11/10/14

Saturday my friend, Terri, and I traveled to Boulder for a photo candle luminaria workshop. I love any excuse to go to Boulder and this was a good one. I got to take home beautiful hurricanes with Kade’s picture, and catch up with a friend on the drive. The Boulder Compassionate Friends chapter hosted. The luminarias can be used for TCF’s annual Worldwide Candle Lighting, always the second Sunday of December. I’ve been in love with luminarias since visiting Santa Fe the first Christmas without Kade. The town is illuminated with the bags at Christmas-time.

It was a gorgeous sunny fall day, in the sixties. Looks like it was the last of the unseasonably warm November days, because today it snowed and GOT DOWN TO SIXTEEN DEGREES. The workshop was a block from Pearl Street Mall. Afterward we strolled, ducking into Terri’s favorite jewelry shop (now a favorite of mine!), and a toy and Tibetan store. I knew the Tibetan store would be tough, though I knew I would go in.

Flash back to about 2009 when Kade was probably 16. He wasn’t living at home. He was living at Synergy Residential Treatment Center. Treatment for behavior and substance issues. He was living a tough consequence for some choices he had made. He was on a cherished-by-us-both, days-counted-down-to, home pass. Brian, Kade, and I spent the day in Boulder. We toured the National Center for Atmospheric Research and walked Pearl Street Mall. At lunch Kade had oysters on the half shell for the first time. Loved ‘em, like all seafood. He was transfixed with the shells and even took one with him. We picked out selections to sample at the Boulder Dushanbe Teahouse, an authentic Tajikistan teahouse.

We shopped at the Tibetan store. We picked out a red jolly buddha for Uncle Andy. Kade might have gotten one, too, I don’t remember. If so I don’t have it. I might have bought him incense for his room, as I sometimes did (Oh yeah–I should burn incense in his room when I’m down there reflecting or journaling!).

Walking in that store with Terri was hard. But she got it, since she lost her 18-year-old son Patrick almost four years ago. Browsing among the tight quarters of tapestries, bejeweled elephants, and scent of incense, she told me about some of the pieces her daughter, adopted from China, used to have in her room, and I got to tell her about our exploits in Boulder five years ago. And now, I got to tell you.

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Sunday one of my best friends, Angela, came over for a craft day. A grief center in Aurora called The Heartlight Center is having a Holiday Market Dec. 6th and we’re donating our wares. We made notecard stationery sets, a decoupage picture frame, hurricane candle holder, boxes, and candle (yes, she decoupaged a candle). If you haven’t done decoupage yet, you should try it. It’s easy—and addicting. You can use nearly ANY material: newspaper, magazine, even fabric. Angela used a music sheet and wrapping paper. You seal it on by brushing with Mod Podge. Look how darling her hurricane turned out! I promise I won’t keep it, Ang.

My kitchen table looked like Joann Fabric or Michael’s threw up. After Angela left, I continued to decoupage my little heart out into the night. The table’s finally cleared off… enough for my laptop at least. Most of my crafting supplies are nestled back into their bins… until my next project obsession.