Well, miracle of miracles, I finally finished something.

Here is a dirty little secret about me. I'm notorious for starting a project and not finishing it. I can't tell you how many knitted, fabric and felted things sit in a box or container waiting for completion. How many unfinished pieces of jewelry and well thought out craft projects sit in bags in my closet. I'm the queen of incompleteness, the CEO of corporate level shortfall. I love the process but I'm not a finisher. Unless there's a deadline or someone says, "Bring the project we started last month for show and tell.." or "What price would you like to put on this piece." Then I'm all about game plans, procedures, stratagem or plot line.
So...
The fact that I sat down and finished one of two necklaces that my SCAT group worked on over the last two months is a 'you know what' miracle... and I did this without a deadline or being paid.
I still have another to finish, but I'm very happy with this one.
So, without further ado, I want to show you my necklace.... against the background of Buddha who said,
 “Having gone on his almsround, the sage should then go to the forest, standing or taking a seat at the foot of a tree. The enlightened one, intent on jhana, should find delight in the forest, should practice jhana at the foot of a tree, attaining his own satisfaction.”
Oh, I'm sorry... that doesn't really have anything to do with my finished necklace... will maybe a little... I just like what it says.

So... without further ado...

This is the finished necklace. I made it out of Fimo clay. I rolled the clay out flat using a pasta maker. Then I cut out the shape I wanted and added other pieces to the base. The base was stamped with a leaf pattern before I baked it.

Buddha did says, "You yourself must strive.The Buddhas only point the way." So I did. 

After the pieces were baked, the fun began. I used a technique that I learned using layers of paint in a workshop with Michael deMeng.  This technique teaches you how to distress and alter anything, make it look old, and replicate stone. After I added layers of color, I scratch the dry clay lightly with a wire brush.

I had added some of the coral pieces that I brought back from Maui last year. They added the perfect touch to the dark background... as if they were still lying in the sand on the beach.

I found a chain at Walmart, for $3.33, that fit through the top. 

The hardest part was connecting the two pieces with thread and needle. The holes were made before the clay was baked, but getting the thread to hang right and not too tight was difficult. There must be an easier way to do this.
I'm not sure if I want to spray a protective coating over the whole necklace or not. I don't want any shine but I do want to keep the finish safe from chipping.

As Buddha says, "“Ardently do today what must be done. Who knows? Tomorrow, death comes.”
I know... that's a little heavy handed for a blogpost about a necklace, but I'm never going to finish all the projects I have around here. I need to tidy things up, throw some things out or give them away and "ardently do what must be done" to get my house in order... 'cause you never know when you go sit under the tree that Buddha talks about and, all of a sudden, get attacked by a bear or something.
Don't laugh. Where I live, it's a possibility.
And then...
Someone would come to help clean out this mess and say, "My goodness. She sure had a lot of unfinished projects laying around. I wonder why she didn't finish them?"
This hangs greatly over my head.
I have work to do.

Of those beings who live in ignorance, shut up and confined, as it were, in an egg, I have first broken the eggshell of ignorance and alone in the universe obtained the most exalted, universal Buddhahood. Buddha
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/b/buddha_2.html

Of those beings who live in ignorance, shut up and confined, as it were, in an egg, I have first broken the eggshell of ignorance and alone in the universe obtained the most exalted, universal Buddhahood.
Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/b/buddha_2.html

Goat Secrets

"Hi Freckles, how are you today sweetie?. You sure are getting big. Look at ya..., catching up with the rest of the boys."
"Hello Farmlady. I'm learning how to be a big goat. I already know how to run the fastest and butt heads....., and I have a secret."
"Can you tell me what the secret is?
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because then it won't be a secret."
"Oh..., well why did you bring it up then?"
"I don't know. I get excited and forget I'm not suppose to tell."
"Well if you decide to tell me, I'll be around. Be careful Freck's, Bart is underneath you. Don't trip on him. See you later, boy."
Freckles jumped down on top of Bart and they decided to play the "butting heads" game for a while, then Freckles ran down into the pasture.










Murphy came over to the fence.
"Hi farmlady"
"Hi Murph'. how's it going today?"
"Pretty good. How are you?"
"I'm ok. I was just talking to Freckles and he says he has a secret. Do you know what the secret is?"
"Maybe."
"What do you mean by maybe?"
"Well, it's not really a secret."
"Oh?"
"Yes. It's just something he's learning to do."
"And what would that be?"
"Well, I don't know if I should tell you because Freckles thinks it's a secret and I wouldn't want to tell a secret if he really thinks it's one."
"I think you should tell me if it's something that might get Freckles in trouble or hurt him"
"Oh. I didn't think about it that way."
"Should I ask Bart or Brownie instead?"
"No, I'll tell you."
Farmlady leaned over the fence and smiled. She rubbed Murphy's neck and said....
"What is it sweetheart?"
"Well Farmlady, Freckles is learning to climb trees."
"What?"
"Yes, and he thinks that if he climbs high enough he can find more leaves and branches to eat, but I think that he might fall. I'm worried about him and I don't want him to get hurt."
"I understand. I'm glad you told me. I will talk to him."
"Thank you Farmlady."
"Your welcome Murph'."

Farmlady gave Murphy a scratch behind his ear and then said....
"Murphy? Do you remember when you use to dance by the light of the full moon when you were younger?"
The little goat looked at her and quietly said "Yes."
"Well, was that just what goats do? I've never seen the other goats dance like that. Were you just being playful, or was that some kind of dance that goes beyond what we humans know about?"
"Yes, it has special meaning for me."
"Can you tell me about it sometime?"
"I don't know if I can explain it."
"Would you try?"
"I'll try, Farmlady."
Murphy turned and walked away, but Farmlady could tell that the little goat was saddened by what she said. Maybe Murphy had secrets too.
Later on, Farmlady saw Freckles stretching against an Oak tree, looking up into it's branches. He saw her watching him, so he walked on down the hill to another tree. He kept looking back to see if she was still there.
She would have a talk with him soon.

Secrets are not always really secret, she thought, some secrets need to be talked about and worked through. Some others, like Murphy's should be put away and not talked about with anyone. They are private, deep and carried in one's heart. It is a hard decision to share or not share.
She would remember to tell Murphy this tomarrow...., she would tell him that he didn't have to talk about dancing if he didn't want to. It would be his choice. There are places that others shouldn't ask to go and she knew that she had made sweet Murphy sad without thinking about his feelings.
This was a lesson that she would remember for a long time.