Paulo Coelho

This week I discovered Paulo Coelho...All this time he had been there, in my background, putting his wisdom into words....but I failed to see him, to know of him...simply because it wasn;t the right time.

And then, last week, I met this friend on the bus and we got talking...I asked her what books she is reading and she tells me have I read Paulo Coelho...I say no but I've seen his books in the library. She says he writes about spiritual things...and that makes you think...
That same day, I get off the bus and go to the library and find a book written by him. Its called "Brida" . I have been unable to put it down, so to speak...But at times, the things I read in the pages echoe my own thoughts so profoundly that I feel so overwhelmed...that there are other people who thnik like that and that I am not alone...That the Universe/God, whoever is up there has a plan for us, a plan that we do not know of and it is being revealed to us bit by bit...And that if you are well attuned to the ways of the world, you may be able to get a glimpse of how things are going, that a certain thing happened a certain way because there was a reason for it...
In his book, the Magus says to Brida " ...anyone who tries to possess a flower will have to watch its beauty fading. But if you simply look at a flower in a field, you will keep it forever, because the flower is part of the evening and the sunset and the smell of damp earth and the clouds on the horizon. That is what the forest taught me. That you will never be mine, and that is why I will never lose you. You were my hope during my days of loneliness, my anxiety during moments of doubt, my certainty during moments of faith.... knowing that my Soulmate would come one day, I devoted myself to learning the Tradition of the Sun. Knowing that you existed was my one reason for continuing to live"

I looked at Paulo's picture in his book and he looked hike such a wise man. And there was such humility in his eyes...
I'm definitely going to read his other books!

Handcrafted cards ctd..

I made more cards this weekend after I put my son to bed...

I stay up till about 11.30pm making them. And I love every minute I spend, meticulously carving out the finicky details till the final whole picture emerges...My favourite card is the butterfly on the green card-very simple and earthy.

Hope to do some more tonight...

Hand crafted cards

I have been silent for a long time. But it wasn't because I was not engaged in any creative pursuits-quite the reverse infact. But the task of uploading images and writing about them seemed too much for me. I  have also been busy with personal matters as well as work related issues (I am writing up my thesis for my MPhil, which for me is a very very very boring task.....!)
But amidst my writing my thesis, I take breaks of ten minutes (which sometimes stretch to twenty....or more...) and during these much anticipated breaks, I got this bright idea of making some handcrafted cards. Now, I am not new to this card making business because if ever there is a need for a farewell card invitation or a sympathy card, my friends in the department run to me (and I very gladly comply, because it allows me to do something which I love, during work hours)

 This is a sympathy card which was made when a staff member in one of the neighbouring departments lost his mother. The tree and leaves are cut out of colour A4 paper and pasted on white A4 board which is available at book stores for Rs.10.00

This is the first card I made during my "Thesis breaks" last week. Its a simple palm leaf cut out. I used a craft knife, the type with a small blade, to cut these out. It looks a bit bare so I thought of getting some rubber stamps made with maybe "Happy birthday" "With sympathies" and "Thank you" etc and stamping with black ink.

This is a picture of the cards my son and I made for his teacher;s birthday last year. He made the blue flower card and I the lolly card. The box contains the cake my mother made for her which I iced.

 

This is the cake for my son's teacher's birthday:

 

I am deviating from the topic but since I may not have many posts I will also include the crochet shawl I made for Teacher, as we all lovingly call her:

 

And last of all, the best hand crafted card so far, for my nieces' 6th birthday:

 

 

I get such pleasure, just gazing at it from time to time....I showed these to my good freind, Faseeha and she tells me to make a few samples and she will take me to Arpico, a supermarket nearby, and we will talk to the manager about having these in their shop! I thought about it and said, maybe it is a good idea, as long as they do not pressure me to supply a certain amount and give me deadlines etc.

 

I am so happy about finding an outlet for my creative urges again (the rug making has seen its last days...)At the begining of the year I made a new year resolution to take up my oil painting again (after more than a decade!) and I went out and bought canvas, paint, turpentine and the lot. I even found something to paint and even did some initial washes...But since then, I have not touched it...I fear its that I miss the day light-my son will not allow me to do my painting when he is up and I was forced to stay up late and paint with a high watt bulb-and it wasn't very satisfying...I remember longingly, the years before marriage and kids where I used to just plonk all my painting stuff on our balcony floor and just paint away... Oh well...maybe such days will dawn again..

 

I appreciate too, that it is my crafts which have kept me sane throughout these years...

I will end on this lovely quote I came across:

 

"Someday, everything will make perfect sense. So, for now, laugh at the confusion, smile through the tears and keep reminding yourself that everything happens for a reason."