Kiss the Moon

Between a tweaked neck and so much going on around here, I haven't had much time to post lately.... And I'm sorry for that.  Writing here is something that I really enjoy and I would like to get back to a more regular rhythm.  That being said....

Last weekend was so full and so wonderful.  I got to see Medeski Martin and Wood and dance until my heart swelled with that goodness only dancing brings, have a delicious breakfast alone with my mom, learn to spin wool into yarn (!), watch Sequoia participate in her first ever gymnastics meet, and (of course) work on the land.  Wow!

Shallots awaiting their new home.

Sequoia's meet was so sweet!  She is not actually at competition level, but the gym where she practices holds "mini-meets" a couple of times per year where all the kids, no matter their level, are invited to show off their skills.  There were routines as sweet and simple as three-year-olds working hard at awkward somersaults, and those as technical, complicated and breath-taking as you might see at national events.  I am so proud of Sequoia.  She was really, really nervous and almost didn't participate at the last minute.  But, she chose to push through the nerves and give it all she's got.  And she did beautifully!  I wish that I had photos to share but, alas, I do not.  Way to go, girl!

And spinning... oh spinning!  I knew I would fall in love, and fall hard I did.  I am taking a two-part class in Seattle at The Weaving Works.  Part one was last Saturday morning and I nearly had to pinch myself to believe it was real.  I felt giddy and tentative and shy as I sat down for the first time ever in front of a wheel - an Ashford Traditional.  The instructor told us all to start treadling and get used to how it feels.  I was so in awe of the timeless beauty in front of me, I was afraid to put my foot on the treadle.  I managed to overcome my silliness and began treadling away.  The steady whirring of the wheel was hypnotic and soothing, and I thought to myself, "Wow, this is so relaxing...."

Then I actually tried to spin.  Oiy!  It was no longer relaxing at all!  It was hard and awkward and confusing and oh so frustrating!  I would pinch too hard and the yarn would twist so much that it would clog the orifice, then pinch so lightly that the roving would fly through my fingers without twisting at all.  I would draft too much and the wool would wisp into nothing and I'd loose the end of the yarn to the bobbin.  Or, I didn't draft enough and fat chunks of barely spun roving would squeeze its way through the orifice to cover more than its fair share of my hard work.

I did finally kind of get the hang of it and was able to relax a little.  By no stretch of the imagination did the yarn I was creating even kind of resemble what most would think of when they think of yarn, but I was actually spinning nonetheless.  And as those luscious wool fibers slid through my fingers and spun up into yarn, my heart strings twisted right up with them.  My dear friends, I am hooked.

my first ever bobbin's worth of homespun yarn

bobbin number two
 getting better!

I was allowed to borrow a wheel from the shop for the week until my next class this Saturday.  I have been practicing every chance I get.  It's surreal to see a spinning wheel in my own living room.  I have to say, I really like it... a lot.  I'm going to have to work on making that a permanent reality I think.

Tonight I have a date with a friend to spin with her.  I can't wait.

Last night I worked in the garden until I could no longer see what my fingers were touching just before my eyes.  I got to watch the swollen, golden glowing moon rise above the garden with my fingers still plunged deep in the soil.  At first glimpse, my breath caught in my throat, my heart pounded and the blood rushed in my ears.  My family close to my side, a wheel by the wood stove, earth on my fingers, and a full moon so close I could kiss it.... love.