Everyday Writing...

Put your words in order,

let them be funny or sad.

Put your words in order,

let them tell a story.

Put your words in order,

let them lead you.

Put your words in order,

you will be amazed.

---

Sun, rising in the sky, brightens my yard, pulses into my home through the back window. If I sit in the right place, I get to feel the wonder of it. If I sit in the wrong place I am blinded by it. This first hour of my day is precious to me. I can awaken slowly and let myself unfold into the day. I am not here to please others. I am here to shine with my gifts and when I do, I give others permission to listen to their hearts too.

---

I have a red clay fish in my garden. His mouth open wide as if gasping for air. Sunlight warms his upper lip. A flowering red geranium bobs her head in the breeze. She lives in her own red clay pot. The shadow of a nearby palm dances across the flower and the fish. The palm, delighted with its height sees far beyond the garden, far beyond the trees in the canyon, far beyond.

A bird has landed on the edge of my red clay birdbath. Taking a moment to rest, to bathe, to drink. Refreshed, it hops along the edge of the bowl. Startled by movement, it hops into flight and soars over the flower, the fish and the palm.

My red clay fish with his mouth open wide seems to say, ‘don’t go’.

---

My busy mind is like a kaleidoscope. It shifts and changes constantly. The contents are the same but each turn of the kaleidoscope brings a new perspective. Some are familiar, some are not. Some are brilliant. The busyness of everyday life. A trap if I linger.

---

Learn to embrace the tension of opposites in your life. Too often, we want to get the answer, fix the problem, check off the box. But life isn’t like that. Life presents us with both confidence and doubt, peace and anxiety, abundance and drought. Life is a constant pinging back and forth of these opposites. Learning to expand in order to hold both will bring you a sense of wholeness and let you integrate opposing energies into your life.

---

My emotions are a mirage. So strong and compelling. I am pulled like a toy on a string, bounced along, toppled over, dragged upside-down. Why do I allow this obsession with my emotions to be in the lead, charging up the hill toward impending doom.

Can’t I see it’s just a mirage?

I scattered ripples of energy across the dunes while pushing my way through sandstorms and blazing sunlight only to reach what never was, a mirage.

---

May I be filled with creative energy

May you be filled with creative energy

Susie Zol

June, 2021

The Chair

I just saw it yesterday, the broken chair.

It must have been broken for a long time.

Signs of wear and tear had crept in over the years.

The paint had worn thin along the edge of the seat

And the rungs, well, there were only two left.

The broken chair sat under the window for years.

No one had moved it.

Perhaps if I’d taken it into the sunlight

I would have seen the large crack in the seat.

My question now, after all these years of brokenness is

Why did I only just see it yesterday.

Susie Zol

'Waiting For Clarity'

30"x60'

Creating My Life

Creating a life takes time and as time goes by the things you want in your life change. It’s always okay to slow down, take a break, re-examine your priorities and your life. The energy of life is always going to be in motion. There is no final goal, no final destination, just a continuous flow of energy around which you can and should take time to create a beautiful life.

I took a break from my hectic life to re-examine my priorities and lean toward when I am the happiest. That reset has me including lots of painting and writing in my life along with solid and true friendships. I also leave plenty of time for hiking, gardening and beach walks.

During a recent hiking adventure in Zion National Park I wrote about some of my feelings while I was on the trails.

Taylor Creek

Taylor Creek winds endlessly thru the narrow box canyon. Hikers must crisscross the creek many times to stay on the trail. Everyone crosses in a different style.

Over-balanced, arms swinging wildly overhead.

In flight, jumping quickly from rock to log to rock.

Confident and surefooted, looking ahead for the next step.

Back and forth across the creek we continue on the trail. Aware of all the natural beauty surrounding us. Transported to another time and place…until we’re brought back suddenly by voices rising up in delight and surprise. Others are finding their own way across.

Further along, the creek widens and deepens. The small rocks we traversed for our crossings are replaced with boulders and logs. I can sense the group's tension in the air. How will this crossing take place. No longer does the water whisper, babble or sing. Now it roars, shouts and churns in frothy whirlpools. Crossing is now a challenge set before us. We steady ourselves in this turbulent atmosphere and quickly make our way safely across. These different crossings have me thinking about life and how life is this flowing body of water, sometimes slow and steady and easy to navigate. But at a moments notice, it can suddenly be unsettled and confusing, causing us to slow down, become aware and make plans.

Millers Pond

The last bits of early summer daylight reflect off the surface of Millers Pond. The sky in the pond is a beautiful mix of cerulean blue, titanium white and yellow ochre. Silhouettes of tall eucalyptus trees stand nearby, the breeze bending their canopy. They appear to be gazing at themselves in the mirror. A few ducks swim by, close to the reeds that fill the swampy edges. The air is warm and the earth still radiates the heat of midday. A favorite time of day for a walk.

Mingled Memories

Sitting down to write at my dining room table, I start to notice the details around me. The table; wood - sturdy - marked surface - solid legs. The hutch; glass cabinet above wood - shelves decorated with pictures and dishes and found treasures. Memories of the past mingle with the present. The most recent addition, a feather from my patio. I notice it right away, not even a step out the door. As if waiting for me. It’s soft, weightless form distinct in structure and purpose. I gently place it in the hutch, on the shelf next to the photo of my grandmother.

Sun Time

30"h x 24"w

$500