114/365

This is the other bit of plastic art I did last Saturday, during the "Art & Soul" conference. This is a print.

We laid a clear plastic sheet over a design, painted and the sheet, then pressed it on watercolor paper. I never felt like I quite got the knack of how thick or thin the paint (actually, a water-soluble ink) needed to be. Some of the effects here came out of my experimenting with the proper thickness.

Miraculously, I was able to let go of the need to get it "right". I was able to play, and enjoy the process. Who knows? Maybe this picture reflects a bit of that joy and delight.

113/365

This curious image is the first I created during the Art & Soul conference I attended this past Friday and Saturday.

It is an "artistic response" to Lectio Devina. This is a method best explicated by Benedict in his Rule. You slowly read a passage of scripture (preferably out loud), listening "with the ears of the heart" for a word or phrase that speaks to you. Then you meditate on that phrase, letting associations pass through your mind without judgment. Then you pray in response to those associations. In this case, our art was our prayer.

The passage of scripture we were responding to was the first 9 verses of Psalm 33. The phrase that spoke to me was "all your skill", in the second half of verse 3.

Not so much an image intended here (though there may be hints); more the process of a swirling writing instrument (in this case, chalk), and whole-hearted liberation.

59/365

I interview this morning for the job I mention in my previous entry. I got better rest last night, and feel more ready to visit with my prospective employer than I would have been at the same time yesterday morning.

I believe I need to focus on three things during the interview:
- Be natural; be myself; visit as I would with a friend
- Look the interviewer(s) in the eye
- Remain positive about my current employer and current situation

I have not yet informed my current employer about this opportunity. I have chosen to keep my own council until I have a good sense whether I will be offered the position. If it isn't offered, no harm. If it is ... well, we'll deal with that at the time.

It has been hard to keep this secret. There are two or three dear friends I will greatly miss. Two in particular have called on my computer skills frequently, and I wonder whether they can find a similar resource if I leave.

Funny how I felt a little sad about that yesterday. Seems a chunk of my neurosis is expressed through co-dependency.

Send positive thoughts this way. If you pray, pray that my prospective employer and I allow God's will to work through us this morning; pray that we discern whether this will be a positive and fruitful collaboration.

40/365

Starfield, Saturday Night, Feb. 3

Lord, it is night.

The night is for stillness
Let us be still in the presence of God.

It is night after a long day.
What has been done has been done;
What has not been done has not been done:
Let it be.

The night is dark,
Let our fears of the darkness of the world
and of our own lives rest in you.

The night is quiet.
Let the quietness of your peace enfold us,All dear to us,
And all who have no peace.

The night heralds the dawn.
Let us look expectantly to a new day,
New joys,
New possibilities.

In your name we pray.
Amen.

Prayer at Night fromthe New Zealand Prayer Book