and of the Church as the body of Christ.
As an active artisan, Taylor has held memberships with several professional associations. He sat on the board of the Saskatchewan Craft Council for several years. With SaskTerra, he has enjoyed artistic community and professional development in raku and wood fired pottery.
Taylor’s work can be found in several Saskatchewan venues: Traditions Handcraft Gallery in Regina, Silver Street Jewelers in Prince Albert and Saskatoon, The Comfort Zone in Strasbourg, and his own studio gallery, of course.
Occasionally, Taylor has taught art classes for both adults and children. One class led to a contact that led to his involvement with a heritage project at Raymore School in 2008, funded by an ArtsSmart grant from the Saskatchewan Arts Board. Taylor delighted in seeing the kids realize they could create something.
Hospitality is one of Taylor’s gifts. He has hosted several creative retreats for college students, and he holds two or three open houses per year – Christmas, summer, and sometimes Mother’s Day.
Gallery shows have given Taylor opportunities to hone his craft. Traditions’ Cheryl Wolfenberg praises his work as “always pushing the limits, yet always related to what he does in his everyday work with functional pottery. He takes the pressure of a gallery show and improves on it.”
Wolfenberg continues, “The effort he puts into the gallery work has resulted in an extreme change in what he’s doing, whether he realizes it or not. With the first show he went from pale white and blue to soft greens and creams. With the second show he moved to more vivid green with touches of blue. With the third he arrived at exactly what he does now, vibrant green and blue.”
As Taylor expands into photography and videography, he is especially drawn to the fields around Duval for photography and to Northern Saskatchewan for video. He desires to explore, preserve, and document that land. He has also used these skills for online pottery demonstrations, weddings, graduations, and the Last Mountain Times, and is the official photographer and videographer at Arlington Beach Camp.
A non-exhaustive list of Taylor’s other artistic skills includes drawing, painting, carpentry, singing, guitar, harmonica, songwriting, and poetry. Drama has twice put Taylor on the front page of the Last Mountain Times. He is brilliant with computers and is mechanically inclined.
In the wider community, Taylor is an active member of the Strasbourg Alliance Church, is on staff at William Derby School as an educational assistant and special needs bus driver, and is a member of the Duval Optimists. He likes to tease the ladies at bingo by calling non-existent numbers.
He loves the outdoors and cares deeply about the underdog. Anyone who knows Taylor finds him creative and fascinating, generous and welcoming. Dreaming big dreams, Jeffrey Taylor continues moving forward.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Internet presence, projects
Do you ever search for your name on the Internet? I googled mine today. This blog came up 4th on the list. Interestingly, I also appear 8th—in the CUPE gallery of all places! A few weeks ago my sister said she had seen my picture in a CUPE ad in The Carlyle Observer. Today I discovered that two more pictures appear here. I may have socialist leanings (yes, I vote NDP sometimes), yet I'm ambivalent about unions, even after working in one for a year, so think it’s humourous that they used my picture in their ad campaign!I was actually in Carlyle last week. Gave a concert at the Pentecostal Assembly. My sister, brother-in-law, and nephew (13) are going on a mission to Mexico with 11 others from their church. I had offered to give a fund-raising concert, so they took me up on it. What a wonderful evening. About 1/3rd of the people were relatives! I entertained with story and song, and we worshiped together: Let your glory fall in this room / let it go forth from here to the nations. Afterwards while I sold coffee and CDs, there was a pie auction, including an auction to throw a pie at the pastor and another man.
Of course I stayed overnight with my sister and her family. Got some good hugs, cuddles and inspiration from my nephews and niece. Had a good, long, and overdue visit with Jaime. She gave me a clipping of the infamous CUPE ad.
The Mexico team is leaving this Friday, so my parents are going to babysit the other three kids. Eric will be on school break, so without anyone to put on the school bus, it will be a bit like a vacation!
The Carlyle jaunt threw my schedule off. I did quite a bit of writing last week, but must apologize for not posting any of it to the blog. Will try to be better at posting at least once weekly—preferably on Tuesdays.
On my plate these days:
- A big advertising push at the newspaper—we’re publishing 2 extra sections this month for Ag Week—so I’m putting in 4 (long) days instead of 3.
- A concert on Saturday in Regina: HeartbeatS, an evening of music and arts in support of OptionS Pregnancy Centre. Advance tickets are still available at $15 each. Call the Centre at 757-1371.- Finishing an overview of the book publishing process for a non-profit organization. We’re discussing the possibility of me writing a book about their ministry and its beginnings.
CURRENTLY LISTENING: Kathryn Scott, I Belong
Labels: blogging, family, jobs, life, music, travel, updates, writing
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
"go to the land I will show you"
My car odometer (which, it turns out, is not broken) turned over to 300,000 km on the drive from Caronport to Duval. Seemed somehow significant that I looked at it right then.Jeffrey realized recently that he's now the largest employer in Duval--with two part-time employees. Of course, that's not hard in Duval, population 95.
I've taken another part-time job to help cover the bottom line and fill out my portfolio: working at the local newspaper, The Last Mountain Times, selling ad copy and doing a bit of reporting (with photography). I start on Wednesday at 9:00 AM. Not only is it good for the portfolio, it gets me out into the region, meeting business people.
Interestingly, the previous advertising person quit just 3 weeks ago, about the time my brother and I officially decided to pursue this new arrangement. Hmmm. All summer I looked and looked and looked for a job, with hardly an acknowledgement never mind getting shortlisted. So by faith I went on a house concert tour, and prayed and prayed and prayed, feeling a bit like Abraham to whom God said, "Go to the land I will show you," and hoping, hoping, hoping that God would show me the land soon, as I was wearied with drifting. Rachel Runnalls asked in September, "Do you think there could be a bit of divine interference?" I'm willing to bank on that ... now.
Sunday morning's sermon was about Abraham's tests and obedience. It spoke directly to me, affirming this move to Duval to be involved with arts and writing. The first sermon I heard at the beginning of my music tour was about Abraham's obedience, even though what God asked was both counter-intuitive and counter-rational. So this formed the atmosphere of my 7-week tour: following, watching, wondering, waiting, discovering.
After sermon this Sunday there was communion followed by a song and the benediction. Then Pastor Lonie went up to the mike and asked for it to be turned on. He said, "I don't usually do this, but I just want to say that God told Abraham, 'All nations of the world will be blessed because of your obedience.' There's a world out there that needs Jesus. Go and tell someone." This made me cry. This is exactly what I've been pondering all year in the phrase Sing Release To Nations. I have arrived in the land the Lord has shown me: the Last Mountain region. In a way I have come home to the prairies, yet there is something bigger. The expansiveness of the prairies evokes remembrance of the ocean (an image in my song "Prairie Soul") and makes me wonder about the world and how my obedience might be used to bless the nations. Perhaps, like Abraham and so many others listed in Hebrews 12, I will never actually see the thing I'm hoping for, yet am convinced that I'm part of a larger story written by a divine author ...
