The cold this morning is a bitter, primal thing. In this week that will see the shortest light, the longest night, and the official beginning of winter, we are now plunged into the season’s deepest, coldest days.
We live in a land where simply being requires bravery, where going well through life depends upon generosity of spirit, and of the spirits. It is a harsh land, and for our ancestors, an often-harsh existence, and yet ones that have always also been filled with unparalleled beauty and unmitigated joy.
In these darker days, it’s useful to reflect on the generosity the spirits, the earth herself, show to us daily — blessings small and large, gifts of abundance and prosperity that we too often take for granted, sometimes to the extent that we are no longer able to perceive them.
In this place, the natural world reminds us daily that a life lived well requires balance: The elements arrive here in force, and we must respect their powers enough to navigate them safely, so that we may use their gifts wisely and to the benefit f all. This is as true of icy cold as scorching heat, of winter snows as summer rains.
Yesterday’s storm brought us rain, sleet, and eventually, snow, a few inches now on the ground in a shimmering blanket. But for all that the winter gale lashed the world here, it was a gift, moisture too long absent and by now desperately needed. The true challenge presented itself afterward, now that the winds have driven the clouds eastward past the peaks and the bitter cold has settled in for the long haul. Now, it is up to us to turn these icy days into a blessing rather than a curse.
Today’s featured work reminds us that how we choose to perceive our world matters. It’s one that Wings created back when the winds were warm, the days filled with both sun and rain — a work that embodies their gifts to us, gifts that chart a pth to a season of abundance. From its description in the Bracelets Gallery here on the site:
The Rain Road Cuff Bracelet
In the arid land of the high desert, the Rain Road is a place of fertility and abundance. Wings charts the path to this place of prosperity with this cuff wrought in the colors of rain and sky. It begins with four substantial strands of sterling silver triangle wire, soldered together into one smooth length like rainfall banded together in a single powerful torrent. At the top, offset from the center, a lightly beveled turquoise cabochon in the shade of the sky stretches to the four corners of the world. The stone is trimmed in twisted silver, and at one side, a tiny ingot silver raindrop opens onto the band, the birth of the storm as it cascade downward along its own flowing road. The band is 5/8″ across; the stone is 1/4″ across (dimensions approximate). Another view shown below.
Sterling silver; Sleeping Beauty turquoise
$725 + shipping, handling, and insurance
This is the season when it is hardest to live the lives to which are called — in these dangerous times, to lives of active resistance. When our physical and spiritual resources are used up in survival, simple existence, it can feel as though we are failing. But it is at precisely these times that we most need to remind ourselves to recognize the world’s gifts to us — and to remember that, when the road grows dark, difficult, and even dangerous, sometimes existence is resistance.
To follow the path laid out for us, to live our lives well even when the road is hard, can be enough. The road itself provides.
~ Aji
All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2016; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owners.
