Tuesday ...a workshop in the Glass Studio...the Meeting room...outside with sunprinting ...and forensics in the morning

Whew... things were hopping at The Works today and all day. The squeals and laughter of children are sounding in every corner of the complex and there is wonder in the air....Thank you Howard Le Fevre for your vision. I am tired but what a great day...the hour before I started my class the little ones were learning to write their numbers in Japanese kanje with thick black paints...in one swoop of the brush. All sixteen students were enthralled with the possibilities of sharing their new talents with their parents. (We do have a small opening and gallery presentation on Friday afternoon.) Most of the paints actually made it to the papers :O)!

I then approached our CSI fiber project and went around the room to ask each child what they saw this morning that they believed was Beautiful? The answers ranged from day lilies, the Monarch butterflies, a Lune Moth in flight, their mother's smile, the sunshine....and so forth. I told them about baby woodpeckers investigating the bark on the trees for insects and breakfast for their tummies. We then returned to our self portraits and I urged them to use short , deliberate color strokes so when we applied the hot iron to transfer their portraits onto their fiber evidence sheets. Everything takes longer than you might think and they were hungry once again by 2:30 and needed a bathroom break. After a snack and a short release we began adding the images to the fabrics. They were delighted to have two portraits...one on paper and one on their fabric page. Now we were within minutes before the parents wold arrive for pick up so we gave them curious building sculptural blocks and I just sat and enjoyed their imaginations once again unleashed. Tomorrow we will stamp and stitch our hand prints...this will take some intense one on one attention so say a prayer that I can divide my time and attention in 16 equal parts.

I visited our friend for almost two hours in the hospital ...he is in a real pickle of a situation but with proper medications and rehab we can all encourage him to fight the battle to go home. Imagine and Live in Peace, Mary Helen Fernandez Stewart