On Saturday Jeffrey and I had our first business meeting in his studio. He "threw" pots (pitchers, actually) while we talked and I wrote. How convenient to have work where a business meeting doesn't have to stop production! (I believe firmly that business meetings need not be a waste of time, since talking and planning are critical before executing ideas. It's the "measure twice, cut once" proverb. But it's nice when production doesn't have to stop for it.) Fun to dream a bit together as well as make some concrete plans. A couple of weeks ago Jeffrey was a little wary of dreaming, almost ready to sell the shop and move. We're wondering what the Lord might have in store and paying attention to his voice and guidance, watching for opportunities.
Recently my friend Janina asked if I feel at home here. In fact, I do. Spiritwood was comfortable, but I always knew it was temporary. As for this area, I grew up coming to Arlington Beach Camp at least twice a year. In 1990 Mom and Dad moved to Arlington, lived there for 6 years and attended the Strasbourg Alliance Church, so I got to know a lot of people in both places, and it just felt so natural to be at the Alliance Church yesterday morning. Sunday afternoon Jeffrey and I attended the grand opening of the Regina Beach art gallery expansion, and that evening went to the "Welcome Neighbour" event in Strasbourg where I was introduced as the paper's "new reporter" and received a welcome bag with five pens inside. I was almost in heaven! Simple things, you know. Last night I attended a worship team practice and was thrilled to fit in easily and to play instruments that I don't usually get to play (keyboard--bass & vocal aahs, tambourine, penny whistle) and to find such lovely vocal harmony with Linda & Heather.
Of course there will be adjustments, yet it's amazing to feel such belonging so soon ...
This week involves lots of preparation for Jeffrey's open house and sale on Saturday. The kitchen is basically ready. Need to dust shelves, price pottery, practice some folk songs (as I'm the guest musician), clean bathroom and office/l.r. area ... Come if you can.
Labels: calling, family, jobs, music, performances, travel, writing
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
tour update #6: nearing the end, finding a home
This particular journey is nearing the end. It has been exhausting yet exhilarating, affirming and confirming my calling to a creative lifestyle, with music as a central part of that.
The house concert in Kitchener, Ontario was a delightful reunion of Briercrest alumni from the 2000s, plus a few new faces. One fun introduction was Laura S. Her sister Hannah (also there) was one of my students and introduced Laura to this blog. Laura has been quietly reading for a couple of years, and finally we met. It was amazing to open my concert singing "Poetess" and see her wipe away tears, then later to ask what caused the tears and have her respond that it was seeing me "standing, declaring my choice / To take my calling after resisting far too long." Hmmm. What a place to be in.
My other Ontario house concert in Markham was quite a bit smaller, but no less lovely in reuniting with old friends and meeting new ones. The CACSD meetings were fruitful, there were several opportunities for rejuvenation and reconnecting with friends during the trip. Of course, a touring schedule, sleeping in a different bed every night or two, being with different people every day or two, is not easy and I have often longed for a companion and/or a manager/agent at home and/or a laptop of my own to help streamline some aspects of life on the road.
I'm in Calgary this week. Arrived at 10:00 on Thursday evening (midnight in Ontario). Probably one of the funniest (as in ha-ha) touring moments happened the next morning at 6:30 when my alarm went off to get me up for a day of CHEC meetings (Christian Higher Education Canada). My last bed in Ontario was a mattress on the floor for two nights (comfy and restful). However, my bed in Calgary is your typical off-the-ground variety, but combining lack of sleep and disorientation, I jumped, rolled, and fell on the floor, banging my forehead on the night table! A bit of ice and nobody could tell, but it underscored my relief to be staying put here at my brother Tom's place for a few days and doing ordinary family things like driving my nephews and niece to school and writing little ditties to record on a birthday CD for my youngest niece and nephew.
Just a few days ago I found out that the Canadian Christian Music conference is here on Thursday and Friday, so I'm going to go for learning, networking, and inspiration. Possible workshops present me with some tough choices:
These sorts of dreams have been stirring in my heart and soul for a long time, but I could hardly imagine how or where they could begin to happen, even though Jeffrey had talked about similar things. The past year in Spiritwood has been transitional, knowing that I needed to finish my thesis and regain some health while seeking the Lord for the next step.
While in Ontario, my friend Anna reminded me of a developmental model that helps make sense of this past season: Janet Hagberg's Critical Journey. I've spent most of the year on a "journey inward" (stage 4), and have struggled "to be comfortable staying in this place until the new path comes." This summer I started hitting "the wall," wanting direction (particularly paying work) rather than waiting. I wrote out some elaborate schemes, trying to imagine ways to move on, make money and fulfill my calling at the same time. I have even submitted numerous resumes, with no bites. What should I do, what should I do, what should I do?
In all of this, the Lord has clearly had his hand on me. I recognize it in many ways. First there was the breakthrough in going on tour. There have been places to sleep and food to eat and people to sing for and with. As the tour nears the end, I have been wondering what to do next. I could keep touring, but it's time to stop and rest and be creative. I have been scouring job sites and brainstorming possibilities for self-employment income. Walls, walls, walls. Now Duval.
Though it seems perhaps a bit strange and risky, what hasn't been risky and unusual in my life for the past year plus? We're not naive. This transition will not be without challenges, of course, but that's the nature of anything worth doing. This feels like the right next step, pulling together all of my interests, training, experience and passion for the arts, business and education.
Hopefully my next post won't be so long in coming.
Here's a forecasted schedule for the next few weeks:
WEEK 6
Mon, Oct 22, Calgary (driving my nephews and niece to school--a nice change for me and a break for my brother & sister-in-law!)
Tue, Oct 23, Calgary, house concert, Pete & Brita Miko's home
Wed, Oct 24, Calgary, writing
Thu, Oct 25, Calgary, Canada Christian Music Conference
evening, Red Deer, house concert at Pete & Audrey Winter's home
Fri, Oct 26, Calgary, CCM conference
drive to Caronport
Sat, Oct 27, Caronport, house concert at Brendan and Laura Winter's home
Sun, Oct 28, Moose Jaw First Free Methodist Church
WEEK 7
Mon, Oct 29, Caronport
Tue, Oct 30, Caronport
Wed, Oct 31, Eston, SK, Full Gospel Bible College, concert (to be confirmed)
Thu, Nov 1, home to Spiritwood, Mom's birthday
Nov 2 - 8, Spiritwood: house concert at Inn on the Tenth; packing to move to Duval, SK for creative space and to be my brother Jeffrey's business manager and personal assistant during the Christmas rush.
