A Little Peace

Cassatt, Blue Armchair

Susan here. Well, this has been a week … we've had a whirlwind of news, distraction, stress, strong opinion - not necessarily a great time to focus on the usual things we attend to in our lives. For me, that's writing and tasks that are sitting when they should be moving along. Sometimes it's good to set things aside and find a little peace, calm, and respite wherever we can. So sit back and let the Wench blog be a bit of a haven today. Take a deep breath, smile, relax. We could all use a little kindness and love and something real pretty right about now.

Here's a gallery of work by artists who have created little pools of peacefulness here and there. A lovely way to breathe and recalibrate if needed (and if you happen to have a romance on hand - maybe even written by one of the Wenches! - we hope you find a little time to read today, another great way to recalibrate).  

When a bowl or cup or something valuable is broken, the Japanese have a tradition called kintsukuroi, “golden repair” – the item is put back together with an application of gold that adheres the broken pieces, making the item not just useful again, but gives it a new beauty as a work of art and a meditation on renewal and growth. It’s a lovely tradition—and the next time I drop something, I will wish for gold instead of glue to make it right again.

Vermeer, The Milkmaid

 

 

Monet, Misty Morning on the Seine

 

Abbott Thayer Henderson, Angel

 

Leighton, Flaming June

La Farge, Flowers

Giovanni Strazza, Veiled Virgin

   

Well, there you go, a little mental vacation before going once more into the fray! Remember to read a romance, ponder something beautiful, fix something broken to make it better than ever - and breathe! 

Comments

[Mary M.]

Susan, some of the pics are not coming up, even via the links.

[Binnie Syril Braunstein]

Susan-A welcome column indeed. I've been growling all weekend. Some things I've tried to do make myself stop gnashing my teeth: read several novellas from a charity romance anthology to benefit Ukraine; read about the upcoming auction of the Hellier Stradivari violin, and watched/listened as a young man played Massanet's "Meditation from Thais" on that beautiful instrument. And then I got to applaud Trumpet, the gorgeous, long-eared, many jowled Bloodhound who won "Best in Show" at the Westminster Dog Show. (A Bloodhound had never won before.) Now, in light of your lovely column, I think I'm going to look at some paintings by Marc Chagall and perhaps Edward Burne'Jones.

[Mary T]

Great advice and lovely artwork. Brought a smile to my face.

[Constance]

Thank you, Susan—lovely paintings, and very good advice, but I fear my anger and grief are so deep, it will take reading, meditation, and some to-be-determined action to regain balance. It will also take all of us supporting each other, and I thank you for doing that, too.

[Susan King]

Hi Mary, sorry you ran into some trouble with the pics. They seem to be coming up. Can you refresh and try again? Thanks for visiting our blog!

[Susan King]

Hi Binnie, I love your suggestions! What's the anthology? I'd love to support that. And I didn't know a Stradivarius was up for auction. I'd love to hear it played, will look for that. Thanks! :)

[Susan King]

Thanks, Mary T, I'm so glad it brightened your morning a bit!

[Susan King]

Constance, I know what you mean. Times like these, we have to find our way through together. Books, meditation, music, art, positive action are all important to finding that balance again.

[Annette N]

Thank you - beautiful pictures

[Karin]

Hi Susan, this is the historical romance anthology to benefit Ukraine: https://www.amazon.com/Sunflower-Season-Historical-Romance-Anthology-ebook/dp/B0B3FBN1Z5

[Karin]

This little short film is really lovely and uplifting, and brought a smile to my face. It's about a man who has been blind since birth, yet he runs a diner in New Jersey. It's at The New Yorker website, but I think you can watch it without signing in. https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-new-yorker-documentary/the-blind-man-running-his-family-diner?utm_source=nl&utm_brand=tny&utm_mailing=TNY_Daily_061622&utm_campaign=aud-dev&utm_medium=email&utm_term=tny_daily_digest&bxid=5be9eeef3f92a4046928bcb2&cndid=18492539&hasha=f60748de2f0149fdf984cce8caf33be2&hashb=d1528934ab40f3f3bce12b87e4eff10dbaf5b8a1&hashc=2a16b322475d9ae87600432ab6dc4eb9313c6fdb4497162e4d16d2887fd5b847&esrc=

[carolyn Christman]

Susan, Thanks for a dose of beauty and peace to start the week. Carolyn

[Teresa Broderick]

Beautiful pictures. My favourite is the one by Monet. Such wonderful colours!!!

[Jeanne Behnke]

Beautiful! Thank you!

[Kareni]

What a wonderful collection of pieces (both two and three dimensional), Susan. The skill to carve the veil on the Veiled Virgin is truly staggering!

[Robin R]

Thank you Susan, Between national & international events and family problems I've been pretty stressed and you have given a gift a moment of peace.