Wednesday, April 09, 2008

April Showers Continued

"the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting —
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things" - Mary Oliver

Drizzle yesterday so we pulled out all the stops here....dancing and driving and a walk in said drizzle for more art supplies, a walk that turned out to be sacred...

I found a deer antler in the grass beside the sidewalk, slightly smelly with a bit of fur on it. I tried to imagine that it was a shed antler, but the banging of my heart in my chest told me otherwise. I stood stunned for awhile and tried to answer the stream of questions spilling from the little red pram beside me.

I could not leave it there. I wrapped it in a plastic bag and carried it home. In my imagination, a buck walked beside us...I could hear the puffing of his breath and the sound of his footsteps. We were almost home when suddenly Satchel yelled, "MAMA WHAT'S THAT", and there in the grass near the school yard was another antler attached to a piece of skull. My eyes began to sting as I pushed back the tears that wanted to fall. I could see the suture line in a portion of the bone. I picked it up, placed it in the bag and explained to Satch that we would call the medicine woman and ask her how to clean it and if we should keep it or return it to a special place. Oh the stream of questions: what happened to the deer; where did the deer go; how did it return to the earth; is it sad; is it happy we have horns, etc.

"I don't know, but my guess", I said, "is that the deer would be happy that his antlers are with us and not near the road because we know that these antlers are special...all creatures are special. Every time we see or touch his antlers we will think of the deer, he will be remembered".

Pixie explained with comfort and detail all we needed to know. The antlers will make a trip to Squam Lake in the fall where they will be decorated in a traditional way by our two boys. Satch will be giving one to his spirit brother to take back to California. The other will remain with Satch and will be used as a talking stick for our family.


After lunch we danced to Cranberry Sauce Flotilla by Dog On Fleas up in the art studio. This hip acoustic album was recorded in a living room with an old upright piano, a base and other cool instruments! A mixture of traditional and original recordings, it was the biggie in the July 2007 issue of School Library Journal. Sort of Dixieland Jazz and Squirrel Nut Zippers - and we LOVE it!




Pre-nap we mellowed out to Dean Jones' Napper's Delight and did a bit of reading. It's Dean's first solo album...a beautiful collection of lullabies, some new, some traditional and includes vocals by the wonderful Elizabeth Mitchell (whom you KNOW we adore).

Post-nap...we did some Drivin'...

Is it a guy thing? What is is about boys and cars? Satch LOVES them....loves riding them, loves pushing them...LOVES in a font size too big for this screen. These days, when he's not outside "diggin' fo worms and yookin' fo bugs", he's playing one set of wheels or another....

The Automoblox car....it's SUPER cool! It fits together like a puzzle and is great for those wees who like to take things apart and put them back together again. It is very sturdy and rolls smoothly, fast and FAR! There are many models and each one is like a work of art.













The Plasmacar is the most AMAZING thing I've ever seen!

It's a kid powered car that uses the laws of physics to move. It really glides and can cruise at a respectable speed. It can hold up to 220 lbs. Satch and I get on together and race around the living room!






















 Here he is using it as a rescue vehicle for wayward alligators. 


















(The medical bag I made from an old canvas toiletry bag to store all his toy medical instruments).

You can click on the video to see it action!



We ended our day with a warm plate homemade Chana Masala and jasmine rice. The scent of garam masala filled the air and soft sitar music played in the background...all cozy in our place in the family of things.

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posted by Wendy at 5:30 AM

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