What you find in old boxes.

Yes it's a long winter. Long as in long. February 17th and I have worked a long day. My distractibilty is a symptom of my fatigue, but I follow it.

Instead of finishing off those paintings of my cat that I started the other night in order to commemorate him...finally, or just watching the Olympics or preparing my props for the Rumi show I am doing in a few days I just drift...Yes, I just drift like a mermaid and go upstairs to the watery place of memory and my island life.

It's crowded in that corner of the house. Is it the boxes of letters and outlines for my memoir? Or is it just the way emotion crowds in for me around that experience? Both. It's dusty. I have not sorted things out and my years of journals shout from the corner.

I won't attempt any organizing tonight. I'll just dive right into a box and see what I find. I am a deep sea diver and the box I choose is a long one. It says Dining Room on it...marked from our move of four years ago. I have a feeling I know what's inside...some rolled up paintings and what else?

There they are are, the most humble drawings I've done. Simple drawings on cardboard from boxes sent to me....Drawings on cardboard of the interior of my old cottage.

I took some photos of them and will tell you about them now. Ah, sure here they are for the tellling..the most simple, humble drawings a person could do.

A drawing of the side room with Joe's hat and a wooden hanger on the wall. Lace curtain at the window.

One small drawing of Joe's hat.

An easy to read drawing of the church and environs.

The most simple drawing of them all. A bag of coal and my pile of coal outside the back door.

What else is in the box? Other paintings I did not even photograph.

A whole collection of cardboard objects that I carefully drew all over....with loop de loop lines.

Crosses, lots of crosses..I was so trying to be Catholic then. Lots of hearts, some with crosses, an anchor and other mystical symbols that I am not even sure about. I did not photograph this collection yet.

And there. The simple handmade blouse with heart buttons that I made for myself. Stitched, stitch by stitch with flowers and utter simplicity and modesty. No bosom will show. Wearing this simple garment I will be as utterly modest and forsaken as any island woman could be.

I will post these items now.