the winds of grace

The winds of grace are always blowing, all we need to do is raise our sails... I read that once, a long time ago, and while I tell most people it is Rumi, it might not be... but it has become an essential part of my philosophy... God and love are there, always, we just need to open our arms to them/it... and making things is one very important way I do it.
Wednesday night is Art Night(the best night of the week) at my place... one or two friends arrive with their journals or projects, their supplies and ideas. We sit at my table and sometimes work in silence. I feel so blessed to have other people who will sit and paint with me.

This week I've been working on a 'winds of grace' spread... with this funny angel blowing the love out into the world... my daughter told me once, she met an angel at the bus stop. An angel in the form of a homeless guy, who told her it would be all right, at a time in her life she needed to hear it from someone other than her mother. I asked my friend and spiritual director about it, and she told me, if you think it is an angel, then it is... the winds of grace are there, always blowing.

I also felted this little orange bowl. I'd had it knitted a long time ago, but tossed it in the wash Friday and this perfect little bowl is what came out of the machine... makes me think I'll look at this pattern again and make more... maybe make a bigger one, turn it upside down and make a hat... all kinds of possibilities

I filled the bowl with clove studded oranges and cinnamon sticks. I'll put a few little evergreen sprigs in too, and give this to my daughter for her table.

And last.... felted slippers. These are for P. I started with a pattern from Martha Stewart and some re-purposed wool sweaters I've been saving. Drew around each boy's feet, and rather than enlarge the template, drew my own. These are lined with fleece, and I crocheted a band around the top. The soles are leather, so they won't slip on the polished cement floor of their home. After sewing and crocheting, I tossed them in the washer and felted them some more. So while I started with Martha, I definitely ended with Barbara... and I think they turned out very nicely. Now two more to go, and a friend from Illinois is sending more wool sweaters, so I have no fear of running short of wool.

See. Grace. People who love me. People that I love.