The Home of Our Dreams

This is the home of Evalina Peksowa, who is a well-known reverse glass painting artist living in Zakopane, Poland. (here's an example of her work to the left.)  I had the good fortune to visit Evalina last summer while I was in Zakopane teaching English to Polish teenagers at an English language summer camp. Evalina is 87 years old, so she has lived most of 

her life under economically trying and emotionally and spiritually stressful conditions; first, enduring the sufferings of the Second World War and then under the cloud of over forty years of communist occupation of her country. Poles suffered under communism: from food shortages or severe lack of variety in food items, from the inability to travel freely or choose a particular course of study, from limited economic opportunity, and from, perhaps worst of all, from a lack of freedom to express themselves politically, spiritually and through the written and spoken word, and to have a say in the destiny of their homeland.

The amazing thing is that when you travel throughout southern Poland, you see one remarkable house after another, just like Evalina's, belying any sort of oppression. (Not so in neighboring Slovakia, which looks far more run down and derelict, as if communism departed in a hurry, leaving the people at a loss as far as what to do next.) The people of the Tatra Mountain regions in southern Poland are extremely creative and capable artisans, working primarily in wood. Many of the homes you see were constructed without a single nail, which, the Poles told me, where hard to get under communism. Wood, however, was plentiful in the surrounding mountains, and much of people's creative energies went into constructing fine homes.

I often dream of a house. For now, Stephen and I live in an apartment facing a lake in Feather Sound, as he is in a training program, and we aren't certain where we'll be a year from now. Home ownership just isn't a good thing for us right now, given the uncertainty of our situation.   

More often than not, I find myself remembering Evalina Peskova's home. Every inch of her modest home--including the ceiling--was lined with and occupied by folk art. Her garden, as you can see, was absolutely stunning. Even the exterior of her house was charming, down to her lovely glass painting of the Holy Family--the iconic "happy family" of the Christian tradition--graced by a flower box. 

Like many women, I want to build that kind of a home; a beacon of beauty, hope and creativity fashioned from modest means; an inspiration to others, and a light in dark and dreary times and circumstances. Women like Evalina remind me that building a thing of beauty--creating the home of our dreams-- doesn't have to wait for a good economy, or an idealistic and perfect "some day" when everything will work out or fall into place. Building the home of our dreams happens NOW, every day, in the grittiness and reality of daily living. Then one day, perhaps when we are older, we'll look back and see the magic that was the journey, and reap the years of our labors in savoring the beauty and goodness we put into this world. I try to keep this vision before me, of a woman who didn't let war, communism and economic insecurity keep her from fashioning the home--and the life--of her dreams.

(Note: Evalina's home is at Ulica Cichej Wody 8, Zakopane, and is open to visitors by appointment.)

Palettes for Peace Project

Yvonne Lucia has a vision of staging an "art attack" on Washington, D.C. She wants our next president, whoever he is, to know that Americans want peace instead of gross military spending and long term occupation and conflict overseas. Lucia would like to send "peace palettes" to Washington, reminding our government that we can "create" other options to military spending and aggression. She is inviting all artists to create "peace palettes" which she will bring to the White House in early 2009. Check out her web site www.lobocreations.com to see how you can become involved in this project.

Sock Campaign "Kicks" Off

Some of our "Kullakas" (sisters) in the community of El Alto, Bolivia

Winter's coming--consider giving a gift that will warm both heart and feet, and a donation that will do "double dollar duty". Once again, we are collecting contributions that will benefit two worthy causes; paying the women of Kullakas a just wage to knit alpaca wool socks (www.alpacaartisans.com) , and giving wool socks to the elderly Navajo weavers cared for by Adopt-a-Native-Elder ( www.anelder.org) .

Many of the women supported by Adopt-a-Native Elder are former rug weavers--and many STILL weave rugs, even in their "retirement years". For them this is not merely an income generating scheme; it is a spiritual practice and an expression of their Native beliefs and values. It is their way of life and belonging to life. Many of the women suffer from the cold during the winter, living in homes without central heating. Many Navajos continue working out of doors in the winter caring for their wool-producing sheep, and some have even died of exposure.

Contact me if you are interested in donating a pair of 100% super warm alpaca wool socks to an elderly Native American artisan (karen_rushen@yahoo.com ). EVERY CENT of your $25 donation goes to Kullakas cooperative, and helps them live their own mission of assisting and empowering indigenous women everywhere. (Maybe $25 sounds like a lot for a pair of socks, but they are 100% super warm, long lasting, hand knit wool. Postage from Bolivia is included in the price. Think of what $25 can mean to an indigenous woman living on $2 a day!)

