"When we contemplate the whole globe as one great dewdrop, striped and dotted with continents and islands, flying through space with other stars all singing and shining together as one, the whole universe appears as an infinite storm of beauty" ~ John Muir

Desperately, madly, astoundingly, obsessively, passionately, enjoying the new series. This series, is about what I love best, and few things fill me with as much joy and happiness as wild places.

One of my favorites, amongst many, by Ellen Kushner. Her show, Sound & Spirit is one of the best things happening on public radio, in my humble opinion. This episode was about the music inspired by Lord of the Rings, and the wonderful worlds created by J.R.R. Tolkien. It wraps up with an amazing song by Brooks Williams, from his 1992 album, Back To Mercy, featuring the song, All That Is Gold. I hope to learn to sing this song.

I record and listen to Ellen's shows while in my workshop, spraying masks, drilling bubble wand handles, etc. The work is loud, hot, and repetitive, so it helps to have good words flowing into my brain. Take an hour sometime and listen to this, you Tolkien fans out there. Very nice.

All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.
From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king.

I love the Chesapeake Bay. I miss living near it, but I love our mountains as well. Wish I could have both, maybe someday, if not the bay, then another water's edge. It is where the land and the water meet, that I love best. The shores, marshes, bogs, and streams. I think we, human beings, are like that. A synthesis of water and organic material, active, swampy, and full of life.

Marcy Dunn Ramsey is an artist who captures this.

http://marcydunnramsey.com/

I have only experienced her work in person a couple of times. Just tonight, Maryland Public Television ran their Art Works This Week special with her segment. The third time I have seen it and love it every time. Mrs. Ramsey captures the edge, the abstract, where water, light, plants, and shore interact to become these remarkable vignettes of pattern. I thought I would share her with all of you. Here is one image, from one of the galleries that carries her work.
www.massoniart.com

Terribly behind in my posting. However, I have been adding pictures on Facebook, so if we aren't yet "Friends" on there, please send me a request.
http://www.facebook.com/Shane.Odom

I haven't added a post for Potomac Celtic Fest back in June, or New York Faerie Festival. I promise, I will get to to it, but until then, here is a recent custom order we created to tide you over.

Our "Root & Twig" Tree Mask, as a Quaking Aspen



( More pictures and some of our inspiration behind the cut... )

I am usually the first one up in our household. Since we are self-employed and both kids are home schooled, we have the privilege and gift of not having to set an alarm clock. I am a natural early riser, often getting up by 6:30 AM no matter the bedtime. I enjoy the morning quiet and use it for writing and email. I wake the family up at 8 AM, with music and I take a cup of coffee up to Leah. I have a variety of morning mixes, songs about waking up and sunny days. Today, grey, overcast with a steady rain fall, I started with my rainy day blend.

Here are the songs in it.

"Looks Like Rain",The Grateful Dead-1976-08-02 - Colt Park
"Fire And Rain",James Taylor-One Man Band
"Rainy Day People", Gordon Lightfoot-Songbook [Box Set] (Disc 3)
"After It Rains", Laurie Berkner-Under A Shady Tree
"Rain" The Beatles
"Just Like Rain", Kathy Kallick with Laurie Lewis-O Sister! The Women's Bluegrass Collection
"Looking At The Rain", Gordon Lightfoot-Don Quixote
"A Day Without Rain", Enya A Day Without Rain
"Naked In The Rain" Crosby & Nash-Voyage: Essential, Vol. 1 [Disc 1]
"Let It Rain", Eric Clapton [Deluxe Edition] Disc 1 Eric Clapton
"Early Morning Rain" Gordon Lightfoot-Songbook [Box Set] (Disc 1)
"No Rain", Blind Melon

Any suggestions?.....

I am been VERY busy with writing an article about the life and influence of the good professor Tolkien for the annual Green Word Newsletter, the newsletter for the Blessed Order of the Greenman (B.O.G) It is leading me to a Tolkien revival and I am living, eating, and dreaming the stories of Middle Earth right now. So here is the best and most beautiful rendition of Namárië, or Galadriel's Parting Song. The singer, a French musician, gives the Mp3 away on her website, Here. A little bit of pure beauty for you today.



Ai! laurië lantar lassi súrinen,
Ah! like gold fall the leaves in the wind,
yéni únótimë ve rámar aldaron!
long years numberless as the wings of trees!
Yéni ve lintë yuldar avánier
The long years have passed like swift draughts
mi oromardi lissë-miruvóreva
of the sweet mead in lofty halls
Andúnë pella, Vardo tellumar
beyond the West, beneath the blue vaults of Varda
nu luini yassen tintilar i eleni
wherein the stars tremble
ómaryo airetári-lírinen.
in the song of her voice, holy and queenly.

Sí man i yulma nin enquantuva?
Who now shall refill the cup for me?

