digressions, philosophy and the pathway to Om through sweet peas and such...

it's hard to believe it's only been two classes with Chef Ron and the sugar flowers. i say that for a couple of reasons. first: it feels like we've learned much more than could be taught in two classes. second: time is supposed to fly by when you're having fun. ...

now here's where i argue my point. i've NEVER bought into that theory. or saying. or adage... whatever you want to call it. when i'm having fun, it lasts. take for example, my marriage. i only recently celebrated my second year of marriage. we spent it frolicking about in a lavender field out east, doing a photo shoot for a photographer friend of mine [a dreamy, re-live your wedding type thing...] after the shoot, i even wore my wedding dress out to a little secret restaurant, famous for its seafood and old-timey, long island-y, traditional family victuals. and two years?? it's lasted for EVER.

the night of my photo shoot...it stretched on for miles as well. far beyond my blueberry pie [yup, wore my dress out to a public restaurant and i ate blueberry pie IN my champagne white, swarovski-adorned, silk taffeta gown. we left all together, unscathed by the way...haha] this is probably why my friends like me...i'll do almost anything on a dare. but can you imagine if i was afraid to get my pretty dress dirty? what's the point in worrying? it will never be said of me that i worried too much about my hair, or my silk gown, or any minor thing. bridezilla i am/was not! [by the way: bridezilla is term that is SO passe. it bores me and at the same time, reminds me of how sad it must be to not live fully present in the blissful moments of your life - if you can't wear your dress and eat some blueberry pie and dance until you fall asleep, well... it's a shame.] but i SERIOUSLY digress... *sheesh!*

and my wedding too, a 5-hour affair complete with westhampton sunset, rainbows and a giant, towering, glimmering wedding cake... lasted at LEAST 15 hours. not 5, but 15- maybe 20. i mean, there's this song that i love, by this band that i love...i sit alone at night in my tiny little office, playing it on my imperceptible piano, singing all by myself - a little secret place that no one can experience but me - it's called "celebrate" [give it a listen] and in it, there is a lyric that says:

can't make time stand still

but you can make it run

you can make it bend at will

and that's sort of how i look at this experience. you can't stop time and make it last forever, BUT you can absolutely drain every last second, celebrate it, make it stretch out and waltz by...make it bend at will. so yeah, it's been two classes...it feels like many more than that.

is that preachy? guess i am just a philosopher at heart. and i always hope the very best for everyone and everything and every moment. SO...obviously, i'm making sure to soak up all the Chef Ron that is possible...especially in light of the fact that i may never get an opportunity like this ever again in my life. i have to wrap my arms around my life experiences and hug them as long as they will let me.

we worked on so many wonderful things already...the whole room looks like early spring right now! slowly, little by little, flowers are coming to life...i swear it almost smells like things are blooming!

we started with the calla lily! a white one. one, simple petal, wrapped around a yellow center... and yet... it gave me the most challenge! NO, not frustrating, i don't get frustrated when it comes to getting challenged... i just simply felt....challenged. there are times, when something looks painfully simple to someone else, yet it will cause me the greatest challenge. like, for example...i can solve calculus equations...sometimes, partially even in my head...i can [and have] memorized ENTIRE Bach sonatas and played them without error on my flute - but if you ask me to give you change of a 20 dollar bill... and you're one of those people that will give me a 20 AND a nickel [ugh, or a penny], because you want a 10 back..FORGET IT! i'll be lost amidst a challenging sea of confusion...i'll figure it out...it'll just take me an impressively long time to do so. [hey, as long as it's impressive right?] anyway, my experience with the sugar calla lily brings to mind one of my favorite episodes of I Love Lucy, in which Lucy grabs her hair, messes it up and says, "the calla lilies are in bloom agaaaain" - i guess lifted from the original: The Stage Door with Katherine Hepburn...

but, after a great while and a lot of visualization, i managed to get two done (not the four that we were supposed to have finished *sad face*) but i was somewhat happy with it (only somewhat...in a "eh, i've seen better" kinda way). just give me time to practice them a few hundred times... *smile* i do love how it graciously hugs its center. wraps around it delicately, secretly, provocatively. flowers are sexy. i mean, they can be.

so we also worked on one my favorite flowers in the entire known universe: the peony. my entire wedding was filled with peonies: creamy white ones, soft pinks. hugged up to gorgeous roses, hydrangeas of celadon green. my bridal bouquet was solely comprised of creamy white peonies and ivory white roses. peonies are a luscious, soft, fragrant flower that promises sweetness and romance. and so of course i'm always excited to learn a flower that i love so.

see? proof from my wedding photo album!

so it comes as no surprise that i sincerely enjoy making them, petal by petal. it's like building a little dreamy flower that sparks notions of romance in your mind. if, back in high school, when they asked what you wanted to be when you grew up...had "sugar peony maker" been on the list... i'd've circled that one. [well...that and world traveler and writer. for the record, i'm going to figure out a way to do all three *smile*]

my peony is not my best work. i was struggling to get a clean cut with my cutters. might be because my thumb is still sprained slightly and i can't press as hard as i'm supposed to... but i don't care if someone lobbed off my thumb. i wouldn't miss this class for anything. wild horses couldn't drag me away.

i also know that we will be adding more petals and of course i'm guessing we'll be dusting the flowers too. it's amazing what petal dust can do. it brings things to LIFE. i've done it a few times...but i know it transforms those sugar petals, breathes a vibrance into them that causes them to dance awake. at least i'm pretty certain that's what we'll be doing when we get to that step. but i'm just a mate on the ship, not the captain. i'm tabula rasa.

we made sweet little sweet pea blossoms out of a delightful shade of pink. what a delicate flower. [as an aside: i call my one cat maggie, "sweet P" on occasion, on account of her pink little nose and the fact that one of her 10,000 nicknames is princess baby kitty, aka. PBK, aka. P, aka. sweet P...get it?? she's pretty adorable].

so of course, i adore them. the ones we made look like the ones i've seen here and there before. i love their name, and their little hidden, sweet, shy appearance. (see photo below)

we made a part of our orchid which is a frilly little piece. i can't wait to put that together and see it come to life! (see photo below)

lastly, we worked a bit on "finger flowers." these are flowers that you use nothing but a pair of scissors and your ...you guessed it...fingers! it takes some time to get the hang of it... we were joking in class that if i could create a little portable work station, i could sit on the train and practice on the way home! [DON'T put it past me! i just might you know! i've mentioned how i am about dares... AND it's a long ride home! *wink*]

so these sweet little blossoms... the finger flowers. there are many types to make. last night we worked on hydrangeas. you start with a little ball, turn it into a tear-drop shape, then make 4 snips and start to pinch and twist and form the four petals. mine are...okay. they need work. guess that's what the train ride's for!

so at the end of the night, we had to pack all of our things together. i think we all are doing a fabulous job. and i love how everyone's trays are coming to life. like i said earlier...little by little, spring is blooming down in our kitchen! i can't wait to get back to class and see what's next!

well, what does "Om" have to do with all this? i guess just that getting to sit and conjure flowers out of thin air...it's just about as close to meditation as i can get. it calms me. i will forever love the act of creation. just sit down, pull a vision from the recesses of your mind...and then pinch, pull, twist, cut, snip, vein, curl, furl, frill, and somehow, out of gums and sugars and heat and vision, you end up with ...well, with beauty. sweet, sugary beauty. that's meditation. that's Om. namaste.

more to come!

xo

m