You are encouraged to send a note expressing your best wishes to the Navajo elder who will receive your lovely gift of socks. It will be included with YOUR pair of socks and mailed out to a deserving elder of the Navajo nation. Last year we sent over two dozen gorgeous pairs of socks in a veritable rainbow of colors, and this year I'd love to double that amount. If you'd like to indulge yourself and order your own pair of cozy, alpaca knit socks, visit Kullakas new web site at www.alpacaartisans.com .

Rose Berry Empowers Women Through Crafts

Rose Berry (in red) teaching basket making

Rose Berry of Tomah, Wisconsin always loved cooking from scratch and making crafts. She learned self-sufficiency from her mother, and developed a real "can do" attitude growing up on a dairy farm in rural Wisconsin. Rose's mother also instilled in her a sense of concern for the well-being of others that led Rose to become a nurse, serving in rural Kentucky, Nicaragua and Panama, among other places.

While taking care of her 88 year old aunt may keep Rose, for now, from working in more exotic destinations, Rose has found a way to do the things she loved AND help others right in the small, rural town of Tomah where she and her husband John are raising their two daughters.

Based in her own kitchen, Rose invites local women to come and learn crafting and cooking skills such as basketry, soap making, preparing all natural hand lotions and even how to cook bagels from scratch. The intergenerational women's gatherings promote friendship and support, as well as self-sufficiency and crafting skills that help women thrive in these financially challenging times.

"I used to think I was born in the wrong generation, " says Rose. "While other friends were going to dances, I wanted to have taffy pulls like my Grandma and Mom had. Now I think I was born in the most fortunate generation. I hope to take the best of the past and merge it with the best of the present and create an even better future.

"When women are busy with their hands, their tongues are unleashed and their hearts can come out. That's what I love, and so do many of my women. It's also a way to stimulate great conversation about things that really matter. As we weave, make soap or bake bread, we are generating money for charities that I am passionate about. For me, these charities are usually medical or agricultural, because it's my nursing, farming and mission backgrounds that have shaped me."

Rose charges $10 for each of her classes, and all the proceed go to a worthy cause. Rose believes the $10 donation provides the women with the freedom to choose which classes to attend, rather than feeling obligated to yet one more commitment in their busy lives. The crafters have supported Habitat for Humanity, a local library, a hospice and a medical mission in Haiti. If the women prefer, they can donate four hours to a charity in lieu of a cash donation for the classes. 

After the Doll Making Day...

...some of us were just a little bit tired...but ALL of us glad we came!

Making Dolls to go to Peru at Audrey's House

Carmen's "hoochie mama" gets ready for Peru
Pat Sam's gorgeous little "girlie" doll!
Jennifer's little friend...

Charlotte's "mu'u mu'u" mama

Christina (above) and Audrey and me (below) 

Nancy and her daughter went to town!

Pat Sams and Audrey Steele

Nine of us gathered at the invitation of Audrey Steele to make dolls to go to Peru. The dolls will accompany Anna Reschar, RN, to Chulucanas, Peru when she travels there with a Global Health Ministry medical mission team in early November. Our goal was 30 dolls (!) and, believe it or not, we're nearly half way there with fourteen dollies assembled today. We'll meet again in October to complete the rest...

Audrey knows how to entertain and, as always, had lots of wonderful goodies to help sustain us throughout the day. Thank you to everyone who came and made a gorgeous little doll, or two, or three (!) for a lucky little child in Peru: Carmen, Jennifer, Christina, Charlotte, Pat, Karen, Nancy, Nancy's daughter and of course out wonderful hostess with the most-est, Audrey. Great job for a great cause, ladies!

A One Woman Campaign Against Hunger

I took this picture years ago while visiting Haiti. It shows a typical urban scene: women and girls, wearing probably the only outfit they own, going for drinking water at a public tap, if they're lucky, or from a polluted, garbage strewn stream, if they're less fortunate. The situation in Haiti today isn't any better. In fact,  it's worse. Food prices globally are soaring, and Haiti has been hit hard. Add to that the devastation caused by recent hurricanes, and there are people in Haiti literally starving for lack of something to eat.

