The first storm of official spring mostly fizzled: a little rain and snow mixed late last night turning a faint dusting overnight, all stopped by dawn and mostly melted well before noon.
Only the clouds remain, and at our level they are not sufficiently dense to block the sun.
Meanwhile, with every passing shower, the earth grows greener, the grass more lush and tall. The trees have long since budded, but soon we will begin to see actual leaves on their still-bare branches. Our aspens tend to be the last to leaf in the entire area — a perfectly fine trade-off, given that they are also the last to lose their leaves in the fall.
Meanwhile, we wait: wait for the warming trend to reach a sufficient (and sufficiently consistent) height to allow us to plant. That process is still likely two full months off yet, but there is much we can do in the meantime. In the days to come, we’ll begin discing and tilling the earth, sorting and organizing seeds, and plotting out where each garden should go. At some point, we will need to venture out for one errand: To reseed the fields, so badly damaged by drought, with the proper grass for this area, we will need to visit a particular feed store in southern Colorado. But there are masks and gloves for that, and that day is some distance in the future yet.
For now, we take solace in watching the cycles of the earth here, steady in the face of whatever bedevils the world beyond our borders. For us, this is sanctuary, our own personal refuge, and we take care of the land here as it takes care of us. And so it is a gift, a message of reassurance, to watch the seasonal progress of the earth, flowering in the light.
It’s the name, the identity, and the physical expression of today’s featured work, a cuff that sprang from a popular earlier design, but given its own unique characteristics. From its description in the relevant section of the Bracelets Gallery here on the site:
Earth, Flowering In the Light Cuff Bracelet
A healthy Earth, flowering in the light, creates a world in harmony for us all. Wings honors both spirit and goal with this cuff bracelet, sterling silver in full flower. The band is scored freehand into seven separate spaces, a sacred number that in some traditions is the number of the directions, the clans, and the spirits. The inner spaces are boldly oxidized, then lightly polished and left smooth, with wing-like ajouré excisions flowing gracefully down either side. The two outer spaces remain whole, and are hand-texturized by hundreds of strikes of a tiny jeweler’s hammer, dotted earth embracing air and water. At the center of the band, an extraordinarily low-profile tube is soldered into place to elevate the setting slightly above the band’s surface. The setting itself is formed from a traditional concha wrought in Wings’s signature style, a blossom pattern cut freehand with scalloped edges that turn hand-scored rays of light into the petals of a flower. At the end of each “ray,” fitted into each scalloped edge, rests a hand-stamped sunrise symbol, each edge connecting it to the next by a single hand-stamped hoop. The concha is domed slightly, repoussé-fashion, then set at the center with a simple, elegant low-profile bezel holding a beautifully banded malachite cabochon in shades of earthy, fertile emerald green. The band is 5″ long and 1″ across; ajouré designs at either end are 1.5″ long and begin 3/4″ across at the widest point, narrowing to 1/8″ at the end; concha setting is 1.75″ across; cabochon is 3/8″ across (dimensions approximate). Side view shown below. [Note: This cuff is designed for a narrow wrist.]
Sterling silver; malachite
$1,025 + shipping, handling, and insurance
It’s a message delivered in birdsong and the shrieking of the winds, in the patter of sleet and the opening of early petals. Mother Earth moves to a reassuring rhythm of her own, and the world’s current situation should remind us to stop for a moment to recognize that, and to honor it, too.
This is always an unsettled season, made even more unsure now by human-orchestrated developments. The future is hazy at best; even the healthiest and most secure, most privileged among us are now being forced to reckon with early mortality, to recognize that, at least on an individual level, the very fact of a future is not a given. it has always been this way, of course; the difference now is that reality has presented itself before everyone’s faces and is winning the staredown with astonishing rapidity.
It does us no good to turn away from reality. The challenge is not to get sucked into only a tiny panicked slice of it, cutting ourselves off from a fuller, more accurate worldview. For us, that includes spending no small part of the day in engagement with the earth around us.
After all, she has always had much to teach us, and much to give us, too.
~ Aji
All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2020; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.
