If Only

"I WAS sick -- sick unto death with that long agony; and when they at length unbound me, and I was permitted to sit, I felt that my senses were leaving me." Edgar Allan Poe

This is Poe's introduction to the Pit and the Pendulum, and it aptly describes how I felt this week: wobbly-headed and nauseous. Thankfully, I am feeling a bit more steady today.

If only each day proceeded according to the plans we have mapped out in our heads. I did, indeed, make it to Columbus to present a lecture for the delightful Columbus Metropolitan Quilters.

Gayle speaking in Columbus, Ohio

The group members were kind enough to hold their business meeting until after my presentation, giving me time to drive back to Cleveland the same evening. By the next day at lunchtime, however, I was decidedly ill.

I had great plans for this week, and none of my plans included being sick. Having traveled so much in the past month, I was ready to get back to work on the various unfinished pieces lying on my studio table.

Members of the guild look at artwork Gayle brought to the meeting.

I still haven't burned the first screen to practice printing with the YUDU I received for my birthday. My garden is overrun with weeds, and our butterfly bush died and needs to be replaced. The list goes on and on, the list in my head, that is.

As you may have noticed, the wheels in my mind do not easily stop turning. Sometimes I think I become susceptible to illness just so my body can make me slow down for a few days.

I am old enough now to have learned the lesson that I fought for most of my youth: lie down, relax, take a deep breath and be still. This is a time to make room for new ideas, a time to let my mind wander, a time to rest and refresh.