To stray from the rise of gardening spirit for just one moment, I simply must share that today is my daughters first birthday.  She was born in the evening, in front of the fire and her birth was indeed a fire birth if you will.  She is turning out to be a little fireball herself and I simply couldn’t love her more!  I love her so deeply, as all mothers do, but I am just astounded at how much she has taught me in this short year.

Photo By Gabriella Marks

Her first lesson to me was “you can not do this alone”.  I love community and people but I can also be quite the loner, especially when it comes to hard tasks and challenges.  She told me loud and clear, “Gather the troops mama, you will need them this time around!”

So I boldly did.  I asked for something that required attention, care, focus and most of all time, which is solid gold to most mamas I know.

I asked them to weave together a net for Eva and I to catch us when we fell, ( which we in fact did about 5 weeks into her life).

I asked them to knit us a blanket to warm us with motherly love in the coldest, darkest days of the year (and what felt like the darkest days of my entire life at the time).

I asked for them to stitch us a rainbow bridge which we could cross over, into the many phases of our life together….

And so they did.  Without any hesitation, they got to work, rummaging through their stash baskets, finding a simple form for all to fit into, holding gatherings to knit and laugh and do what needed to be done.

Photo by Gabriella Marks

Stitch by stitch, square by square we all prepared for the day of her birth, together in our thoughts of this little girl who would come and be a part of our woven fabric of womanhood.

Photo by Gabriella Marks

Each hue handed to me with a prayer and a kiss tucked inside.

Photo by Gabriella Marks

And then, ever so carefully and communally, the rainbow was woven together, stronger than any net ever made, brighter than all the colors in the universe, and warmer then any blanket on the coldest of winter nights.

Photo by Gabriella Marks

I had it to lay my baby on the day she arrived in my arms.

It caught us and cradled us, warmed us and brightened us, all because of the women who rose to create it.  They kept coming too, with food and flowers and friendship and still do, even a year later, and I have no doubt they will be with us till the end.

On this day I weep in love not only for my daughter and her wisdom but for the women who rise every time, in every way, every single day to do what needs to be done, to care for, to feed, to comfort, to celebrate, even to scold.  These are the women of the whole world and I am proud to raise up yet another woman on this spinning earth who I know will be taught by the very the finest, to do what needs to be done and to not be afraid to ask for help when it is needed.  I am proud of my women today and proud to be a woman who loves so freely, so fiercely and so necessarily!

Photo by Gabriella Marks

I was also taught by my daughter, to give thanks for what you are grateful for and to sing that thanks to the world.  So sisters, Thank you, from the very bottom of my heart, there is not much more to say than I love you.

Adapted by Katie Feldspausch from ‘The Tapestry Poem’ by Corrie ten Boom

My life is but a weaving,
Between my world and me.
I cannot change the color
For Life works steadily.

The dark threads are as needful
In the skillful weavers Hand
Aside bright threads of rainbow
The world’s stitched up in my plan.

Often times It weaves in mystery,
And Many days of cheer,
Wrapping it all around me,
My world is far from fear.

Now the room is silent
And the wool will lay to rest,
The life weaved in this blanket,
Will forever be so blessed.

• Read to me with the gifting of the blanket
• Here is the Pattern we followed( losely!!)

The first light of Advent is the light of stone–. Light that lives in crystals, seashells, and bones.-Rudolf Steiner I am new to the whole journey of advent myself.  As a child we had much anticipation towards Christmas, eating a candy cane every night of December thanks to our advent calendar.  There were some beautiful candle lighting ceremonies in our Quaker Meeting, but I have much to learn about the ceremonies of the season of darkness and light in my adulthood.  Though I do let myself be guided and love when synchroniscities illuminate my way. I couldn’t decided tonight weather to go out to the studio to work with my magical collection of gem stones or to make medicinal jewelry for my up coming Holiday Sale, or weather to do a little research on how to celebrate advent in our home…I choose being horizontal with research and was pleasantly surprised to find out that advent begins tomorrow, with of course the Mineral Kingdom. For the first week of Advent the world of stones shall be honored and praised for it’s gifts bestowed upon us, what a beautiful gesture that the rocks, mountains and sands we all stand upon every single day of our lives shall get a whole week of attention in many families homes & hearts, not to mention and ton of attention from me. Just knowing this will just give my week more depth and meaning, as I plan to spend every evening I can working with the minerals so I can have a bountiful array of jewels to offer at this years Waldorf School Winter Faire.   Working with stones is one of my favorite, introspective and truly magical interests, but alas does not get much of my time since mothering got added to my job title list.  But once a year, around this time, As I lay the gardeners to bed I immediately jump from inside to out, day to night and start working little a little elf for Holiday Sales. I discovered the Waldorf Winter Faire last year and was so well received by friends and kin that now I see no need to do any other.  You see, amid many different family fun festivities there is a humble little craft sale put on as a fund raiser for this wonderful school in our community, that I am learning to appreciate and connect with more and more.   While kids play and community connects mamas and men, guys and girls alike, can sneak away and do some serious Holiday purchasing.  Though it is small it if full of amazing artisans and promises many beautiful handmade gifts for the gathering, all from local artists which really makes the the meaning of connection potent in the gifts given. So for the ONE and ONLY Desert Diosa Jewelry Sale of 2014 come see me next Saturday Dec 6th at the Santa Fe Waldorf School Winter Faire and celebrate with me the Light of the Stone.