Sometime in November: that free trip to California from a bank promotion last year
The house concert in Kitchener, Ontario was a delightful reunion of Briercrest alumni from the 2000s, plus a few new faces. One fun introduction was Laura S. Her sister Hannah (also there) was one of my students and introduced Laura to this blog. Laura has been quietly reading for a couple of years, and finally we met. It was amazing to open my concert singing "Poetess" and see her wipe away tears, then later to ask what caused the tears and have her respond that it was seeing me "standing, declaring my choice / To take my calling after resisting far too long." Hmmm. What a place to be in.
My other Ontario house concert in Markham was quite a bit smaller, but no less lovely in reuniting with old friends and meeting new ones. The CACSD meetings were fruitful, there were several opportunities for rejuvenation and reconnecting with friends during the trip. Of course, a touring schedule, sleeping in a different bed every night or two, being with different people every day or two, is not easy and I have often longed for a companion and/or a manager/agent at home and/or a laptop of my own to help streamline some aspects of life on the road.
I'm in Calgary this week. Arrived at 10:00 on Thursday evening (midnight in Ontario). Probably one of the funniest (as in ha-ha) touring moments happened the next morning at 6:30 when my alarm went off to get me up for a day of CHEC meetings (Christian Higher Education Canada). My last bed in Ontario was a mattress on the floor for two nights (comfy and restful). However, my bed in Calgary is your typical off-the-ground variety, but combining lack of sleep and disorientation, I jumped, rolled, and fell on the floor, banging my forehead on the night table! A bit of ice and nobody could tell, but it underscored my relief to be staying put here at my brother Tom's place for a few days and doing ordinary family things like driving my nephews and niece to school and writing little ditties to record on a birthday CD for my youngest niece and nephew.
Just a few days ago I found out that the Canadian Christian Music conference is here on Thursday and Friday, so I'm going to go for learning, networking, and inspiration. Possible workshops present me with some tough choices:
- Grants – Find out how you can improve your chances of receiving grants with tips on writing effective applications
- The Signpost Music Story – What it takes to make it as an independent artist. Speaker: Steve Bell
- Tours and Booking Panel – Perhaps the biggest challenge for the artist, booking gigs is an art in itself. Hear from a panel who have been putting together successful tours and concerts for years.
- SOCAN – What is SOCAN and why is it so important to the Canadian Artist? Hear what’s going on in Canada, how to protect your songs, and get answers to your questions.
- Artist Management Panel – Whether self-managed or you have a manager, hear what it takes to stay proactive rather than reactive in this industry.
- The Songwriting Process: Steve Bell and Carolyn Arends talk about the process of songwriting.
- The Secret Life of the Artist: Learn from the Breakforth founder and artist: Arlen Salte – Breakforth Ministries
- On-Stage Techniques: Learn from the Tom Jackson school of stage presence, from one of his trained presenters, Kevin Pauls
- Artist Panel: The realities of being a Canadian Christian Artist full time
- Kick-start the Heart – a frank discussion on how to take your heart for music and ministry and begin building a lasting career in the Christian music industry – Speaker: Jon Buller, Hear the Music Ministries
- Worship as a Journey: the corporate movement from alienation to intimacy between God and God’s people. Speaker: Steve Bell
These sorts of dreams have been stirring in my heart and soul for a long time, but I could hardly imagine how or where they could begin to happen, even though Jeffrey had talked about similar things. The past year in Spiritwood has been transitional, knowing that I needed to finish my thesis and regain some health while seeking the Lord for the next step.
While in Ontario, my friend Anna reminded me of a developmental model that helps make sense of this past season: Janet Hagberg's Critical Journey. I've spent most of the year on a "journey inward" (stage 4), and have struggled "to be comfortable staying in this place until the new path comes." This summer I started hitting "the wall," wanting direction (particularly paying work) rather than waiting. I wrote out some elaborate schemes, trying to imagine ways to move on, make money and fulfill my calling at the same time. I have even submitted numerous resumes, with no bites. What should I do, what should I do, what should I do?
In all of this, the Lord has clearly had his hand on me. I recognize it in many ways. First there was the breakthrough in going on tour. There have been places to sleep and food to eat and people to sing for and with. As the tour nears the end, I have been wondering what to do next. I could keep touring, but it's time to stop and rest and be creative. I have been scouring job sites and brainstorming possibilities for self-employment income. Walls, walls, walls. Now Duval.
Though it seems perhaps a bit strange and risky, what hasn't been risky and unusual in my life for the past year plus? We're not naive. This transition will not be without challenges, of course, but that's the nature of anything worth doing. This feels like the right next step, pulling together all of my interests, training, experience and passion for the arts, business and education.
Hopefully my next post won't be so long in coming.
Here's a forecasted schedule for the next few weeks:
WEEK 6
Mon, Oct 22, Calgary (driving my nephews and niece to school--a nice change for me and a break for my brother & sister-in-law!)
Tue, Oct 23, Calgary, house concert, Pete & Brita Miko's home
Wed, Oct 24, Calgary, writing
Thu, Oct 25, Calgary, Canada Christian Music Conference
evening, Red Deer, house concert at Pete & Audrey Winter's home
Fri, Oct 26, Calgary, CCM conference
drive to Caronport
Sat, Oct 27, Caronport, house concert at Brendan and Laura Winter's home
Sun, Oct 28, Moose Jaw First Free Methodist Church
WEEK 7
Mon, Oct 29, Caronport
Tue, Oct 30, Caronport
Wed, Oct 31, Eston, SK, Full Gospel Bible College, concert (to be confirmed)
Thu, Nov 1, home to Spiritwood, Mom's birthday
Nov 2 - 8, Spiritwood: house concert at Inn on the Tenth; packing to move to Duval, SK for creative space and to be my brother Jeffrey's business manager and personal assistant during the Christmas rush.
Sometime in November: that free trip to California from a bank promotion last year
Labels: CACSD, calling, family, identity, music, vocation, work
Saturday, June 02, 2007
updated sites
I've updated my website (www.siretona.com)
and the family blog on my Mom's side (www.elmerbowes-family.blogspot.com).
Feedback welcome on my website.
and the family blog on my Mom's side (www.elmerbowes-family.blogspot.com).
