The Amazing Heart

I've just stumbled upon some beautiful paintings of "flying girl" at http://warriorgirl.blogspot.com/, one of them, in process I believe, Flying Girl Follows Her Heart, reminded me of "The Amazing Heart Book!" written and illustrated by the young first-grader me. I stumbled on it a decade or so ago and have been captivated ever since, keeping it in a "keep close to heart" folder filed in the corner of our bedroom, along with it Roger Hargreaves' Little Miss Shy, a few love notes from old friends [annie says: 'come fly with me;" jessie: "my sisters are the shamens in my world," jojo: "I become a dragon in the clouds/ I fall asleep to drumbeats/ and Run through backroads/ that look like veins peeking, subtley & proud/ out of flesh"], Anna's painting of cows, Rebecca's Geometry of Home, the lyrics to This is Mine by Lucy Kaplansky and a faded photograph of my dad, at two or three years old, sitting in a child-size brown wicker rocking chair, waving what looks like a foot-long twig in his left hand, a mischeivious grin creasing his cheeks (raw young innocence, I like to think of him this way).

"The Amazing Heart Book!," written 5-11-87, reminds me of how important it is to remember and to return to what is sacred, to those simple truths children know so well...

My little story book goes like this:

This is the heart of love and the heart of spirit. It is the most important thing.

When you climb it you are in a beautiful magic land.

If you touch it you will be powerful.

You would like it. I know my heart. I love this heart.

I wish I could go there, but it is blocked. It is a beautiful site when you go to the mountains.

And my sweet pup sighs once again and curls her restless body against my feet. It must be time to head to the mountains...