An sí Tintallë Varda Oiolossëo
For now the Kindler, Varda, the Queen of the stars,
ve fanyar máryat Elentári ortanë
from Mount Everwhite has uplifted her hands like clouds
ar ilyë tier undulávë lumbulë
and all paths are drowned deep in shadow;
ar sindanóriello caita mornië
and out of a grey country darkness lies
i falmalinnar imbë met,
on the foaming waves between us,
ar hísië untúpa Calaciryo míri oialë.
and mist covers the jewels of Calacirya for ever.
Sí vanwa ná, Rómello vanwa, Valimar!
Now lost, lost to those of the East is Valimar!

Namárië! Nai hiruvalyë Valimar!
Farewell! Maybe thou shalt find Valimar!
Nai elyë hiruva! Namárië!
Maybe even thou shalt find it! Farewell!

Watch this video. No words can describe it. Awesome talent of crafty Welsh Shepards.

Neil Gaiman, well known author and friend of many in the Mythic Arts community, wrote this poem for the coming birth of the first child for his friend, singer songwriter, Tori Amos. The poem has been illustrated by his friend and mine, Charles Vess, and is being released next month. Charles was sharing the illustration proofs at FaerieCon last year. I knew about the poem, but hadn't read it or seen the drawings. Naturally, as a father of a well loved daughter, when I read it in Charles's booth there, I got pretty choked up with feelings. It Is A Great Poem. Thanks to Neil and Charles for giving this gift to every Blueberry Girl and the people who love them.

Charles will be at the Spoutwood Farm May Day Fairie Festival, May 1-3 signing copies in the Faerie Magazinebooth.



Prayer for a Blueberry Girl

Ladies of Light & Ladies of Darkness, & Ladies of Never-You-Mind,
this is a prayer for a Blueberry Girl.
First, May you ladies be kind.

Keep her from spindles and sleeps at sixteen;
Let her stay waking and wise.
Nightmares at three, or bad husbands at thirty;
These will not trouble her eyes.

Dull days at forty, false friends at fifteen;
Let her have brave days and truth.
Let her go places that we've never been;
Trust and delight in her youth.

Ladies of Grace, and Ladies of Favour,
and Ladies of Merciful Night,
this is a prayer for a Blueberry Girl,
Grant her your clearness of sight.

Words can be worrisome, people complex;
Motives and manners unclear.
Grant her the wisdom to choose her path right,
Free from unkindness and fear.

Let her tell stories, and dance in the rain,
Somersault, tumble, and run;
Her joys must be high as her sorrows are deep,
Let her grow like a weed in the sun.

Ladies of Paradox, Ladies of Measure,
Ladies of Shadows-That-Fall;
this is a prayer for a Blueberry Girl,
Words written clear on a wall.

Help her to help herself, help her to stand,
Help her to lose, and to find.
Teach her we're only as big as our dreams,
show her that fortune is blind.

Truth is a thing she must find for herself,
precious, and rare as a pearl;
Give her all these, and a little bit more,
Gifts for a Blueberry Girl.


Neil explains the background of the poem best himself, at Mouse Circus, his online store:

"Hello. You're probably wondering what kind of book this is.

This is the kind of book that comes about when a friend phones you and says, "I'll be having a baby in a month. Would you write her a poem? A sort of prayer, maybe? We call her the Blueberry. . . ." And you think, Yes, actually. I would.

I wrote the poem. When the baby was born, they stopped calling her the Blueberry and started calling her Natashya, but they pinned up the handwritten Blueberry girl poem beside her bed.

I kept a copy at my house, taped to a filing cabinet. And when friends read it, they said things like "Please, can I have a copy for my friend who is going to be giving birth to a daughter?" and I wound up copying it out for people, over and over. I wasn't going to let it be published, not ever. It was private, and written for one person, even if I did seem to be spending more and more of my time handwriting or printing out nice copies for mothers-to-be and for babies.

Then artist Charles Vess (whom I had collaborated with on Stardust) read it. And somehow, it all became simple. I made a few phone calls. We decided to make some donations to some charities. And Charles began to draw, and then to paint, taking the poem as a starting point and then making something universal and beautiful.

On his blog he said,

"Taking Neil's lovely poetic meditation on the inherent joys of a mother-daughter relationship and developing a compelling narrative impulse without robbing the poem of its highly symbolic nature was an interesting conceptual journey."

Which I think is Charles for "It wasn't easy to make that poem into a picture book.” He did an astonishing job, but I still worried. I stopped worrying the day the assistant editor at HarperChildrens, who was herself pregnant, called me to let me know that she'd got the artwork in, and read it, and then started crying in the office.

It's a book for mothers and for mothers-to-be. It's a book for anyone who has, or is, a daughter. It's a prayer and a poem, and now it's a beautiful book.

I hope you enjoy it. I'm really proud of it. And I hope this means I don't have to copy it out any longer….

Neil"

So off we go!

Headed for Arkansas, to spend a wonderful New Years in "The Natural State", digging for amazing quartz crystals and enjoying the state. And what a state. We like Arkansas and they have a great sign at their welcome center. Carved in native stone of the state, which was appropriate to our visit there!



( For some more rocks, and I mean some seriously cool rocks, hit the clicky... )

When last we left our travelers, they were heading out from the realms of Mammoth Cave into the beauties of the Kentucky sunset. Off we went over the river (The Mississippi!) and through the woods, to grandmother's house we go! But first we had to get through Tennessee.

