Cristina Jill

Late Ripeness “Not soon, as late as the approach of my ninetieth year, I felt a door opening in me and I entered the clarity of early morning. One after another my former lives were departing, like ships, together with their sorrow. And the countries, cities, gardens, the bays of seas assigned to my brush came closer, ready now to be described better than they were before. I was not separated from people, grief and pity joined us. We forget - I kept saying - that we are all children of the King. For where we come from there is no division into Yes and No, into is, was, and will be. We were miserable, we used no more than a hundredth part of the gift we received for our long journey. Moments from yesterday and from centuries ago - a sword blow, the painting of eyelashes before a mirror of polished metal, a lethal musket shot, a caravel staving its hull against a reef - they dwell in us, waiting for a fulfillment. I knew, always, that I would be a worker in the vineyard, as are all men and women living at the same time, whether they are aware of it or not.” ~ Czeslaw Milosz ~ My name is Cristina Jill Mosqueda Cooper. I pause looking at my name, and think about how much there is to explain with those words alone. My mother gave me a name to use in each of my worlds, Cristina for my Cuban life, and Jill for the American life. I suppose it is there were the paradoxes of my life began. I have been many things in my life, from a housekeeper to a high school history teacher; but no matter what else I did, I was always a writer. I love words and the power and passion which they can be used to create. I love reading words, writing words, speaking words, and listening to words – especially words from people that I love and respect. It is my desire to live life on my own terms, and willingly or not, I have paid the price demanded, by the world, to be myself. I share my life with Kate, with whom I have lived for the last 23 years, and Miss Merry Margaret, our little mutt who really is the world’s most perfect dog. I also travel, cook, garden, sculpt, and make large messes doing all of the above. Welcome to my world, that is all for now.

Web Site: http://thatisallfornow.com


Nature

February 17, 2020

Jerusalem Artichokes     I too love well-manicured flower beds that have been planned to ensure proper height, complimentary color schemes and rotational bloom, how could I not. But oh my wildflowers do possess a beauty, in their scattered displays, which demand that the car be pulled over.     These ubiquitous sunflowers can...
Read More »

Ephemera

February 14, 2020

“Married Longer Than We’ve Been Alive” By Alice Kahn I know I cut it out of the Los Angeles Times, and it was either in the late 1980’s or early 1990’s, but I am afraid that is the full extent of the credit I can give Ms. Kahn. Well, I have held on to...
Read More »

Poet’s Corner

February 12, 2020

The Last Time The last time comes more often Than we would like Especially as we get older Rarely is there any advanced warning That this will be the last time And that we should memorialize the moment Living in a world of check lists It is business as usual We do not stop...
Read More »

A View from the Road

February 9, 2020

“Magnolias for Pittsburg”     I do not know that without the snow, on the ground, I would have been stopped by this View From the Road; but a magnolia tree in bloom, in the winter, most assuredly caught my attention. This small park, located in downtown Pittsburg, on the corner of 7th Street...
Read More »

Art

February 5, 2020

To love a painting is to feel that this presence is… not an object but a voice. ~ Andre Malraux ~     Three Top Sergeants  by George Luks   I continue to be drawn to realism and continue to be surprised; this painting is not something I would typically be attracted by, yet...
Read More »

From the Editor

January 31, 2020

Live by Sword, Die by the Sword Impeachment Trial of President Donald Trump Fires in Australia General Qasem Soleimani Killed Ukraine Flight 752 Shot Down Iran Launches Ballistic Missiles toward Iraq Protest in Lebanon Prince Harry and Megan Markel Make Change Earthquakes in Puerto Rico Coronavirus from China Earthquake in Turkey Entire Russian Cabinet...
Read More »

Food

January 31, 2020

Sharing with Patty And all Connoisseur’s Of Great Food     I often shoot pictures, of the dishes, I make, on this table top. It is the dining room table, which was Kate’s grandmother’s, Tessie, and is where we take most of our meals in Maine; and it is adorned with one of my...
Read More »

Food

January 28, 2020

Pork Tenderloin in a Green Sauce I have become inspired by Pati Jinich, to branch out with chilis, in my cooking. Thus with a beautiful pork tenderloin on the menu, for Sunday supper, I decided to forgo a Cuban or Middle Eastern preparation, or even barbeque, which I considered for a moment, and see...
Read More »

The Dialogue

January 22, 2020

“Ye are the Light of the World”   In 2001, Andrea Yates did the unthinkable, and murdered her children; sadly, it appears that another mother in Arizona has committed the same heinous act. Tonight I found a sermon my Mother wrote, in response to the events that occurred almost twenty years ago. Her first...
Read More »

Public Square

January 20, 2020

African American History Monument     The South Carolina State House grounds are most definitely worth a stop; they have an impressive display of monuments honoring various individuals and commemorating events which matter, like African-American History. A good place to remember Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday.     From South Carolina Just Right Website:...
Read More »



Art


Copy Protected by Chetan's WP-Copyprotect.