A Day of Repose… Reading and Writing

In preparation for a lecture I'm preparing for the Handweaver's Guild of America, I have been reading a lot on creativity and inspiration. One of the things I have seen written over and over again, is that in order to increase our creativity, we need to schedule quiet time into our lives. And so, I have been trying to reserve Sunday as a day when I take time to quietly reflect, think, and renew myself after a busy week.

This past Sunday, while still in Verona, I attended a lovely organ concert at San Fermo church, and then, I walked to a park near Castel San Pietre and spent the afternoon reading, writing, and listening to the crickets. I have claimed a 'rock' in this quiet little park, and I have been making regular visits for the past few years.
Here you can see a few images of my 'rock', and the view I have.




So... here is a formula that works for me.

Take a book, a journal, and a pen. Pack up some fresh fruit, and a bottle of water. Bring a hat, and a scarf, and make them colorful. Pray that no one else is on your rock. Then, when you get there, create a nest of sorts, and relax in whatever manner works.

For me this time, I took a book I have been reading and working with. It is called Your Personal Renaissance: 12 Steps to Finding your Life's True Calling by Diane Dreher.

I have been faithfully doing the various exercises by writing in my journal. The good news, is that by Chapter three, I was delighted to realize that I was 'already there'. I am already doing what I need to be doing. How great is that! Yet, I continue with the book and the various chapters which are offering me other ideas on how to best use my time and energies to realize my calling. I like learning about the various Renaissance artists and other historic figures that Dreher discusses as she uses examples to clarify a point.

As you can see, I had my quiet time. I was joined by thousands of crickets who sang in reverie for me.

What am I reading?

I love to read, and I love to read books through which I broaden my world somehow. So, books with some history, musicology, textiles, art, or other passions in my life, generally attract my attention. During this semester break, I have already read two books, and both were good and interesting in their own way. I chose one because it involved ‘lace’, a textile, and the other because the woman became a piano teacher (as I was once, while in college). I am now on my third... so read on.


The Lace Reader
By Brunonia Barry
This story takes place in Salem, and involves several women who can read the future in patterns of lace. Towner Whitney is the main character and she returns to Salem when her aunt dies. The story involves the disappearance of two women, which in turn brings secrets of the past back into Towner’s life and explain the surprising truth about the death of Towner’s twin sister.



The Piano Teacher
By Janice Y. K. Lee
The story takes place in Hong Kong and alternates between the time of the Japanese occupation in the 1940’s and later in the 1950’s. The main character is Claire Pendleton, a British woman who accompanies her husband to Hong Kong for his work. She becomes the piano teacher for a young Chinese girl. The story intertwines various people who appear in both time periods, particularly a man, Will, who Claire has an affair with. One will learn a lot about the Japanese occupation, and life amongst the various people of Hong Kong at that time (English, Chinese, Japanese, American). And, of course, there are surprises near the end of the book.



The Glassblower of Murano
by Marina Fiorato
I am not in the middle of another book, one and an at a point where I don’t want to put it down. It is a fairly light story (yet very interesting), of a young half-Venetian, half-English woman who moves to Venice to follow in the footsteps of her famous ancestor, Corradino Manin (who was one of Venice’s foremost glassblowers. She is learning while there, the secrets of her ancestor, who apparently sold his methods and his soul to France, to assist Louis XIV in the building of the Hall of Mirrors at Versaille. I love reading about places I have been, and am making copius notes of some of the places mentioned in the book, so that the next time I go to Venice, I can trace the tracks.

If any of you read one of the above, let me know what you think!