Andrea Hawkes: Prayers for Somalia

I, like so many, think about the famine in Somalia every day.  Donations, while important, just don’t seem enough against what seem to be insurmountable odds.  A prayer flag – can it really make a difference?  Well, I don’t know for sure, but I know that my heart is in this one (as in all of them) and while I may not be a very good artist, this flag seemed to come from somewhere through my hands and, for me at least, has meaning.  Inspiration, intuition – it seems to happen without thought or intention.  May the winds that take prayer flags take hope, love, rain, growth, food and change to Somalia .

Regards,

Andrea

Andrea Hawkes: Matthew's Flag

This is Andrea Hawke's most recent prayer flag.  In her own words, ...

 I continue to make flags – not as often as I would like.

The process of these flags, for me, is quite remarkable.  I began this one a few weeks ago on a piece of batik I had painted and then I started added beads, not quite knowing where it was wanting to go.  Last night as I was arriving home from a very late day at work, I heard a wonderful Canadian singer, Peter Katz, sing a powerful song called “The Fence” about Matthew Shepard who, you may remember, was murdered because he was gay. (See The Laramie project for more information, if you do not already know.)   I do not often stay in a hot car to listen to a song but this one reached an emotional chord with me.  This morning I woke up and knew exactly where the flag I had begun a few weeks ago was leading me.   I added the stitching (the fence),  a piece of tatting that my talented sister sent me, the butterfly, and of course Matthew’s name – I am overcome with sadness at the moment – there is such much hatred in this world but I also know there are wonderful people out there, like Peter Katz, who will continue to make us all aware of the things that need and can be changed. 

Regards,

Andrea

For the Dogs: Andrea Hawkes

Andrea is an animal lover, and her prayer flag is for Mobey, who like so many others, needs a forever home.

Don't we all have special places in our hearts for pets?  In keeping with this post, I wanted to add a comment received on Jane LaFazio's blog a few days ago from a dog who loved her prayer flags...  Yes, you read that correctly!

The clever pooch writes, "Wow, prayer flags. We dogs have a similar thing - Wish Sticks. It's pretty much the same story as the flags. Or at least they serve a similar function. 

We find sticks we like, chew them for a bit while we think about our wish. Then we leave the stick to release the good thoughts into the world. The stick might be picked up by another dog and have another wish added to it. This helps the first wish grow stronger and so on. The more wishes a stick has, the more likely the wishes will come true. I'll go find a stick right now and chew a wish for your friend Melly.
Tchao-wow from Portugal".


I wish my dog were that eloquent.  He's now snoring on the floor at my feet, probably dreaming of some wish stick he left behind...


Thank you, Andrea, for sharing your flag.  Thank you Jane for sharing the comment, and thank you Tchao-wow for adding a smile to this post!