Feedback welcome on my website.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
new template, new post
Thanks for the nudge, Rachel. I have been pondering this post for a couple of weeks now, wondering how to summarize recent experiences, opportunities, and musings ...
Lethbridge: Conference
The Research in Religious Studies conference was enlightening. It was one of the most inter-faith experiences I have had. The first paper was a critique of gender and sexuality in the Left Behind series. The second paper was an explanation of how yoga tantric sex is used to achieve enlightenment. And the conference progressed from there!
It started Thursday morning and by Thursday afternoon I had written in my notebook: "What's the 'real' value of a conference such as this? Is it just SCR?"
Thursday evening we had a banquet, with speaker Dr. David Goa of The Chester Ronning Centre at Augustana University College in Camrose, AB. It was like he had read my notebook. He challenged us that students of religious studies have a public vocation, that our work is important because we are learning to listen to people of other faiths and cultures, we are learning to understand difference and not merely dismiss it.
Though his voice is gentle and his cadences poetic, he does not speak in the vaguaries that often accompany multicultural tolerance: he challenged us to make and keep commitments, beautifully setting his work in the ground of his own Orthodox faith.
"The best conversations come out of commitment on both sides. So for me the ‘other’ was never somebody to be afraid of. They were always somebody whose face invited me to a great mystery."
My cousin Amy & I were tremendously heartened by Dr. Goa and approached him after the banquet. He asked what we were presenting. When I told him "oral histories of women from the early days of Briercrest" he said, "Oh, we're very interested in that sort of thing. Send me your paper. Maybe we can work together." Amy & I walked away stunned by the possibilities. So I sent him my paper and we ended up setting a lunch date for the end of my Alberta tour.
Calgary: Family
After the Lethbridge conference I went to Calgary until my next conference. I stayed with my brother Tom, his wife Lori, and their kids Jackson, Mackenzie and Emma. They're so easy to be with and it's so refreshing for me to be with my nephews and neice: to take some turns driving the kids to and from school, to have quirky conversations with them, to play board games and card games. (I don't know anything about Star Wars, but who needs information to provide a suitable foil in Star Wars trivia?)
I also got to watch all of season six of Gilmore Girls and the first DVD from season one! (I rarely watch TV and movies at home.)
I was able to connect with other family members, too: Aunt Sherry (who lives in Estevan and Regina) was in town visiting her daughter Brandi. I was able to spend a few hours with each of them. Uncle Bob & Aunt Lorrie were visiting Canada from Australia. I had already seen them for a couple of days in Spiritwood, but we were able to do lunch at the Kensington Pub with Tom, Aunt Sherry, Brandi, and U. Bob's daughter Kelly.
Note: the Kensignton Pub is across the street from Tom's shoe store, Stride ("Because you can't be comfortable in ugly shoes"). Now I've got my eye on a pair of John Fluevogs from the Operetta line.
My favourite thing about Operettas is the quotation on the bottom:
Hey Minstrel
Your Love Makes Me Sing!
Arise! Come! My Darling,
My Beautiful One, Come With Me.
A beautiful pairing of a lyric from "I Could Sing of Your Love Forever" with a verse from "Song of Solomon" -- and perfect for a musician.
Someday ...
In the meantime, I need to make a bit of money!
RED DEER: HOUSE CONCERT
During that week I did a lot of prep for the CACSD conference.
I also held my first house concert at the home of Pete and Audrey Winter in Red Deer. There were about 15 people, including Audrey's brother Gene Zacharias and his family. Gene is a long-lost college friend. We used to sit in the cafeteria and laugh our heads off together. We did laugh that evening, but we also had poignant fellowship. Gene and Sonja joining me to sing the last song together:
I have a Maker
He formed my heart
Before even time began
My life was in his hands
He knows my name
He knows my every thought
He sees each tear that falls
And hears me when I call.
After the concert, the Zacharias family wrote in my notebook. Gene & Sonja's son, Seth, is a very good artist, so I asked him to draw something. "Okay," he agreed. "I'll draw what came into my head."
What came into Seth's head was astoundingly prophetic. My middle name is Faye, which means fairy, and this year more than ever it has been meaningful to me. Wings are another meaningful theme, so the butterfly is significant. (The dragonfly and bee were added by Seth's sister Claire, along with the two fairies and the flower on the bottom right.) The peace lily is a symbol from a dream I had in April 2006, comforting me to be contented about not having children (... yet ...).
Seth is about 12. There is no way he could have known these things, but on the evening of my very first house concert, these images were like Noah's rainbow: symbols of promise, affirmations that I'm on the right path.
Claire's other illuminations:
This bird reminded me of "Mother Bird" from a lovely book my friend Lamb gave me for my birthday this year: Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Golden Egg.
Funny -- I have these hand drawings, but I don't have any photos from the house concert!
We put about 15 CDs and a "tips teapot" on a low, round table in the middle of the living room. Instead of actually "selling" the CDs, people could just take one and put a donation in the teapot.
The amount in the teapot was approximately equal to the amount I would have collected if I had actually sold the discs. Again, a confirmation that the Lord will provide as I continue on this path.
On Wednesday afternoon I had my first phone interview with Incubator Records. Very encouraging.
Calgary: Open Mic Night
In order to have time together, my cousin Brandi & her husband Alex generously let me tag along on their "date night." I was planning to sing during open mic at The House Coffee Sanctuary, so we rendez-vous'd there. The wait for my call was going to be long
so we went for a walk through Prince's Island. Brandi & Alex left before 10 to pick up Aunt Sherry at the airport. I went back to The House, sang my two songs to a warm crowd, and ended up having a long and delightful conversation with a girl named Beka who had lived at Caronport for a few years after doing the Kaleo program. I left a CD and came away with a tentative booking for July 7th!
Calgary: CACSD Conference
The CACSD Executive started arriving on Sunday afternoon. We gathered that evening at Calgary's downtown Sandman for last minute planning. The conference started Monday afternoon and ended Wednesday evening. Using open space technology to organize the conference, I was the main facilitor. Open space is a great way to discover what's really important to a group, and one things we discovered is that excursions are important to CACSD members! We worked hard in discussion sessions on Monday afternoon & Tuesday morning. Tuesday afternoon was also open for sessions, but instead of posting topics, we ended up with invitations for sight-seeing and shopping!
Tuesday afternoon my friend Lamb arrived in Calgary and stayed at Tom & Lori's. (He drove from Ontario and has some business in Alberta this week.) Arriving about half an hour before me, he was entertained by Emma, who told him all about Charlotte's Web after learning that he had neither watched the book nor seen the movie.
