Jan. 20, 2012

My Dear Mudsters,

I wish you all a Blessed New Year and hope your holidays were full of healing and love in many forms.  My heart is really, truly overflowing with gratitude for each of you.  I don’t think I can express how much you all mean to me and how you have influenced my life’s journey.  You have brought me the greatest joy as we co-created together at Play in the Mud Studio.  Though I write this to all of you as a group, believe me when I say that I can see each of your faces as I write, and you can know that this letter is for you personally.

This past summer we had many conversations together about all the things the studio can be and you shared your fantastic visionary dreams for the space.  We often explored the ideas of sleepover camps, bunkhouses, campfires, meals, organic gardens, aviaries, pets galore, tree houses and hot tubs…ever so many exciting dreams!  This fall when I closed the studio it was my goal to explore your dreams and mine to see if I could create something new in that secret garden, something that would be financially sustainable during the school year while still continuing our summers together.  I was really considering opening a spa/retreat center that would operate from September through May, and then expanding our summer playtime adventures.  Infinite Possibility. 

And yet, what has happened is that I discovered that my life’s river is sending me in a new direction, pulling me away from our beloved studio.  Such an unexpected turn.  I do not know how it is possible that I am writing this letter to you, preparing to let go of the best experiences of my life and the magical people that shared this journey with me.  How can this be?  Part of me thinks that the studio should be Forever, always with us, always a place to retreat to, that place where we can be ourselves.  Yet we know that the only thing that is Forever is our souls and what our souls share and create together…and so, as each of you grow, have another birthday, start new classrooms, make new friends, learn new things, move to new houses, adopt new pets…the growing part is continuous.  That’s the way it is for me, too.  May it always be so.  May we all be brave enough to keep growing and keep moving.  It’s harder for grown-ups to do that, but you inspire me.

So just to bring you up-to-date on a few things at the studio and in my life…

The Pets.  Goggles the guinea pig has been adopted by Jack K.  What a great match they are!  The dove family has been divided and sent to new homes, which has been great for their feather growth. They are all in full feather on their heads!  Snow White, the babe that hatched with us this summer, is quite a beauty and is living in an aviary with budgies.   Sri and Sitara took care of all the doves in September, and they did an amazing job of foster parenting.  Thanks girlfriends!  The cockatiels, Coco and Nocky, still live with me and are wonderful companions for each other.  They act like brothers, alternately fighting with each other, and then crying when one of them leaves the room.  The parrot, Genevieve, and I have become best buds.  She pretty much hangs out on my shoulder whenever I’m at home.  She is teaching herself not to crap on my shoulder, which is, yes, a very good thing!  I still don’t have a horse or a baby elephant, but maybe someday.  I hope all your pets are doing well, and for those pets that have left us, may we hold them in our hearts for as long as we like. (Love you forever, Gimli, Fluffy and Grandmother Dove.)

My Family.  All is well.  I recovered from September’s surgery beautifully and am really grateful to my doctor and her team for their skilled work.  My oldest daughter had another baby so now I have two grandchildren, Rosemary and Eliot.  Total sweethearts, of course.  Savannah is graduating from high school this year, and Karlen, my middle girl, keeps hosting football parties so that I won’t lose touch with sports (you all know how I care about sports, right?  Ha ha!)  Drew is still working downtown and we still love living in the condo on the isthmus.  Todo Bien.

What’s next for Kasia? I’m preparing to put on my gypsy clothes and travel to the southwest to study.  I’ll be moving around a lot, taking classes and workshops in healing arts and creative arts.  What happens after that?  I have no idea, but I’ll be ready for it at last.

Closure at the studio.  Well, this is a hard one, for sure.  I need to inventory all my equipment and prepare it for sale.  I need to look for a buyer for the land, a new guardian for this sacred place.  I’d love to sell it to an artist or someone who is working in the healing arts.  Oh, the Potential…

Let’s all meet on Facebook. You know my favorite thing about the studio is YOU.  We can do our art anywhere, anytime, but being with you was the real magic…so let’s continue to meet on Facebook and inspire one another.