Everywhere: and a tale of internal fireworks

I gave it up some years ago: linear thinking and the pursuit of perfection. 

I swapped it for this:  free association and the pursuit of just good. 

I think it’s too easy, too easy to get stuck.  Stuck in the same place.  Stuck doing the same thing. Caught up in a routine of the same job, the same people, the same place, the same experience.  Caught up in a loop that goes round and round....

People ask me how I do all the things that I do.  All the different jobs.  Building houses, decorating rooms, writing a blog, running Peacock Pavilions, sourcing for Red Thread Souk, throwing dinner parties, writing books, taking pictures, starting a non-profit, doing humanitarian aid, and traveling the world.  And yes, with a family and yes, with a base in Marrakesh. 

How do I do it?  Well, first of all, I have help.  And second of all, I accept that  things are going to be far from perfect.  But I am not afraid of failure -- I am afraid of not trying.

You see, I hold tightly to a wish….a wish that my life be like a fire cracker:  sparkling, sparkling in every direction, lighting up the night sky.   I want a life that’s ever changing.  I want a life that's no, no, never the same.  

PS I took these photos with my new iphone.  So excited to get on Instagram.  I'll do that as soon as I figure out how:-)

New York: and a tale of a Figue photoshoot

No, I havn't been in Marrakesh, or in Fez, or in Cairo or in Kabul.  

I've been in New York.....in the Hamptons.............with talented friend, client and designer of Figue, Stephanie Von Watzdorf.

You see, there was a Figue photo shoot and I went along.  

There were the loveliest jewels that Stephanie has collected one by one over her travels.

And the prettiest Figue pom pom shoes....

And ravishing loot that had no name but that Stephanie had procured or designed.....

Beaded Figue clutches, lined up one after another....

Including this hand sequined bag that I bought for myself!  

And of course, there were the amazing handmade Figue clothes.....{The vintage, embellished military jackets were my favorite}

Model Sonya was set to arrive.....{She had a heart and an exclamation point near her beautiful face.....}

There was hair....

And there was make up.....

And styling in earnest.....

And really Sonya was gorgeous in a way that was frankly bewildering....

The cameramen had their equipment and were ready......

And finally the shoot began......

So beautiful.....so so beautiful.....but you'll have to wait to see for yourself.  In the meantime, check out Figue's gorgeous goodies right here.

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PS I took these photos with my new iphone!  So fun.  Pls give me any tips you may have....I am learning. 

The Fez Sacred Music Festival 2013: a tale of gospel and Oh! A Happy Day

It was under a big dark Moroccan sky.  It was under a Fez arch hundreds of years old.  It was there they came...the Zulus.  

They were called the Ladysmith Red Lions and they were from South Africa.

The Lion Zulus came to dance and they came to sing at the Fez  Festival of World Sacred Music. They sang of many things. But mostly they sang of Jesus.

Soon on the stage was  Leanne Faine from Chicago.  Her voice was deep and raspy.  And she belted out songs like a woman on fire.  

She, too, sang of Jesus.

As did Leanne's ensemble band.

And then from California came Butterscotch.  She didn't really sing at all but beat-boxed.  I think {but I can't be sure} that she, too, was inspired by Jesus.

And then something happened.  

Leanne was joined by the Zulu Lions........

And by the beatboxing Butterscotch........

And they all sang gospel together.

{That sort of thing happens at the Fez Festival of World Sacred Music.}

Now I must confess....I never sing about Jesus.  Ever.  But I was on my feet, my hands clapping, and yes, singing about Jesus.  And another thing.....the Moroccan Muslims to my left and to my right {and behind me and in front of me}, I would wager that they never sing about Jesus either.  But they were on their feet, too.  And we were all singing.....

Oh happy day (oh happy day) 
When Jesus washed (when Jesus washed) 
Washed my sins away (oh happy day) 

And for a moment, it really didn't matter what we all believed and what separated us.  And it really was.....a happy day.  And a happy night.

The Fez Sacred Music Festival 2013: a tale of 2 birds on a high wire

I was in that imperial Moroccan city a thousand years old.  I was in Fez.  I had come exactly a year before. And I had come again for the same reason:  the Fez Festival of World Sacred Music.  

The year before I had fallen in love with a girl.  Tonight I would fall in love with another.  Or maybe I would fall in love with two.  

The stage was set for them. 

And then they were there. American singer Rosemary Standley and Spanish cellist Dom La Nena.  Together they were Birds on a Wire.  

Rosemary reminded me of an old French film star. She meandered from Dylan to Fairuz and sang Leonard Cohen and Tom Waits.  Her accent was perfect in several languages. She was timeless.

And when she sang, I could hear her golden fingers.

And when she drummed I could feel her longing.

As for Dom la Nena, her bow across the strings made a heartbreaking and joyous sound.

Too soon, far too soon, it was over.  They got up laughing to say their goodbyes.

And then they clapped for us as they left the stage.  

But really, the applause should have been only for them....

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PS:  New stock of the very prettiest Moroccan handira -- wedding blankets in my shop, Red Thread Souk.  Take a peek right here.