Unfortunately, after supper I became quite sick and was completely wiped out through the next day. Missing Wednesday morning of my conference didn't really buy more time with Lamb since, both exhausted (him from driving and me from illness), we went to bed early and slept until 11:00 a.m. Even so, it was nice to spend some time with him. There's a good chance that he'll stop in Spiritwood next week on the return drive to Ontario.
I went back to the conference on Wednesday for a couple of afternoon meetings and the banquet and to help the Executive clean up. Job well done. Next year at Redeemer University College in Ontario.
Edmonton: Lunch with Dr. Goa
Had a lovely lunch with Dr. David Goa at the Mill Creek Cafe. We discussed my research on women from the early days of Briercrest and how to continue it, possibly with the Chester Ronning Centre. He gave me some very useful tips re. a Ph.D.
Ater lunch introduced me to The Bookseller, a used book store underneath the Mill Creek Cafe.
Lovely shop, well worth visiting again. Didn't buy any books, though!
Post-trip pondering
I came straight home to Spiritwood on Friday evening. Waiting for me was the first package from Incubator Records with 4 hours of workshop on cassette tapes introducing prospects to Incubator's approach to ministry. I like what they're saying so far but ... lately I've been wondering if I should find a day job. The idea of a steady income is appealing. The entrepreneurial life of a musician and researcher can be risky. But what am I "called" to? Incubator President, Nathan L. Sakany, says that a calling is "something that just keeps calling to you." Even if I took a day job for just a year or two, the music and research would "just keep calling to me." And the Lord keeps reminding me that he'll take care of the money.
So why not now? I need to stay centred and reread my own words from last summer: a new season.
Lethbridge: Conference
The Research in Religious Studies conference was enlightening. It was one of the most inter-faith experiences I have had. The first paper was a critique of gender and sexuality in the Left Behind series. The second paper was an explanation of how yoga tantric sex is used to achieve enlightenment. And the conference progressed from there!
It started Thursday morning and by Thursday afternoon I had written in my notebook: "What's the 'real' value of a conference such as this? Is it just SCR?"
Thursday evening we had a banquet, with speaker Dr. David Goa of The Chester Ronning Centre at Augustana University College in Camrose, AB. It was like he had read my notebook. He challenged us that students of religious studies have a public vocation, that our work is important because we are learning to listen to people of other faiths and cultures, we are learning to understand difference and not merely dismiss it.
Though his voice is gentle and his cadences poetic, he does not speak in the vaguaries that often accompany multicultural tolerance: he challenged us to make and keep commitments, beautifully setting his work in the ground of his own Orthodox faith.
"The best conversations come out of commitment on both sides. So for me the ‘other’ was never somebody to be afraid of. They were always somebody whose face invited me to a great mystery."
My cousin Amy & I were tremendously heartened by Dr. Goa and approached him after the banquet. He asked what we were presenting. When I told him "oral histories of women from the early days of Briercrest" he said, "Oh, we're very interested in that sort of thing. Send me your paper. Maybe we can work together." Amy & I walked away stunned by the possibilities. So I sent him my paper and we ended up setting a lunch date for the end of my Alberta tour.
Calgary: Family
After the Lethbridge conference I went to Calgary until my next conference. I stayed with my brother Tom, his wife Lori, and their kids Jackson, Mackenzie and Emma. They're so easy to be with and it's so refreshing for me to be with my nephews and neice: to take some turns driving the kids to and from school, to have quirky conversations with them, to play board games and card games. (I don't know anything about Star Wars, but who needs information to provide a suitable foil in Star Wars trivia?)
I also got to watch all of season six of Gilmore Girls and the first DVD from season one! (I rarely watch TV and movies at home.)
I was able to connect with other family members, too: Aunt Sherry (who lives in Estevan and Regina) was in town visiting her daughter Brandi. I was able to spend a few hours with each of them. Uncle Bob & Aunt Lorrie were visiting Canada from Australia. I had already seen them for a couple of days in Spiritwood, but we were able to do lunch at the Kensington Pub with Tom, Aunt Sherry, Brandi, and U. Bob's daughter Kelly.
Note: the Kensignton Pub is across the street from Tom's shoe store, Stride ("Because you can't be comfortable in ugly shoes"). Now I've got my eye on a pair of John Fluevogs from the Operetta line.
My favourite thing about Operettas is the quotation on the bottom:
Hey Minstrel
Your Love Makes Me Sing!
Arise! Come! My Darling,
My Beautiful One, Come With Me.
A beautiful pairing of a lyric from "I Could Sing of Your Love Forever" with a verse from "Song of Solomon" -- and perfect for a musician.
Someday ...
In the meantime, I need to make a bit of money!
RED DEER: HOUSE CONCERT
During that week I did a lot of prep for the CACSD conference.
I also held my first house concert at the home of Pete and Audrey Winter in Red Deer. There were about 15 people, including Audrey's brother Gene Zacharias and his family. Gene is a long-lost college friend. We used to sit in the cafeteria and laugh our heads off together. We did laugh that evening, but we also had poignant fellowship. Gene and Sonja joining me to sing the last song together:
I have a Maker
He formed my heart
Before even time began
My life was in his hands
He knows my name
He knows my every thought
He sees each tear that falls
And hears me when I call.
After the concert, the Zacharias family wrote in my notebook. Gene & Sonja's son, Seth, is a very good artist, so I asked him to draw something. "Okay," he agreed. "I'll draw what came into my head."
What came into Seth's head was astoundingly prophetic. My middle name is Faye, which means fairy, and this year more than ever it has been meaningful to me. Wings are another meaningful theme, so the butterfly is significant. (The dragonfly and bee were added by Seth's sister Claire, along with the two fairies and the flower on the bottom right.) The peace lily is a symbol from a dream I had in April 2006, comforting me to be contented about not having children (... yet ...).
Seth is about 12. There is no way he could have known these things, but on the evening of my very first house concert, these images were like Noah's rainbow: symbols of promise, affirmations that I'm on the right path.
Claire's other illuminations:
This bird reminded me of "Mother Bird" from a lovely book my friend Lamb gave me for my birthday this year: Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Golden Egg.
Funny -- I have these hand drawings, but I don't have any photos from the house concert!
We put about 15 CDs and a "tips teapot" on a low, round table in the middle of the living room. Instead of actually "selling" the CDs, people could just take one and put a donation in the teapot.
The amount in the teapot was approximately equal to the amount I would have collected if I had actually sold the discs. Again, a confirmation that the Lord will provide as I continue on this path.
On Wednesday afternoon I had my first phone interview with Incubator Records. Very encouraging.
