Candids, No. 5

Napping, Sketching, and Laughing--TOGETHER

Feb 17, 2024

I am at the table with (most of) my siblings. We are talking and laughing, coffee in my hand, Taco Bell in brother-in-law Jayden’s. The kids are—quiet but not asleep. Which, today, is just fine with me.

We are together—the second time this week, at Mom and Dad’s. We were a little sick for a couple weeks, so we didn’t venture toward my family to keep Mom, who is scheduled for her third chemo treatment Monday, well.

But we are well, now, and we are here.

Together.

In the meanwhile, Dad took up drawing. Today, Jay brought his pencils and pad. They practice vanishing point, by drawing the hallway, together.

Mom is asleep on the couch—she is the eye of the storm, her presence the force which bring us spinning, toward each other, into the peace at the center.

All over the house, she’s left the candles burning.

Guess the Artist

To see the (un)finished sketches from today, follow this link, and guess who drew which! I will post the results of the poll, and the correct answers, next week!

What activities are you participating in this weekend? With whom? And—to what affect; how do these activities, these people make you feel, encourage you to think?

Reading

I have finished The Periodic Table in which chemist and holocaust survivor Primo Levi tells bits of his story by examining elements in the periodic table. His last element, carbon, resounds—highly recommend reading to the end. His tone I do not always appreciate, as it can be haughty and misogynistic. But there are still many things to glean from his life and the elements around us.

Since finishing it, I’ve been inspired to perhaps write about my own life with a similar given structure. Having settled on the houses in which I have lived, I am now reading Sandra Cisneros’s A House of My Own, which is providing all sorts of ideas. Stay tuned.

Making

I have completed Mom’s headbands! This second round was not as much of a success as the first. Which is a pity, because she really liked the prints she found. Oh well!

Listening

to Adrianne Lenker. An odd choice for Lent, but her instrumentals record set a contemplative tone in the house on the morning of Ash Wednesday, and her soothing vocals and insightful lyrics have opened up my inner world, as I consider the state of my own penitent heart.

Until next week, take care.