Bernadette Francois is one of our nurses at the hospital who emigrated from Haiti. Because of women like Bernadette, American hospitals are staffed by kind, devoted and hard-working women from a variety of cultures who have made their lives here and care for our sick, elderly and poor. And, because of women like Bernadette, the poor in places like Haiti have hope. In good times, Bernadette works tirelessly to send funds back to Haiti, supporting a disabled elderly woman who is of no relation to her, and funding several children through school. Recently, Bernadette is sending food, clothing, anything she can get her hands on, to Haiti. We told her to go into the emergency clothing closet at work and take anything there that's not of immediate need to our homeless patients (yes, we've got LOTS of homeless patients, who usually need a new set of clothing after they leave us).  Friends and associates are handing Bernadette $5, $10, $20 here and there for her to buy staples like bags of beans, rice and pasta. Yet the majority of what she's sending to Haiti are being purchased with Bernadette's personal contributions.

It never ceases to amaze me how many women there are out there like Bernadette; tireless, one woman campaigns against hunger, homelessness and poverty. They work quietly and without any fanfare, believing that even the very little bit that they do is helping someone and is worthwhile. Of course, if all of us did just one thing for one person, or devoted ourselves to just one cause, we would see a tremendous change for good in the world. If women like Bernadette ceased doing even small acts of kindness and compassion, our world would be so much the worse for it. 

"Hmmm, maybe I want THAT doll..."

I just had to publish this photo, which I received this morning from my friend, Carol Mitchell. Carol and her husband are currently in South Africa for two weeks on business, and Carol had graciously volunteered to do a "doll drop" while in Cape Town. The dolls were to go to disadvantaged children in Khayelitsha, a township outside of Cape Town, as part of the mission of the not-for-profit "Art Aids Art" to get ethnically sensitive dolls into the hands of these poor children. The dolls came from a variety of individuals--many of them were made by our team members at St. Anthony's Hospital. Many more came from doll making groups affiliated with "Dollies without Borders" in Gainesville, Florida, and several, including two of the dolls in the adorable picture, were made by my sister-in-law, Mary Mulrooney, and friends up in St. John's, Newfoundland. (Scroll down to my August 18th post and you'll recognize the dolls in their little box, ready to go to South Africa!) As you can see, one little girl looks thrilled with her doll, while her little friend may well be reconsidering her initial choice of dollie. It was a nice surprise to get this photo because we weren't expecting that the dolls would be given out to the children while Carol was in Cape Town; we thought she was just dropping them off to be distributed through Art Aids Art at a later date. I will post more about the Cape Town doll drop after Carol gets back to the States and I get a chance to sit down, hear her stories and see more of her photos. 

Crafting with the Crones

Last week was my first session at a local retirement home, where I will be facilitating a crafts circle twice a month. Twelve women with varying degrees of ability and mobility showed up in the home's activities room, eager to participate. Most of them want to make dolls to send to impoverished children overseas, but I quickly found that the templates I had been using for our own craft group at the hospital are way too small for arthritic hands to manage. Several more women want to knit and crochet warm clothing to send overseas, and several more want to LEARN to knit and crochet--a problem because I don't do either! 

So, after only one session, I had to re-think this whole craft circle thing. First, I had to come up with a prototype for a very simple doll with very large pieces that could be easily manipulated by people with minimal dexterity. Soooo, introducing "Dollie" and "Dollie Junior", my new designs for little dolls to go to Africa. OK, so I'm not much of a doll designer let alone much of a sewer, but the body and head are sewn together to make one large piece for easy sewing--and stuffing!--and the arms and "baby" are large enough to turn inside out, sew and stuff with little effort. If anyone out there has a simpler pattern they'd like to send my way, by all means do so.

 Second, I have to go out and recruit a knitter to accompany me, and I might have found a willing accomplice in a friend who is a knitting fanatic and is actually starting to infect me with "knitting envy". Her own women's craft group are making these luscious shawls out of big, chunky synthetic yarn that are to die for! 

The women at the retirement center are a delight. A couple of them actually have their old sewing machines in their rooms, and just the idea of sewing for somebody again got them talking about "back in the day" when several of them made their family's clothing. They have a strong desire to "give back", having lived good lives, and they expressed wanting to do something with their time that will be useful to someone else.  I think this is going to be a challenging situation for me, but I also have a feeling I'm really going to enjoy it, and learn a lot from these women. Maybe my girlfriend will actually get ME knitting something, too!