Calgary: Open Mic Night
In order to have time together, my cousin Brandi & her husband Alex generously let me tag along on their "date night." I was planning to sing during open mic at The House Coffee Sanctuary, so we rendez-vous'd there. The wait for my call was going to be long
so we went for a walk through Prince's Island. Brandi & Alex left before 10 to pick up Aunt Sherry at the airport. I went back to The House, sang my two songs to a warm crowd, and ended up having a long and delightful conversation with a girl named Beka who had lived at Caronport for a few years after doing the Kaleo program. I left a CD and came away with a tentative booking for July 7th!
Calgary: CACSD Conference
The CACSD Executive started arriving on Sunday afternoon. We gathered that evening at Calgary's downtown Sandman for last minute planning. The conference started Monday afternoon and ended Wednesday evening. Using open space technology to organize the conference, I was the main facilitor. Open space is a great way to discover what's really important to a group, and one things we discovered is that excursions are important to CACSD members! We worked hard in discussion sessions on Monday afternoon & Tuesday morning. Tuesday afternoon was also open for sessions, but instead of posting topics, we ended up with invitations for sight-seeing and shopping!
Tuesday afternoon my friend Lamb arrived in Calgary and stayed at Tom & Lori's. (He drove from Ontario and has some business in Alberta this week.) Arriving about half an hour before me, he was entertained by Emma, who told him all about Charlotte's Web after learning that he had neither watched the book nor seen the movie.
Unfortunately, after supper I became quite sick and was completely wiped out through the next day. Missing Wednesday morning of my conference didn't really buy more time with Lamb since, both exhausted (him from driving and me from illness), we went to bed early and slept until 11:00 a.m. Even so, it was nice to spend some time with him. There's a good chance that he'll stop in Spiritwood next week on the return drive to Ontario.
I went back to the conference on Wednesday for a couple of afternoon meetings and the banquet and to help the Executive clean up. Job well done. Next year at Redeemer University College in Ontario.
Edmonton: Lunch with Dr. Goa
Had a lovely lunch with Dr. David Goa at the Mill Creek Cafe. We discussed my research on women from the early days of Briercrest and how to continue it, possibly with the Chester Ronning Centre. He gave me some very useful tips re. a Ph.D.
Ater lunch introduced me to The Bookseller, a used book store underneath the Mill Creek Cafe.
Lovely shop, well worth visiting again. Didn't buy any books, though!
Post-trip pondering
I came straight home to Spiritwood on Friday evening. Waiting for me was the first package from Incubator Records with 4 hours of workshop on cassette tapes introducing prospects to Incubator's approach to ministry. I like what they're saying so far but ... lately I've been wondering if I should find a day job. The idea of a steady income is appealing. The entrepreneurial life of a musician and researcher can be risky. But what am I "called" to? Incubator President, Nathan L. Sakany, says that a calling is "something that just keeps calling to you." Even if I took a day job for just a year or two, the music and research would "just keep calling to me." And the Lord keeps reminding me that he'll take care of the money.
So why not now? I need to stay centred and reread my own words from last summer: a new season.
Labels: calling, family, friends, Lamb, music, performances, travel, vocation
Sunday, March 25, 2007
ladybug on the piano
LADYBUG
Last night there was no freeze, so today the air felt quite warm and fresh from the start. The sun has been shining and the snow has been vanishing all day, flooding some corners of our little town in every way. The loveliest sign of spring was a ladybug on the piano keys in church this morning. 
She like the bass clef best and I tried to play around her, knocking her off only once. She flailed upside-down on the little ledge in front of the keys until I rescued her on my fingertip.
Ladybug! Ladybug! Fly away home.
Your house is on fire. And your children all gone.
BIRTHDAY
As of March 12th I am now officially "39 and holding."
I was amazed at how many people remembered on the day and emailed or phoned. Of course Lamb, who shares the day, called and we sang "Happy Birtday to us."
I worked at the homecare office and worked on my thesis most of that evening (the deadline was looming), but stopped for a simple, tasty supper, with the most unique "cake" ever. I've almost entirely eliminated sugar and wheat from my diet, so Mom called forth her endless creativity to design a visual feast in this original meat pie. She used some wheat-free crepes as "crust" with a quinoa-and-meat filling in the middle, and decorated it with sour cream, salsa, shredded cheddar, red bell peppers, Spanish onions, and a plastic cake topper. Brilliant. And very tasty, especially with extra Spanish onions!
birthday meat pie, detail
THESIS
Carol: yes, the thesis IS done, which makes the spring weather seem all the brighter! Dwayne Uglem likes it so far and has made some suggestions for "substantive changes," so it's a good thing we postponed the defense. In addition to rewriting, maybe I'll even get my taxes done before leaving for 'Port!
The thesis was too big to email to my thesis readers, so I posted it on a webpage for them. I'm not quite ready to give out the URL--one day soon after the April 9th defense. Looking forward to unveiling it!
Enjoy the springtime!
Friday, January 05, 2007
new year, new day planner, & nuns coming "home"
Last Sunday our interim pastor, Vern Munshaw, preached about the new year (surprise) from the perspective of buying a new pocket-sized personal calendar. For years this was the gift he bought himself for Christmas -- always the same, and better than any of his other gifts. "Someone" (his wife) eventually realized how important this purchase was and now she buys it for him.
The image of looking for a new day planner really resonated with me. I had been looking for my new day planner but holding off the purchase. The brand I keep returning to is Quo Vadis, the style Minister Prestige. The paper is creamy (in both colour and texture) and heavy (ink never bleeds through); the layout is ideal (1 week on 2 pages, 8am-9pm, with lots of room for notes); the extras are handy (anno-planning, world maps, time zones, receipts and payments section, address book). And recently, in shopping around, I have learned that the paper comes from environmentally friendly mills in France!
Listening to Pastor Vern talk about new calendars and new years confirmed to me that it was time to really welcome the new year, so I had my uncle pick up a new Minister Prestige planner at Staples on his last trip to Saskatoon. Last night I finished the transfer from the 2006 book to 2007. Feels good.
More than ever a good calendar is imperative. 2007 is starting out crazy!
When I came to Spiritwood last fall, my parents moved down to my grandpa's apartment and I moved into their spacious bedroom suite (300+ sq ft). For many months Mom & Dad have been fielding queries about renting space here, but have never felt like they had the right set-up for boarding. That all changed a few weeks ago when they learned that the local nuns had sold their house and, not wanting to leave Spiritwood, were looking for a place to live. (Sister Therese and Sister Bernadette who are not only vocational sisters but biological siblings, too.)So my parents offered the apartment, the sisters came to see it, and Therese could hardly sit down she was so excited! This is where Sister Therese and Sister Bernadette lived several decades ago when they first came to teach in Spiritwood, so it's like coming home for them -- except that they never imagined it could be so beautiful! They would like Dad & Mom to build a little chapel space somewhere so they "can bring the presence of God into the place." Mmmmm.
