Welcome to the first day of Spring. We woke to a light dusting of snow and are a bit disappointed by yet another cloudy day. But it is, after all, March in New Hampshire and we are experiencing a global pandemic. So the fact that The Green is empty and stores are closed is real. So too is compost. The narcissus may be done, but they are still making lemon curd at Umpleby's and we are still eating bananas. In the midst of disappointed teenagers at home, I return, as always, to the colors, shapes & textures of my compost pile. My gratitude for this pile is deep. Year after year it transforms waste into nourishment for gardens while at the same time inviting me to be patient, get my hands dirty, and remember that sometimes life is really messy. As if by magic, though, creativity emerges over and over again out of the apparent mess. It should be no surprise to you, then, that I have more photographs of coffee filters. Who knows how long the supply will last, but they are such a simple way for me to connect with my sister, Sarah Swett, who keeps making things out of these funny pieces of paper. And in the process, I pay closer attention to what was once just another part of the waste I collected each week from Umpleby's Bakery & Cafe in Hanover, NH. Coffee filters, it turns out are beautiful. For me, It's so much more than textures & subtle muted tones. It's all about how these filters seemed to talk to me earlier today, and made me laugh as I folded them & prepared to mail them to my sister in Idaho. It all seemed so funny, how I packaged them up, but am waiting two weeks to send them, for fear I might have The Virus and might unknowingly mail it to my sister whose husband has cancer and definitely can't get this thing. So once again my compost and all its associated projects invite patience and humor. This really is all quite messy... ...and beautiful, because even though we may be thousands of miles apart, we are together, exploring these funny pieces of paper and wondering what will emerge from it all. So after I finish this blog post, I will go upstairs to cut our daily grapefruit - one for each member of the family every day for as long as supplies last. During times of stress and uncertainty, I like routines. I like this habit of culling & cleaning coffee filters to send to my sister. I like making something healthy for our family on a regular basis. And I like making sure we laugh about the fact it's a Thursday & my kids are eating breakfast at 2 pm just when I'm having my mid afternoon snack. It's all part of a new routine and I'm OK with all of that... ...because it is March and even though it seems dark and gray and lonely to be stuck at home, I know that the bulbs will emerge from the frozen earth & spring will come, because that's nature's routine, and I'm good with that. PS
It is still Women's History Month...so let's support each other as much as we can from afar. For inspiration of all kinds, check out my friend Jennifer Jewell's Podcast Cultivating Place - - The January episodes were all about the therapeutic and spiritual capacities of our gardens - in all their forms. We need that now, more than ever.
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Lyn Swett Miller
reframing the narrative, one day, one image at a time Let's ReFrame: By Degrees
A place where photographer Lyn Swett Miller considers wonder, joy and transformation in a complex world. Archive
September 2021
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