Thursday, May 27, 2021

Finished Mandala #61 on a stormy morning / Ann Humphreys (Lummi Elder) / "Come in," he said, "I'll give you shelter from the storm."












Mandala #61:  Honoring Ann Humphrey's Life)


*







SHELTER FROM THE STORM

'Twas in another lifetime, one of toil and blood
When blackness was a virtue the road was full of mud
I came in from the wilderness, a creature void of form
Come in, she said
I'll give ya shelter from the storm
And if I pass this way again, you can rest assured
I'll always do my best for her, on that I give my word
In a world of steel-eyed death, and men who are fighting to be warm
Come in, she said
I'll give ya shelter from the storm
Not a word was spoke between us, there was little risk involved
Everything up to that point had been left unresolved
Try imagining a place where it's always safe and warm
Come in, she said
I'll give ya shelter from the storm
I was burned out from exhaustion, buried in the hail
Poisoned in the bushes an' blown out on the trail
Hunted like a crocodile, ravaged in the corn
Come in, she said
I'll give ya shelter from the storm
Suddenly I turned around and she was standin' there
With silver bracelets on her wrists and flowers in her hair
She walked up to me so gracefully and took my crown of thorns
Come in, she said
I'll give ya shelter from the storm
Now there's a wall between us, somethin' there's been lost
I took too much for granted, I got my signals crossed
Just to think that it all began on an uneventful morn
Come in, she said
I'll give ya shelter from the storm
Well, the deputy walks on hard nails and the preacher rides a mount
But nothing really matters much, it's doom alone that counts
And the one-eyed undertaker, he blows a futile horn
Come in, she said
I'll give ya shelter from the storm
I've heard newborn babies wailin' like a mournin' dove
And old men with broken teeth stranded without love
Do I understand your question, man, is it hopeless and forlorn
Come in, she said
I'll give ya shelter from the storm
In a little hilltop village, they gambled for my clothes
I bargained for salvation and she gave me a lethal dose
I offered up my innocence I got repaid with scorn
Come in, she said
I'll give ya shelter from the storm
Well, I'm livin' in a foreign country but I'm bound to cross the line
Beauty walks a razor's edge, someday I'll make it mine
If I could only turn back the clock to when God and her were born
Come in, she said
I'll give ya shelter from the storm

Bob Dylan

4 comments:

37paddington said...

That mandala is such a beautiful piece, I love your use of color in it.

am said...

Rosemarie -- Thank you so much for your appreciation of this mandala. I started working on it on March 30 and was stalled until two weeks ago. Early this morning I suddenly knew what I needed to do to finish it and proceeded to do that before I did anything else.

Sabine said...

Wonderful colourwork in the new mandala. Do you listen to music when you work?

am said...

Sabine -- Thank you for commenting so positively on the colors. I started by using the golden yellow and deep red-orange and black of the Red-winged blackbirds that I hear singing outside my windows to the east and finished by using the yellow-orange, black and white of a Black-headed Grosbeak who appeared at my suet feeder just as I was trying to figure out how to finish the mandala before sunrise. For most of this mandala I was listening to music, much coming from Bob Dylan's Theme Time Radio Hour on YouTube, although the last few hours working on it were in the silent early morning time. Sometimes I listen to recorded books. Sometimes interviews, etc, on YouTube. Sometimes I listen to La Casa en Mango Street for Spanish language immersion.