Now that the Fourth has come and gone, the world can get down to the business of Summer. Neither the first day of the season nor its actual midpoint, the Fourth has nonetheless always been a sort of mental marker for me: Up to that point, the season feels somehow tentative, as though it hasn’t really found its stride.
It’s a perception that’s an artifact of my childhood in our lands in the Upper Midwest, true, where the hottest (and most humid) months of the year are July and August, when the very air becomes oppressive and days are something to be gotten through, in anticipation of the cooler evening air. It fits here, though, too, in my current home, in a place where one of the most important ceremonial events occurs in August: the tribe’s annual pilgrimage, a sacred rite.
And it fits with the perception that Summer is not so much a season but a journey: a well-traveled and familiar path, not always a smooth or easy one, but one with its own particular beauty and its own abundant blessings designed to get us through the rest of the year.
Which is why this particular piece by Wings seems so appropriate for today. “Summer’s Journey” is the actual name of the piece, and it fits. From the item’s description at the link above:
The Corn Maidens and other female spirits evoke the sights and sounds and smells of Summer, with its lush and fertile greenery. In some traditions, Summer is a time of journeys, of pilgrimages, or simply of the travel associated with planting and growing cycles, all manifested in this heavy-gauge cuff bracelet. Hand-stamped symbols representing the Sacred Directions, possible paths on a journey, travel the length of the band and are topped by five matched round cabochons of soft green turquoise with a warm golden-white matrix. Tiny, evenly-spaced sacred hoops accent the band’s edges, while matched repeating sets of traditional symbols trace the inner band.
Sterling silver; Stone Mountain turquoise
$725 + shipping, handling, and insurance
In my mind, Summer has a color, and that color is green: the brilliant green of the leaves on the trees, the soft green of the grass, even the pale foamy green of the local rivers and streams. These stones he chose for this cuff, all matched from the same lot, contain all of those greens and more — and still more, they’re all shot through with a matrix in that delicate golden color, the same color as the summer sun as it appears in Taos Pueblo’s own mysterious light.
Here’s another view:
Wings does this particular style of cuff fairly regularly: solid, sturdy, heavy-gauge sterling silver, topped by a collection of matched stones, sometimes four, more often five. But as with all of his work, no two are ever identical: each expresses its own unique vision, its own inspiriting power.
And, of course, he designs pieces like this to be worn by anyone, anytime, anywhere. The natural elements and ancient symbols are not limited or circumscribed by such human constructs as gender, season, or location. As he always says, he lets Spirit guide the design and the work, and eventually, the piece finds the person for whom Spirit intends it.
Maybe you?
More beautiful Summer-inspired pieces in the days and weeks to come . . . .
~ Aji
All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2015; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owners.
