Shadow

"Strength" was the exact wording on the shirt that was ordered. An abstract shirt in black. The order was placed by a girl I went to school with and maybe shared a handful of words with. Her story is heartbreaking and moving. Her story is a story of strength.
Madly, heart in the sand love she had for her husband that she shared two children with. He was also the coach at the school that we went to. A little while back I heard of his sudden death. There is no possible way for me to describe to you how my heart ached for her and her two children.
Here I was with this shirt - an empty canvas and this one word. Strength. As soon as the music started, and the creation started to flow something came over me. It was like a weight, a weighted fog. A candle in the corner climbing a sliver of light up the wall seemed to be slowly dancing to my work.
As soon as I completed the shirt I wrote. It happened so fast that I do not even remember it. The black ink words were a dash guided by that same fog that I felt in the kitchen. Suddenly tired I went to bed. Music filled my ears moments later. Brad had found what I had written and immediately converted it into a beautiful song. Shadow.
My dreams that night were of the coach. His eyes. His quiet strength, her inner strength, and a glow. It was a restless sleep. I had to hand deliver her shirt. There seemed to be more going on than an old friend wanting a new funky shirt.
That weekend I did not want to go to the Vineyard. When entering the building I got a strong feeling and told Brad I had to go to the bathroom. I even voiced to him something did not feel right.
Standing in front of a stall I saw something. Something that would make anyone beleive. Something that would make a grown man weep. There stood a small child. She had creamy olive skin and silky curls that traced her delicate face. This child was actually glowing. So blown away I bent down to her level. Her eyes were magnetic.
As I looked into her eyes I saw something even more powerful. The same coach that was in my dreams. I saw his eyes in this glowing child. Why? The only words I could form was "you are beatiful". This moment was broken up by the cold swinging of the bathroom stall.
There she stood. The coaches wife. Tall in her strength. Shocked, we were both frozen in a moment of shock. The only thing I knew is what I had seen. We both did not have a clue that we had even ever shared this huge building.
Very soon after we met in the park. I had a special request for Brad. I asked him to play the song to my friend, this beatiful woman filled with strength. He did, he played and filled the air with "Shadow".... and my friends eyes with tears.
When I told her what I had seen in the bathroom she swallowed and said she was not shocked. Others had said similar things. WOW! Just amazing to me.
Music had tied together art, my dreams, and even maybe did a little healing.

Vintage Vinyl Record Bowls

1. an oven safe bowl (inverted)
2. an oven
3. a vinyl record

Heat oven at 250 - place record on top of inverted bowl - heat in oven for 8 minutes. ( when you remove from oven the record is soft enough that you can shape it)
Use for: jewelry, fruit, popcorn, etc.