GraceNotes_header_1320_279
Number 48

grace in the every day

The 100 Day Project is a global initiative through which artists and makers commit to a small creative effort over a very loose span of 100 days and through which, if so inclined, they share via socials using the common hashtag #the100dayproject. My amazing friend and co-worker, Erin, participated in the effort last year, and I had such fun following along as she knitted project after project and offered little peeks into her process and artistry (and dedication) via Instagram stories.

This year I jumped on the bandwagon, committing to 100 days of daily grace. My intent was to share a moment of beauty or glory or surprise that moved me, something I had done a few years back via my @thedailygrace Instagram feed. I loved the practice because it served as a reminder to me to pay attention.

(As you probably guessed, grace always delivered.)
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I launched my 100 Days in a watercolor journal I had on hand, purchased last year after a mountain visit with another inspiring artist, @laurelarchieart. I am not a watercolor painter, but I liked the idea of a quick daily sketch with a sweet wash of color—something that it turns out, to no one's surprise but my own—is a bit more difficult than it sounds. From the beginning it was not my intention for all 100 to be captures in this medium, keeping a wide lane for myriad ways to capture the sweet moments of day that give life texture. Still I've made it to Day 32, and for the time being I will carry on painting with water, both looking for and extending to myself a bit of grace as I attempt something new.

(If you are interested, you'll find the growing collection on a highlights reel on my Instagram feed @cathyriggwriter and on Facebook @cathyriggwriter. I will warn you, some of them make me cringe. Also, and far more significant, you can follow the initiative's hashtag #the100daysproject to see the magnificent global collection. It is inspiring to see that there are plenty of professional-level artists participating, but also a grand population of folks like me who are simply committed to the act of exploring and creating, in whatever form that takes.)
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What are you making these days? I ask because I know there is something, whether you consider it "art" or not. I believe it is the act of creating that makes our hearts and souls expand, bringing something into the world that otherwise would not have existed. A thoughtful text, a loving dinner, a quickly snapped photograph, a braid for a precious, giggly child. All of these bring meaning and texture to life, and along with you I celebrate every single one.

Make on, my friend!

XXOO,
Cathy
BINGE LOVE
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image from Paramount Plus
1883, the prequel to Yellowstone, on Paramount Plus. I love a western, and Faith Hill and Tim McGraw are just so good, and oh-what-can-I-say about Isabel May as Elsa Dutton. In particular I love the narrative tone of this series; Elsa's narration at the open of each episode is poetry.
PODCAST LOVE
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I know, I know. I just went on and on and on about Smartless and I insisted you begin your new podcast obsession via the Sandra Bullock episode. But I hadn't gotten to Ken Burns yet. Shortly I will hear Ken and the boys for the third time, and this time I will have a pencil and notebook in hand.

Also tee up Tom Hanks.

THESE EPISODES ARE ALL SO GOOD.
LINK LOVE
It's at the top of the list of things I always mean to do but don't get 'round to: HOST REGULAR DINNER PARTIES. Now this, from Apartment Therapy, which makes me think 2022 may be the year I finally change all that! 7 Little Things I Stopped Doing for Dinner Parties — and 3 Things I Always Do
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I have always been fascinated by the mystery of Stonehenge, and now—it appears—there's a good explanation. Scientist reveals how Stonehenge Likely Worked at Last, from Vice
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2022's Banished Words List, from Lake Superior State University
(It's definitely worth a look!)
BOOK LOVE
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Taste: My Life Through Food, by Stanley Tucci
I listened to the audiobook of Taste read by the author, and oh I was charmed. I loved his stories of growing up in a family of Italian-Americans, the impact food had on their lives and loves. He also tells of traveling the world as an actor, the meals he enjoyed (and some he didn't), what life was like during COVID. Funny, sometimes irreverent, and always entertaining. The moment I finished the audio I ordered my own hardback copy, for access to the recipes (particularly many of his "perfect" cocktails).
RECIPE LOVE
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Image: Healthy Nibbles
Easy Slow Cooker Chipotle Chicken Chili
from Healthy Nibbles
(I know we're easing into spring but we have just returned to the WNC mountains right now where IT SNOWED LAST NIGHT.)
I have made this on repeat all winter.
LOVE LOVE
Wendell Berry reads his poem, The Peace of Wild Things
Part of an amazing series brought to us by The On Being Project as part of their Poetry Films series.
Latest Post from THE DAILY GRACE
baby dogwood

When It's Almost Spring

You can't trust March. I've written of this before. But this year, in 2022? Maybe we're meant to grab onto any sunshine we can find, in whatever form it comes, in whatever way it comes—fleeting or not.

CREATIVITY:

There was nothing. And now there is something.

— Steven Pressfield
The War of Art
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