Minerva's Circle

Marcela Andrades Alfaro has a remarkable vision to assist foreign-born women--students and the wives of students at the University of Florida in Gainesville--to build and belong to a supportive and creative community where the women could learn and practice a variety of arts and crafts. She facilitates the blog for Minerva's Circle, a crafting group taking its names from Minerva, the goddess of wisdom, arts and crafts. The women have created everything from handbags, aprons and "monster quilts", to their own collection of dollies heading to Africa with Madeline Austin's "Dollies without Borders" project. Watch for a future article on Marcela and Minerva's Circle on this blog, and in the meantime, check out all the group's inspiring projects at minervascircle.blogspot.com . 

Celebrating Jennifer La Civita's Creative Legacy

It's Saturday, and in the basement of a former church in northwest Chicago, the knitting group has gathered on comfy counches, while around the corner in another room, Czech youth nibbles on Eastern European goodies and learn about art and culture in their parent's homeland, the Czech Republic. Upstairs, singing toddlers are developing an appreciation for rhythm and music in their Kindermusik class. Down the hall, a group of adults learns yoga, tai chi and meditation techniques, in a room where the walls are adorned with the work of local school children from one of the afer school arts programs. Welcome to the Portage Park Center for the Arts, the brain--and heart!--child of Jennifer La Civita.

For the past ten years, the Portage Park Center for the Arts has been the epicenter of art and culture in this ethnically diverse neighborhood in northwest Chicago. When I was living in Chicago, I was fortunate enough to experience the energy and magic of the Portage Park Center for the Arts firsthand. Jennifer didn't just found and run an art program; she has maintained, despite tenuous funding and long hours of work, a community arts and wellness center offering over sixty programs, including affordable arts classes for financially challenged children and the elderly, yoga--in Polish!--and a "home" for groups as diverse as a monthly folk dance gathering, a hand spinning group, and a "salon" for aspiring artists to share their work for critique. Jennifer helped home schoolers network and have access to arts education opportunities, hosted programs for immigrants to share and maintain their culture through the arts, and brought people of diverse ages, interests and backgrounds together to create and celebrate their lives. The center was a place where creative people could live their dreams, either by developing, or partaking in, innovative arts programming.

Typical of the center's offerings was a recent concert featuring Snatum Kaur and the "Celebrate Peace Band" that brought together people from a variety of ethnic communities and backgrounds that don't normally interact with one another. "The arts provide a venue to expand people's worlds," Jennifer explains, "and people meet and begin conversations here that wouldn't have happened in any other manner."

Jennifer has enjoyed providing Chicago with a supportive resource site that has promoted and celebrated the arts these past ten years. Knowing the huge impact the center has made on the lives of so many has given Jennifer a real sense of pride and accomplishment. A mother of two teenagers, Jennifer has a master's degree in counseling psychology and art therapy, and will be obtaining her doctorate in clincal psychology fromt he Adler School of Professional Psychology in the spring of 2009. She has decided to head in a new direction and start her own psychotherapy practice, incorporating the arts into her practice. We wish her well, and will be checking in on her from time to time.

Living--Just Barely--on $2 a Day

I spent some time over Labor Day weekend sorting through our cash donations and fair trade craft item purchases from two events in August: our doll making marathon retreat, and the dinner and a movie night to support the Fistula Foundation of Addis Ababa. I had to box up the remaining crafts to be mailed back to ArtAidsArt and Bead for Life, as well as tally our cash contributions and mail them off. In the end, we raised close to $650 for BOTH organizations, with our total purchases reaching nearly $1,300.

Many women throughout the world try to support themselves and their families on $2 a day or less. Raising $1,300 in fair trade crafts sales is nearly equivalent to providing income for a woman and her family for over a year and a half. 

Of course, that's not to say that anyone can really live on $2 a day, even in poor countries where the cost of most basics is far less than in the developed world. Traveling overseas in many third world countries, I was surprised to see that many products--toilet paper, processed foods, over the counter medications, etc.--are being sold for nearly the same price as in America. Living on $2 a day often means living on one meal a day, forgoing an education or medical care, and living without adequate heat or clean running water (not to mention toilet paper, processed foods and over the counter drugs!).

What's great about groups like Bead for Life and ArtAidsArt is that they don't just provide a decent living wage for women artisans in the form of a just wage for a nicely crafted product. These organizations take portions of the proceeds from crafts sales and plow them back into the community in the form of educational scholarships, subsidized healthcare and HIV awareness training, drilling projects for clean water, and building projects that will benefit the entire village. They listen to and work with the craftswomen so that projects that are important to the women and the entire community, and that will ultimately lead to independence, are funded. Please check out their websites and consider hosting a crafts sale at your next women's gathering: www.beadforlife.org and www.artaidsart.org .