From Paradise to Paradise

I am back from a week-long silent retreat at the Monastery of St Gertrude in Cottonwood, Idaho.

Looking out my windows at the gorgeous woods on my mountain, processing the week.

It was a challenge and a joy.











One wonders why I would leave my mountain beauty. A friend asked, "well, can't you pray and meditate at home?"

An intense week

Just back from a week long silent retreat......no words

RETREAT

COLLAGE JOURNAL:

Preparation

Leaving in the morning for a week-long retreat at a monastery in Idaho. Thoughts of what to take....AS IF it were a trip to Europe. What I think I will do is no make-up, no jewelry, painting supplies (small travel size), spiritual reading and myself.....

COLLAGE JOURNAL

FAITH

From Ruth Gendler's "The BOOK OF QUALITIES"

Faith lives in the same building as doubt.
Faith is comfortable with Doubt because she grew up with Him.
Their mothers are cousins.
Her friends fear that Faith is a bit stupid.
They whisper she is naive and she depends on Doubt to protect her from the meanness of life. In fact, it is the other way around.
It is Faith who protects Doubt from cynicism.

Dreary and cold here again. The hummingbirds seem to be leaving already!!

It is JUST Wrong

Gay men across Iraq are being rounded up, tortured, and killed by the country’s militias, including the feared Mahdi Army—while the government stands by. The Daily Beast’s Parvez Sharma gets an early look at a report documenting the brutality.

Collage Journal

"What did I do?"

How often we think that might have to do with guilt, shame, or how much we had to drink the night before.


I guess the best answer would be:

"The best I could"

A very long break

The Measure of a Man

FATIGUE

I have been away from the studio for a LONG time and am finally taking some small steps.

These are collages in my DAILY COLLAGE JOURNAL from the past week. It feels good.