It's exciting all around -- a home for the sisters, some rental income for Mom & Dad. But then it also means that Mom and Dad want their bedroom suite back, which means carving out different space for me in the south end upstairs.
Add to the mix a handful of international farm workers (employed at Fast Genetics) who are looking for places to live and a desperate lack of rental accommodations in Spiritwood, giving my parents have other possibilities for renters, which means more potential renovations on this 9000 sq ft 1950s former convent. And a lot of tradespeople have moved to Alberta!
I had hoped that January would be a quiet month to settle into my thesis and finish that thing, but I've been assigned several training & relief shifts at the Spiritwood home care office, I've got at least 5 Norwex shows in the next 2 weeks, and there are some exciting things happening with a glyconutrient company, so I'm going to Caronport and Weyburn next week "on business." I'm also considering getting certified as a Birkman consultant. (Training in Orlando, Florida, February 6-7 or Orange County, CA, March 13-14. Ask me about my introductory rate.) Interestingly, being so busy provides structure and perspective that somehow helps me to be more productive than when life is slow, increasing my motivation to write! Strange how that works, but I won't argue. Guess I'm just going to have to cram that thesis into the small spaces!
Stay tuned! ...
new year, new day
planner--clean
pages, empty
yet full of
possibilities--
familiar,
family,
friends,
vacations,
promotions ...
empty pages,
like an unopened door.
someone knocks,
you open, and there
stands a stranger,
the Unknown.
Release your fears,
welcome the stranger
bringing blessing and bain.
Release control,
open the door,
open your hands,
release and receive,
release and receive.
The image of looking for a new day planner really resonated with me. I had been looking for my new day planner but holding off the purchase. The brand I keep returning to is Quo Vadis, the style Minister Prestige. The paper is creamy (in both colour and texture) and heavy (ink never bleeds through); the layout is ideal (1 week on 2 pages, 8am-9pm, with lots of room for notes); the extras are handy (anno-planning, world maps, time zones, receipts and payments section, address book). And recently, in shopping around, I have learned that the paper comes from environmentally friendly mills in France!
Listening to Pastor Vern talk about new calendars and new years confirmed to me that it was time to really welcome the new year, so I had my uncle pick up a new Minister Prestige planner at Staples on his last trip to Saskatoon. Last night I finished the transfer from the 2006 book to 2007. Feels good.
More than ever a good calendar is imperative. 2007 is starting out crazy!
When I came to Spiritwood last fall, my parents moved down to my grandpa's apartment and I moved into their spacious bedroom suite (300+ sq ft). For many months Mom & Dad have been fielding queries about renting space here, but have never felt like they had the right set-up for boarding. That all changed a few weeks ago when they learned that the local nuns had sold their house and, not wanting to leave Spiritwood, were looking for a place to live. (Sister Therese and Sister Bernadette who are not only vocational sisters but biological siblings, too.)So my parents offered the apartment, the sisters came to see it, and Therese could hardly sit down she was so excited! This is where Sister Therese and Sister Bernadette lived several decades ago when they first came to teach in Spiritwood, so it's like coming home for them -- except that they never imagined it could be so beautiful! They would like Dad & Mom to build a little chapel space somewhere so they "can bring the presence of God into the place." Mmmmm.
It's exciting all around -- a home for the sisters, some rental income for Mom & Dad. But then it also means that Mom and Dad want their bedroom suite back, which means carving out different space for me in the south end upstairs.
Add to the mix a handful of international farm workers (employed at Fast Genetics) who are looking for places to live and a desperate lack of rental accommodations in Spiritwood, giving my parents have other possibilities for renters, which means more potential renovations on this 9000 sq ft 1950s former convent. And a lot of tradespeople have moved to Alberta!
I had hoped that January would be a quiet month to settle into my thesis and finish that thing, but I've been assigned several training & relief shifts at the Spiritwood home care office, I've got at least 5 Norwex shows in the next 2 weeks, and there are some exciting things happening with a glyconutrient company, so I'm going to Caronport and Weyburn next week "on business." I'm also considering getting certified as a Birkman consultant. (Training in Orlando, Florida, February 6-7 or Orange County, CA, March 13-14. Ask me about my introductory rate.) Interestingly, being so busy provides structure and perspective that somehow helps me to be more productive than when life is slow, increasing my motivation to write! Strange how that works, but I won't argue. Guess I'm just going to have to cram that thesis into the small spaces!
Stay tuned! ...
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
my talented niece
Recently 9-year-old my niece Emma had a very special privilege. We're all very proud of her. Here's a picture and the email her mom sent:
Lori wrote:
Just thought I'd send you a picture of Emma carrying the Swiss flag at the World Cup Women's Downhill. She carried it along with the rest of her teammates during the opening ceremonies and the singing of Oh Canada. It is actually a big honor to be chosen to do this. To add to the excitement, the kids were mentioned by one of the Canadian athletes in the National Post and the Calgary Herald. Canadian Kelly Vanderbeek, who placed third, told the media how she was standing at the start all focused and serious, when she heard about fifteen young ski racers (this was Emma and her team) nearby chanting, Go Kelly Go. She said she just couldn't help it, but to smile and look back at her support crew and say "That's awesome." She told the media that that's why she loves to race in Canada. Keep and eye on Emma, she's a competitor and may have just found her passion.
Lori wrote:
Just thought I'd send you a picture of Emma carrying the Swiss flag at the World Cup Women's Downhill. She carried it along with the rest of her teammates during the opening ceremonies and the singing of Oh Canada. It is actually a big honor to be chosen to do this. To add to the excitement, the kids were mentioned by one of the Canadian athletes in the National Post and the Calgary Herald. Canadian Kelly Vanderbeek, who placed third, told the media how she was standing at the start all focused and serious, when she heard about fifteen young ski racers (this was Emma and her team) nearby chanting, Go Kelly Go. She said she just couldn't help it, but to smile and look back at her support crew and say "That's awesome." She told the media that that's why she loves to race in Canada. Keep and eye on Emma, she's a competitor and may have just found her passion.
Labels: family
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Christmas week with the family
The single siblings have gathered with our parents.
The married-with-children siblings will arrive on the 27th and 28th.
My Korean friend, Annie, is also here for the week.
She's a student at Briercrest Seminary, where she's training for missions work.
Full house.
Fun house.
