may this dress celebrate YOU and your precious life!!

'ribbon dress' (2008) part of the collection at the Dana Hall School

"What will you do with 

your one wild and precious life?"

Mary Oliver

for today I picked one of my favorite 

dresses from my dressproject, 'ribbon dress'

to create the skirt I stamped 

positive and inspiring quotes 

on ribbons and strips of fabrics.

this was a time-consuming process, however

I loved the meditative process of 

individually stamping each letter of these 

words of wisdom.

this dress contains many of my favorite quotes ~

from Mary Oliver, Kiki Smith & 

Thoreau, to name a few.

(a bit of a precursor to my dresscards)

this dress is part of the 

Dana Hall School's art collection, 

it is exhibited in their library. 

I feel that it is a perfect home 

for this dress, 

as it emanates  positive and 

affirming ideas.

 I wish to share my favorite poem by Mary Oliver ~ 

Wild Geese

You do not have to be good.

You do not have to walk on your knees

for a hundred miles through the desert repenting.

You only have to let the soft animal of your body

love what it loves.

Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.

Meanwhile the world goes on.

Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain

are moving across the landscapes, 

over the prairies and the deep trees,

the mountains and the rivers.

Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,

are heading home again.

Whoever you are, no matter how lonely, 

the world offers itself to your imagination,

calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting 

over and over announcing your place 

in the family of things.

from Dream Work by Mary Oliver 

published by Atlantic Monthly Press

© Mary Oliver

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