We knew we were destined for a good trip and the country music muses were smiling upon us, when Leah woke up singing Johnny Cash. It may be a little known fact that Leah and I are crazy about bluegrass, old time, old country, and other mountain folk music. One of our country play list shuffles on the MP3 player is the Bob Dylan/Johnny Cash sessions. Two of our favorite men in black, singing some of our favorite songs together. So what was really a surprise was the first rest stop we paused at that morning was the "Johnny Cash Rest Stop". We had forgotten that Tennessee names its rest stops for the musicians that have made it famous. Leah was immensely tickled by this.



( Travels, A Very Texas Christmas, Family, and Memories, behind the cut... )

Oh boy, that was some drive. We went to Texas.

After much deliberation on flying, versus driving, versus not going, finally the decision was clarified by the gas prices and plane tickets. It turned out that to drive the 19+ hours was MUCH cheaper than flying. Like under a grand. So we decided to have a family adventure that we haven't had in a while. Let me show you it...



( Some silliness, lots of road pictures, we went to Mammoth Cave, had great Christmas, Santa left footprints and more...all behind the cut... )

We have an upcoming challenge with our art co-opt, Arts at the Canal Place in Cumberland, MD.

Our challenge is to create a piece of work in another artist's style. We can interpret this however we like. We have decided to explore a bit of Van Gogh. We have long done a mask as a star field called "Starry Night". So we are going to do a wearable mask recreation of Vincent's intensely famous, The Starry Night. Few images by a master have been so often recreated on so many things. Coffee cups, (I have one), pillows, throws, bags, shirts, etc. So now we will do ours.



I am a deep and passionate fan of Vincent's work and you can imagine how thrilled I was to learn that MOMA is doing a special exhibition entitled, Van Gogh and the Colors of the Night. The link is to the portal site for the online exhibition and it requires Flash to run. I recommend hitting the link for the full screen edition as you can click on the indivual paintings and explore them up close and how he laid the paint on the surface. This is one of the most fascinating aspects of Vincent's work and the few times I have gotten to see originals I have found myself inches from there surfaces looking at the brush strokes, trying in some limited fashion to connect with his genius. Do yourself a favor and click that link and explore Vincent.

I will post images of the mask as we create it but until then here is the classic of Don Mclean singing about Vincent...except this time, it is set to the back drop of another artist creating his own tribute to Starry Night. Second Life artist and creator, Robbie Dringo showing how massively creative and inspirational the virtual environment can be.



I wanted to edit this to include Robbie's follow up video that shows some of the outtakes from the "build" in Second Life. It is of note, that this "Sim" where the build took place was on loan and the virtual construction was wiped clean after the initial video was made. But then...it never really existed at all did it...all art is ephemeral and last only for the moment of creation.

We went for brief walk down the Allegany Highlands Trail, starting in Frostburg, Maryland. Just a little walk, only a half mile down the trail and back. We would love to walk the trail extensively, but time hasn't allowed it yet. So we were drawn down the path by the lure of the Golden Woods. A tunnel of glory, glowing in the sun. It was like walking in Lothlorien.



( Follow down the golden trail... )

It still very pretty in them there mountains. Here is some color to brighten your day, and an excuse to use my Jack-O-Lantern icon.



( Lots more behind the cut... )

Squash blossoms...



( More things to be grateful for... )

I thought it time for a more upbeat post. So several friends and family have comment on the gardens and I posted pictures of the trellis and such that I created earlier in the year. So here is the vegetable gardens all grown in.

Last night the Wildwose Clan had decided to settle in to watch August Rush, the 2007 movie with Robin Williams and Freddie Highmore.

In the midst of the movie, a huge storm front came crashing over our mountain, thundering and shaking the house, until I glanced out the window to see that particular kind of light that I knew would be just right for a rainbow...



( Click through for more pictures and some thoughts on music and art... )

Nine years ago to the day. Its been fun.



The family of Leah Marie Lyle and David Shane Odom would like to cordially invite you back in time to June 20, 2000, for...

( a little trip down memory lane... )

Ahhhh....



I recently completed a long term project that we have needed to get a "round tuit" for over a year. We redeck our outside porch/deck. When we moved in the old plywood surface was patchwork of rotted scraps. We put pots over the worst holes, hung our Sky Chair, and barely used it. The entry is right next to my desk in our studio, so it was hard not to be out there alot. We even bought a stack of pressure treated ply to replace with, but other matters pressed, and it stayed wrapped in tarps, leaning against the house for over a year. The other day, Ellawyn was out there and I heard an old board crack. That was the last straw and yesterday I redecked the whole thing. Man was it worth it. Spring is in the air, and the mountains are lovely.

( Make with the clicky so I can rub it in and show you some pretty pictures... )

I thought I might unveil our new ad, coming out in the Spring Issue of Faerie Magazine. I must say, IMHO, that this is our best ad yet, and the model is exceptionally beautiful. But then, I'm biased, she's my daughter and I took the picture. The funny thing is, that as a gardener the fact that these are summer daisies in a spring ad, since we took the pic sometime in June last year, bugs me. But I will get over it....