The married-with-children siblings will arrive on the 27th and 28th.
My Korean friend, Annie, is also here for the week.
She's a student at Briercrest Seminary, where she's training for missions work.
Full house.
Fun house.
Friday, December 01, 2006
making millions?
If you think of it, please pray for me & my Mom, my Aunt Linda, & our friend Dawn. We're doing two concerts this weekend: Spiritwood's "Grand Ole Opry Christmas" on Saturday evening and a seniors' supper on Sunday evening. We're all feeling like our health is challenged in one way or another.
The Opry committee has hired a country group, Dixie Highway, as the house band to play for all the performers. Dixie Highway said they needed a keyboard player, so my mom offered my services and they accepted. I received the CDs and lyric sheets last week, on Wednesday night I practiced with the band in Saskatoon, and on Saturday afternoon we'll put it all together with the performers (individuals & groups). Whirlwind!
Should be a fun weekend -- but a lot of work. Mom, Aunt Linda, Dawn & I are praying that we'll shine like stars in the universe.
You know, lately I've been wondering if I should go teach English in Korea. A person can make millions there. Millions of WON, that is. In fact, I sent away a few resumes, interviewed with a Toronto placement agency, and was offered my pick of jobs.
Yet, every time I pray about my vocation I sense the Lord telling me just to do what he told me -- to sing and write (alongside my Mannatech & Norwex businesses) and watch him provide. I know that my calling is to "sing release to nations," so would going as an English teacher be kind of like Sarah giving Hagar to Abraham to shortcut the process of securing an heir?
Well, the Opry is a paying gig, furthering my professional music career. :) And this week I've had some great and unexpected Norwex and Mannatech activity. The Lord will take care of the money as long as I'm obedient ... Do I really believe that?
My friend Mary reminded me to ask the Lord for wisdom and not to doubt.
James 1:5-8
From The Message: If you don't know what you're doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You'll get his help, and won't be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought. People who "worry their prayers" are like wind-whipped waves. Don't think you're going to get anything from the Master that way, adrift at sea, keeping all your options open.
From the New Living Translation: If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.
The Opry committee has hired a country group, Dixie Highway, as the house band to play for all the performers. Dixie Highway said they needed a keyboard player, so my mom offered my services and they accepted. I received the CDs and lyric sheets last week, on Wednesday night I practiced with the band in Saskatoon, and on Saturday afternoon we'll put it all together with the performers (individuals & groups). Whirlwind!
Should be a fun weekend -- but a lot of work. Mom, Aunt Linda, Dawn & I are praying that we'll shine like stars in the universe.
You know, lately I've been wondering if I should go teach English in Korea. A person can make millions there. Millions of WON, that is. In fact, I sent away a few resumes, interviewed with a Toronto placement agency, and was offered my pick of jobs.
Yet, every time I pray about my vocation I sense the Lord telling me just to do what he told me -- to sing and write (alongside my Mannatech & Norwex businesses) and watch him provide. I know that my calling is to "sing release to nations," so would going as an English teacher be kind of like Sarah giving Hagar to Abraham to shortcut the process of securing an heir?
Well, the Opry is a paying gig, furthering my professional music career. :) And this week I've had some great and unexpected Norwex and Mannatech activity. The Lord will take care of the money as long as I'm obedient ... Do I really believe that?
My friend Mary reminded me to ask the Lord for wisdom and not to doubt.
James 1:5-8
From The Message: If you don't know what you're doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You'll get his help, and won't be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought. People who "worry their prayers" are like wind-whipped waves. Don't think you're going to get anything from the Master that way, adrift at sea, keeping all your options open.
From the New Living Translation: If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.
Labels: calling, family, music, performances, vocation
Sunday, November 12, 2006
Sit with me awhile?
Today the winter air in Spiritwood was quiet and clean, crisp and sparkling -- a welcome change to Wednesday's blizzard! On this lazy Sunday afternoon, browsing for new blog templates, I finally settled on this one entitled "Pure," which evokes that lovely feeling in the air today.
I neglected to mention one small detail from Wednesday's travel escapades. At the baggage carousel in Winnipeg I waited and waited for my small, black "rollerboard" suitcase. I had wanted to take it as a carry on, but it was a mere two pounds overweight, so I checked it. I waited and waited in vain in Winnipeg. My sturdy little bag, still en route from Toronto, would arrive on the 12:30 am plane. Why wasn't I on that plane, too? I could have had almost 2 hours more with Lamb and Bonita! Ah well ...
How could I be upset about the suitcase? After such a crazy day, of course my luggage would be delayed! There was nothing to do but visit Shopper's Drug Mart for some toiletries: travel-sized shampoo, conditioner, gel, body wash. Fortunately I had my tooth brush and make-up in my purse, but my tooth paste had been confiscated at security in Saskatoon because it was in a 100 mL container! Never mind that it was less than one-third full. I was unaware of new regulations for liquids and gels (must be in containers that hold less than 100 mL). Really, how much damage can a woman do with Melaleuca tooth paste? Hopefully, Air Canada will reimburse those toiletries (>$20).
I lived, I learned. Had coffee with my cousin Tammy on Friday afternoon in Winnipeg. She's a CGA who travels almost every week. She never checks luggage, and people even make fun of her for it, but I can definitely see her wisdom.
I neglected to mention one small detail from Wednesday's travel escapades. At the baggage carousel in Winnipeg I waited and waited for my small, black "rollerboard" suitcase. I had wanted to take it as a carry on, but it was a mere two pounds overweight, so I checked it. I waited and waited in vain in Winnipeg. My sturdy little bag, still en route from Toronto, would arrive on the 12:30 am plane. Why wasn't I on that plane, too? I could have had almost 2 hours more with Lamb and Bonita! Ah well ...
How could I be upset about the suitcase? After such a crazy day, of course my luggage would be delayed! There was nothing to do but visit Shopper's Drug Mart for some toiletries: travel-sized shampoo, conditioner, gel, body wash. Fortunately I had my tooth brush and make-up in my purse, but my tooth paste had been confiscated at security in Saskatoon because it was in a 100 mL container! Never mind that it was less than one-third full. I was unaware of new regulations for liquids and gels (must be in containers that hold less than 100 mL). Really, how much damage can a woman do with Melaleuca tooth paste? Hopefully, Air Canada will reimburse those toiletries (>$20).
I lived, I learned. Had coffee with my cousin Tammy on Friday afternoon in Winnipeg. She's a CGA who travels almost every week. She never checks luggage, and people even make fun of her for it, but I can definitely see her wisdom.
Labels: Air Canada, family, life, travel
