SymposiaSophia

This little book was placed in my hands this evening. Its pages are filled with the story of the soul and all its experiences and feelings which live inside drawers in a strange bird with long spindly legs. It's a great and wise little tale that I thought might remind us that we are all more than we appear to be, our stories are complexly tucked away inside and take years or lifetimes to discover, locked inside some barely opened drawers or unhinged on frequently access ones. Tonight, take a moment and send someone who you know may need a boost or an appreciation a little message and say simply: "I see you." #beautyinsmallplaces #booksiread #weareone

"If you simply kept your eyes open, it seemed, you just might find something valuable in the most unlikely of places. The trick was to recognize a good thing when you saw it, no matter how odd or worthless it might at first appear, no matter who else might just walk away and leave it behind." (I have been reading "The Boys in the Boat," which is about Seattle/Washington's rowing team in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. The layers of being in Seattle during the 2016 Olympics makes all of this much more meaningful. This quote is a reference inspired by Joe Rantz's mushroom foraging epiphany, and I happened to have just taken a picture of a fungus on this trip.) #beautyinsmallplaces #keepitsimple #inspired

Apples from the ground, every day. #walnutcottage #beautyinsmallplaces #quietmoments #keepitsimple

Moments when you let all your inner conversations and worries and plans wash away and you just are. These are the moments that make the heart sigh. #zwisdom #keepitsimple #beautyinsmallplaces #quietmoments

I am itching to do art and am taking requests and suggestions, as the ideas are not flowing yet. Shoot me a kernel of inspiration and suggest a medium: graphite or colored pencil, oil pastel, or ink pen. If you have a phrase to go with it, let me know. #artfortheheart #herestowhatsnext #workingtowardsdreams #symposialab

Succulents; prickly, juicy, warm, waiting, unhurried, weather stained, aging. Just like me. #keepitsimple #beautyinsmallplaces #contemplative

Because blueberry muffins should always be made on a lazy holiday morning. And, yes, we couldn't keep our fingers, tongues, and spoons out of the batter. Thanks for the berries, @specialladyfriend! #keepitsimple #symposialab #memories #july4th

In case you forgot this about yourself, and in case it's been a while since you did this. This is your prompt. The next moment might not exist. #designingmylife #keepitsimple #whenwelove #neverforget

When you drop 40 tennis balls all over your office while trying to clean. #thesemoments #designingmylife #keepitsimple

When I think of the students in the class of 2016, this is what comes to mind. I was honored to be part of their journey. Congratulations, friends, on finishing this final week together.

Life is different now. To read anything, it has to be light fiction and digital, something I would have deplored three years ago. Sherwood was special, an era of trying to craft a life in community, of experimenting with new forms of working and relationships, of ideas, and of committing to those I care about. Little did I know what the future held, what pain and joys awaited me. The same can be said now, and can simultaneously mean the same and a very different thing. #2amthoughts #keepitsimple #gratitude #wheretofromhere #designingmylife

Yes.

One morning over breakfast, while living in communal dorms, I tore up a paper bag and drew this and stuck it to the wall. Now it's come back at a moment when I wish there was a bit more kindness and generosity of spirit and a little less criticism and misses. Thinking of you all tonight.