news from jessie et laurent

love is always in bloom!

Every Valentine’s Day, I think of this story. Brilliant really, in that whoever wrote it, offered with so much grace that they chose to keep their name anonymous. I suggest that after you finish a wonderful Jessie et Laurent dinner, you read this story out loud to your family or friends. There is more to keeping your heart healthy than just good food and exercise. Enjoy!

A TREASURED STORY….   “LOVE”

Once upon a time, there was an island where all the feelings lived: Happiness, Sadness, Knowledge, and all of the others, including Love. One day, it was announced to the feelings that the island would sink, so all repaired their boats and left. Love was the only one who stayed. Love wanted to persevere until the last moment. When the island was almost sinking… Love decided to ask for help.

Richness was passing by Love in a grand boat. Love said, “Richness, can you take me with you?” Richness answered, “No, I can’t; there is a lot of gold and silver in my boat. There is no place here for you”.

Love decided to ask Vanity who was also passing by in a beautiful vessel. “Vanity, please help me!” “I can’t help you; you are all wet and might damage my boat, “ Vanity answered.

Sadness was close by so Love asked for help, “Sadness, let me go with you”. ”Oh …Love…I am so sad that I need to be by myself!”

Happiness passed by Love too, but she was so happy that she did not even hear when Love called her!

Suddenly, there was a voice, “Come, Love, I will take you.” It was an elder. Love felt so blessed and overjoyed that he even forgot to ask the elder her name. When they arrived at dry land, the elder went her own way. Love, realizing how much he owed the elder, asked Knowledge, another elder, “Who helped me?” “It was Time,” Knowledge answered. “Time?” asked Love. “But why did Time help me?” Knowledge smiled with deep wisdom and answered, “Because only Time is capable of understanding how great Love is.”

It has been too long since I posted to my blog. I have a bunch of good excuses…but what they really boil down to is that I was caught up in a self created vortex of stress. How easily I forget the simple lessons I have learned about setting expectations that are realistic and being kind to myself.

The concept of doing good work each day and accepting that tomorrow brings another opportunity to start again was blinded by my extreme need to get everything done and not trust that it is a process on going that brings the eventual results we are striving for.

To bring you up-to-date since my last blog, the biggest events have been the development of the new web site for Jessie et Laurent (which is planned to launch next month) and the holidays. The web site has been very exciting, challenging and rewarding, in that it is such a collaboraton between technological, creative and functional elements. Computers have limitations, just like people do, and often I need to remember to “breathe in, breathe out”.

The holidays were an incredible reminder of how stunning outcomes can be. It was a year ago that I was called to be by my mother’s side as she walked near the edge of life. This year, she was at our house for Christmas! Beaming with joy and the delight to be with her grandson, she watched him open presents that he would be taking to his own apartment soon.

All of this has been whirling around me and somewhere along the way I started taking everything very seriously, started waking up for hours during the night and started not taking care of myself deep down inside. Crazy really, because the truth was everything was fine, I just was getting lost from not checking in with myself and taking action.

Sedona landscape at sunset.

A vortex, right? So last week, Laurent took me away to a wonderful place called Sedona. We went to not only rest, but also to spend time exploring and articulating our goals for Jessie et Laurent in 2012. Sedona Arizona is pure magic. They say that the earth’s magnetic forces are unique there and you can feel the “energy vortex”. Well, havng spent a week hiking everyday in the red rock canyons, I have to agree. The elevation ranges from 4000-6000 feet and the air is sparkling clean, the magnificence of the towering rock formations are breathtaking, and as if that was not enough, you are surrounded by ancient Indian ruins and wild coyote.

It was exactly the medicine I needed to remember that the path that is most traveled is the one we are most inclined to gravitate toward. In my mind, when I am super stressed, I believe that I beat a path of synapes (where the neurons fire impulses) through my brain that keep me spinning. The pathway is so well traveled that I have difficulty letting it rest and keep returning to it again and again. I was reminded of this when I visited the cliff dwellings of the Hopi Indians in Walnut Canyon National Monument . We can walk the paths that were traveled 700 years ago, to a time when humankind was living so close to nature and one’s immediate environment.

A gift from an unknown friend.

To be in place where you could look so far into the past, to be gently considering the future, while being so present in the moment…, I was humbled and quieted. I was able to calm my mind and venture to the parts of my nature that I had been ignoring. So I begin a new year with gratitude for so many things; for my dear mama, who I feel I know better now than I ever did in my youth, for the blessing of Jessie et Laurent and the life work that it has provided for me these past 30 years, and for our son, Henri who shall embark on his own divergent path in the coming months with optimisim and a sense of adventure.

the hot tub resided with redwood

the new deck

view from the top...

through the old gate frame

Appropriately so, for Thanksgiving, I am presenting the zen garden that I introduced you to a couple months ago. It serves so many purposes in my life, all of which I am most grateful for.

One, as it has since we first put in the hot tub a million years ago, it is where Laurent and I soak and are reminded of our immense good fortune to have such a place to be. Second, because this garden was just a dream for so many years, now that it actually exists, I can’t help but be encouraged that I can make other dreams I have been waiting to come true- really happen in my life. Third, it provides me with the perfect physical workout. Any time that I want to stretch, bend, lift or pull, I just need to pick up a broom, rake, bucket, hose or trowel. No gym membership needed when there is a garden to tend! I have discovered that I have a secret passion for sweeping. It is so mindless and repetitive, yet when you stop and look at what you have accomplished, it is profoundly satisfying. And as soon as the wind blows, nature gives you yet another opportunity to begin again.

The garden is giving me the chance to see things that I planted to grow, like the spots of ground cover leading to the upper patio and the two flowering vines that are on each side of the terrace. They were each gifts from girl friends who had the “mother” plant in their own gardens and each started a “baby” for me. When I was selecting the plants, I thought of places around the world that I wanted to think of often and tried to find a plant that would quickly take me there. For example, the banana tree on the deck takes me to the “junglesque” landscape of Cofradia Mexcio, where Project Amigo is based.

Since I now have access to views and perspectives of the house, the yard and the neighborhood, that I did not have before, I am reminded of how often this must apply to other limitation of perspectives I have. Although I have lived in this house for more than 20 years, I can see it in a completely new light. The next time I think I have the whole picture….I may be more apt to look again for a different angle and discover something more.

On a very personal note, it has been quite an experience to hold on tight to what I wanted to see happen in the garden. When you are married for as long as I have been (25 years), it is easy to feel like every decision needs to be a shared or blended one. Laurent was super generous and patient with himself and me, to not voice his opinion and change the direction of where I was headed. As when I approach any art project, I like and need to make spontaneous decisions because each step of the artistic process brings light to the next step.

In the case of this blog post, pictures really do tell the story… So, here is the reveal of the garden that now is part of our home. It is as though it was always there- just waiting for someone to allow it be discovered.