Relationship

All I can think about right now is  wire and sparkles. Maybe it's this dark, cold time of year, or a post-holiday need to cling to the magic. I don't know, and I don't question the Why of it. What's important is the What, and to a lesser degree, the How. I've been in the studio at least a little bit each day since Christmas, bending, sawing, and hammering wire. My hands are sore and stained from the dirty steel, but I don't care. I am in love with the stuff, and every minute I spend with it teaches me something.

In my internet travels to various woo-woo sites, I keep coming across discussion of "relationship," meaning not only close romantic partnerships, but a more expanded view that includes how we relate to everyone and everything we come into contact with. Think about it. We actually do have relationship with everything, and though it may be only momentary, it still matters. I'm particularly focused on my relationship with steel baling wire. It's a delightful infatuation. But I also have to remember to tend to my relationship with my saw, my cutter, my pliers, my hands, my computer, my wood stove, my breakfast, my husband, and so much more, because all of these things are important to the currently spotlighted relationship with the wire.

Simple things can start to seem really complicated, but really, all it takes is a bit of noticing, of paying attention to each thing individually. It's like making a cake. Each ingredient goes into the bowl, thoughtfully, purposefully, just the right amount. Then you mix it all up into a lovely batter, pop it in the oven, and soon your house smells like heaven, because the relationship between all of the cake ingredients has been lovingly tended to.

Life is a Cake, my friends. We each bake our own, but the nicest part is that we get to share them. My current cake is made mostly of steel and sparkly things, but I have to remind myself to include all the other ingredients too. Each one is important to the bigger relationship, and to the finished Cake.