What makes these things possible? Presence? Discipline? Sheer, unadulterated Luck? All of these? I don’t know.

I know I am humbled and grateful.

I would love to believe it’s my little village, but it’s not. Villages and Cities are filled with wonderful interesting people everywhere. It may be true that it’s easier to see one another in small towns… I can believe that. And I don’t know that it matters.

I’m here and for whatever reasons, I’m connected to amazing people. People who when we notice that children are hungry step up. I’m grateful every day for the team I get to work with. Caring people and very, very smart. And not just smart, but  ingenious. There we are… making things happen. Things that need to happen. Things that matter. You don’t have to be the best at what you are, what you dream… you do need to be disciplined and consistent. You do need to be, dare I say it, earnest about your dreams and your determination. Earnestness translates; it sells. And selling is what we’re doing.

No one is going to feed hungry children unless you offer them the opportunity and give them a place to pay. It’s that simple… I didn’t always understand that, but there it is.

I believe fervently that we can do work that makes our hearts explode in our chests wherever we are. Yes, sometimes it’s that overwhelming. Yesterday was one of them. I adore this artist. If you’ve followed my work, you’ve adored her as well… She’s the woman who did the Peace mandalas for last year’s musings. A wonderful artist. She lives here. We show up at the same events — last night at Steve’s Musical Mash-up. She’d been there last week and we’d talked about mandalas, about the LOVE project, about doing a project together. We brainstormed words and phrases (while listening to our neighbors play astonishing music).

And then this week she came back. She’d played with words and found three that work. She taught me how to look into her designs and then she told me how her designs move. In and out; around. The designs are gorgeous and her explanations completely germane to the work we are doing. And so we will go to work… And this will be one more way to step up, to be socially active, to feed children… and one more way to think about what matters. And for us, it will be one more way to use our arts… to explore them… to apply them… to collaborate… for good, for community, for Peace.

Oh may your lives be this joyous and filled with magic! I am awed and grateful that mine is.