e y e s t r a i n

I appeal to you from the bottom of my heart, I am one of you, living in indescribable pain and unforgiving conditions. You support associations and institutions with your generosity, so consider me today as just one association... an association to save a soul and a suffering family.

Every support, no matter how small, means life to me and my family.

Please, do not ignore my appeal. Share this post, maybe my message will reach someone who can help.

Don't let me die again, don't let me starve, don't let me forgetten

@tamamita @omegaversereloaded @punkitt-is-here @skunkes @komsomolka @sawasawako @anneemay @dirhwangdaseul @paper-mario-wiki @valtsv @catmask @heritageposts @taffybuns @i-am-a-fish @passionpeachy @pissvortex @papasmoke @neechees

Can You Please Help

My name is Sameer Al Khaldi. I am a Palestinian refugee living in Gaza with my family of 17 people in a tent facing the worst war in human history. During the current Gaza war, my house was completely destroyed resulting in the loss of my business and all our belongings. Me and my family have since been displaced in the streets with no shelter, lack of access to food, drinking water, and healthcare necessities. Despite we were camping in areas which were announced as safe, we faced an imminent danger of death by Israeli airstrikes in our camping neighborhoods several times which resulted in serious physical and psychological impacts on us as well as my little grandsons. I am writing this fundraiser hoping to get help with your generous donations to evacuate Gaza immediately to a safer country.

Before the war, we were having a normal life in Gaza having our own business and working hard with my sons and brothers to be able to survive under the Gaza siege. We were preparing for my daughter's wedding which was supposed to take place this summer but unfortunately she got all her wedding dresses and belongings gone with the destroyed house. She's now left with nothing hoping to be able to get married to her fiancé in a safer place one day. One of my sons was supposed to complete his high school education this year and was passionate about enrolling in a university to study business but the war deprived him from this success and left him hopeless while seeing other students in the west bank receiving their high school certificates while he's left behind. I hope this fundraiser with your generous support would help him to get out of Gaza and continue his education and achieve his life goals abroad. The funds collected through this fundraiser will be used to pay for the travel expenses for myself and my family of 17 people including 9 adults and 8 children. We hope one day will be able to rebuild our lives peacefully and get back to stable conditions with safety and protection for our kids like other children in the world.

As of August 8th, Samer's campaign has only $240/$50,000

Disclaimer: I'm not an official vetter, but there aren't many people vetting right now so I will provide evidence for you to use your own judgment on. I do encourage you to share and donate if you feel comfortable.

Wally Dion, born 1976, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Fabric Star Quilts.

Wally (Walter) Dion is a Canadian artist of Saulteaux ancestry living and working in Upstate New York. Working in a number of media including painting, drawing and sculpture.

Wally explains:

"The first fabric star quilt was made as part of a 2022 residency at Wanuskewin Park. It was my way of reflecting upon prairie tall grass and the reintroduction of bison into the Great Plaines. I wanted to make several transparent quilts and superimpose them; one in front another... a quilt for the microbiome, another for the bison, their manure & hooves, another for the summer fires that scorch the ground and a final quilt for the sweetgrass braid.

I was considering how all of these things worked together for thousands of years to create what is known as the 'prairie tall grass ecosystem'. A vast and fertile expanse of land stretching from the foothills of Alberta to the banks of the Mississippi. I wanted to highlight the invisibility of systems when everything is working well, as it should be.

I started with the green quilt because it is the colour of the sweet grass braid that is exchanged in ceremony and relationship building. I considered the nature and tradition of quilting; impoverished craftspeople using tiny scraps of fabric. I considered the act of offering fabric and adherence to tradition. I thought of a thousand tiny prayers and how that might look; invisible acts of respect and adherence to protocols spanning decades. My thoughts travelled across the land, imagining the trees and rocks collecting these prayers like a bush of cloth, or an etched boulders."

Image 1: A starburst with a deep red center, that radiates out into lighter pinks, purples, into almost-whites. The quilt is being shaken out over the camera against a cloudy sky, showing off the iridescence in the lighter colors.

Image 2: This quilt has a darker center and edges, with a lighter middle of the starburst pattern. The colors are greys with purple and pinkish tints, like storm clouds. A person on a ladder tosses it over the camera and the sunlight highlights gold and silver shine on the edges.

Image 3: Four quilts hung in a series, indoors. In the foreground is I believe the previously described quilt. Behind it hangs a brilliant orange and yellow quilt. Next is a green quilt with hints of yellow. The last quit is brilliant blue and nearly transparent silver. The quilts are lit in such a way that they shine almost like metal, and you can see through each quilt to the colors behind it.

Image 4: A quilt half in pinkish-reds, half in yellows and whites being spread in the wind. On the yellow-and-white side there is more shine.

Image 5: A quilt that appears to be black and white, the white nearly transparent, being spread over a sunset sky.

Image 6: The green and yellow quilt from image 3 hung from a wooden structure outdoors. This quilt has many transparent areas that the blue sky shows through, and the sunlight shows off the iridescence to the point some of the fabric looks metallic.

Image 7: A quilt in black of various transparencies, with neon pink outlining of the starburst pattern and the straight border at either side of the quilt. A person is holding the quilt so it is spread over the sky and the blue shows through areas of the quilt; some of the black shines.

Image 8: A person on horseback carrying a quilt in white, grey, and gold. The center of the starburst is gold. The sky behind is cloudy and the quilt almost seems to blend into the sky a little.

Denim Shoulder Crossbody Bag @ artgalleryzen