Yesterday we held a day for the arts, which I called "Arts for the Heart", here at our home. About 30 people came by to take part in workshops offered by area experts. Potter Ken Wilkinson (I'd offer a link but he has yet to set up a homepage; however, you can find examples of his work at several outlets if you google him) showed over a dozen people how to use the wheel and to also do other pottery; mandala artist Margaret Bremner demonstrated how to do Zentangles, an intricate ink form, and several of the participants made some lovely work; watercolourist Ivy Moore showed several participants, in a couple of sessions, how to work with bright coloured spray; poet Bruce Filson read poems with animation, including a poem by the late Larry Rowdon and a contrapuntal reading with me of the forthcoming Spirits in a Broken World: A Poetic Conversation, which I hope to publish with Rob O'Flanagan in 2010; young poet and musician, Thomas Mitchell Doran, read some remarkable works and accompanied himself on his guitar for three original, quite delightful songs; I read some poetry and a segment from Annie Dillard's amazing Pilgrim at Tinker Creek; Bernie demonstrated to an admiring crowd how to make homemade linguine (which they subsequently ate all up!)...in short, the place was a relatively well-organized zoo. My niece Stephanie made a lovely acrylic painting, and her brother Graham, along with partner Chelsea, made a couple of lovely paintings of their own; the children painted and 'blinged' to their heart's content, and really enjoyed trying out the pottery wheel. We fed 30 people, with a little help from our friends, and had a very good time. Bernie thinks we should do this event twice annually. We are starting to think seriously of converting the barn into a studio and putting the chickens (in spring he intends to order a lot of poultry to raise for meat) in the back outbuildings.

So the first week of holidays is almost over; the sun is making its way down as I type. During the next week we will venture out to spend time with my sister and her family on New Year's Eve, hopefully taking in a movie or two. There are, uncharacteristically, several from which to choose. I am interested in Invictus, and in the Sherlock Holmes film with Jude Law & Robert Downey Jr., and in the comedy with Hugh Grant & Sarah Jessica Parker...decisions, decisions. I think there's something with Sandra Bullock, too, but it looks like a sports movie from the poster so I'll probably wait and get it on DVD. I will have to spend one day doing preparation for the coming term and exams, but will wait until the new year for this.

I always feel a little split when I talk about the new year as the calendar changes; the Baha'i calendar actually celebrates the new year on March 21, along with several other cultures. So I guess I get to have two new years a year; this one, when we go from 2009 to 2010, and then the celebrations of March. Fine with me. The important idea, I guess, is that as each day opens we have the opportunity for renewal. It's not just a question of making new year's resolutions (I don't; if there's something that important to me to accomplish, I start when I feel strong enough to do so, generally speaking). It's a question of how we think; how we view the time we spend here on this planet. It's about substance; about how to improve each day of our lives, regardless of the numbers on the calendar. It is with this in mind that I will close this post with one of my favourite quotes from the Baha'i writings, one which I used as part of the dedication in my most recent book:

"Let each morn be better than its eve and each morrow richer than its yesterday." Baha'u'llah